Ardent Mills transforms logistics decision making with AI powered optimization
How Ardent Mills uses SWARM’s logistics network optimization to plan product flows across a large North American milling network, coordinating many facilities, product lines, and customer locations.
CUSTOMER
About Ardent Mills
Ardent Mills is North America’s leading flour milling and ingredient company, helping customers across food, foodservice, and CPG with grain-based solutions. The company operates numerous locations in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico, specializing in flour, pulses, and other grain-based ingredients that support emerging plant-based nutrition.
INDUSTRY
Flour, grain production and processing
FOCUS
Flour and grain solutions
REGION
North America
USE CASES
Logistics network optimization, supply chain planning
CHALLENGE
Scaling logistics decisions across a large network
Ardent Mills operates one of the most data intensive supply chain environments in its industry. The logistics network spans a large footprint across the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico, with a wide portfolio of products and customers.
Planning has to account for:
Multiple production sites with several pack lines serving different product and package formats
A mix of mills, distribution centers, and rail to truck transfer hubs across North America
Multi layered decisions at each site across modes, lanes, and customer commitments
Traditional approaches made it hard to see the full picture of the network at once and compare options quickly. Ardent Mills wanted a logistics network optimization solution that could guide decisions with a clear, data driven view of capacity, routes, costs, and service.
SOLUTION
Logistics network optimization with SWARM
Ardent Mills implemented SWARM’s logistics network optimization to bring together operational data, simulate options, and support better logistics decisions across the network.
1. Align on objectives and industry context
From the earliest conversations, SWARM showed a strong grasp of the agriculture and grain processing industry. That industry fluency helped the teams align quickly on goals and reduced onboarding time.
2. Build a network wide optimization model
The SWARM Platform was implemented alongside the Ardent Mills team, working with real operational data to refine model inputs and planning logic. The application accounts for mill capacities, pack lines, logistics locations, and customer requirements across the network.
3. Simulate production and shipping options in minutes
With the application in place, planners can simulate hundreds of production and shipping options in minutes instead of relying on manual comparison. The application acts as a tool that evaluates routes and schedules while honoring capacities and service targets.
4. Deploy through pilots and training
The implementation included a tailored configuration for Ardent Mills, pilot programs to validate the tool, training staff users, and regular executive check-ins to keep leadership informed on progress and outcomes.
POWERED BY THE SWARM ENGINE
The SWARM ENGINE is our agentic AI optimization product for complex operational decisions such as logistics network design, routing, and supply chain planning.
IMPACT
Continuous optimization for a dynamic network
SWARM’s logistics network optimization platform continues to evolve alongside Ardent Mills operations. As planning inputs and business requirements shift, the SWARM Platform helps the team spot new opportunities for efficiency, resilience, and alignment.
With the SWARM Platform, Ardent Mills:
Simulates hundreds of production and shipping options in minutes
Uses real time data access to reduce the time needed for planning and decision making
Has cross functional visibility into network decisions, improving coordination and alignment
Builds a foundation to identify supply redundancy options that strengthen supply chain resiliency over time
WHY SWARM
Why Ardent Mills chose SWARM
Operations and industry fluency
SWARM brought a deep understanding of agriculture and grain processing, so conversations started with Ardent Mills’ real world logistics challenges, not generic models.
Embedded partnership, not a handoff
Instead of a one-time handoff, SWARM worked shoulder to shoulder with Ardent Mills’ teams, iterating on data, planning logic together, and staying closely aligned with executive leadership.
Enterprise scale optimization
The platform handles extensive decision variables across mills, pack lines, and logistics locations, and can simulate hundreds of scenarios in minutes.
Built for ongoing improvement
SWARM’s logistics network optimization continues to evolve with Ardent Mills’ needs, helping the team adapt quickly as inputs, customers, and business priorities change.
See what SWARM can do for your logistics network
Talk with our team about your own logistics, routing, or supply chain planning questions and see how SWARM can help you test options before you invest.