Before: Distribution Center

Customer requested to implement a highly automated WMS to support their distribution center. However the IT system implementation would have led to a failure due to significant foundational issues within the current warehouse environment. Recommendation was made and approved to focus on resolving core foundational issues as the priority.

Issues found during analysis and translated into opportunities included:

• Handwritten notes for active capture. Often misread, fallen off, torn

• Processes thought up on site by warehouse leads. Nothing written down. No corporate best practice solutions

• Where standard practices existed, they weren’t detailed in work instructions. Instead they were known only as tribal knowledge

• No training for temporary staff. Poor training for new staff

• Staff working abundance of overtime due to long periods during check-in, process, and put-away

• If inventory entry was done incorrectly or piece moved erroneously, then no check and balance to verify inventory

• Poor warehouse layout, poor staging, poor handling of volume influx

• Poor practices of handling of freight, poor management of stacking and palletization

• Partial shipments nearly impossible to manage in current format

• Significant man hours to locate freight and develop manifests/outbound shipments in timely manner

• Little to no feedback made to end customers on order statuses / milestones