Distribution Operations Improvement
Do you need to improve your Warehouse Operations?
Our consultants are experts in Operational Process Improvement. Let us help you achieve your goals.
Identify, Evaluate and Recommend Third Party Logistics (3PL) Providers
Are you thinking about transitioning part or all of your warehouse or transportation operations to a 3PL provider? Need help evaluating the cost and service level performance of existing 3PL providers?
Developing the right strategy can result in warehousing and/or transportation cost savings of up to 30%. Many companies choose to outsource as part of their overall risk management and capital expenditure strategy. The experts at Waller & Associates can assist you in developing the most cost effective value proposition. We will identify your service and business requirements and tailor a solution that meets your financial, operational, and customer service objectives.
To determine advantages of self-run warehousing and/or transportation versus 3PL providers, our approach includes a detailed operational assessment. Waller & Associates can offer best-cost solutions to include RFP development, vendor comparison/selection, software, and transition strategies; all based upon your unique situation.
Improving Productivity, Throughput and Safety through Improved Quality
With increased demand for labor and competitive labor markets, productivity and efficiency are the ultimate answers to face this ever-evolving challenge. With increased competition in markets and hubs like Memphis, Dallas, Columbus, and Atlanta, labor availability and cost are becoming extremely overwhelming that companies are trying to rely less on labor and more on automation and innovation.
To solve for this problem, our approach is improving processes through incremental type improvements that eliminates un-needed waste and improve performance in functions. This is done by, and depending on the complexity of the project, series of projects that ranges from simply “go do it” to Kaizen events to Lean Six Sigma Black belt type of projects. Once these projects are completed and desires goals are attained, the step after that would be Sea Change Projects. Typically, these projects involve evaluating technologies and innovations to replace current processes with more automated ones.
At Waller and Associates, we help our clients attain this goal and solve this challenge by offering the following:
- Modelling capacity and throughputs by function in the operation
- Solving for and improving bottlenecks through line balancing techniques
- Facilitating Kaizen Events on processes to help improve efficiencies and eliminate waste in processes
- Provide ROIs and case studies for new technologies for certain applications
- Improve overall quality by reducing over processing and overhandling of the product throughput its life cycle
- Designing labor standards for every function in the operation to manage performance and offer incentives for improved productivity, in other words, pay based on performance
Engineered Labor Standards / Work Measurement
Engineered Labor Standards are the application of time and motion study and activity sampling techniques to determine time for a qualified work to complete a specific task at a determined level of performance.
Work Measurement has varying degrees of implementation ranging from time studies, to Lean practices, to the very detailed level of industrial engineered standards using techniques such as MOST (Maynard Operating Sequence Technique*).
Using the scientific approach of industrial engineering, organizations are able to optimize throughput by means of minimizing movement and eliminate unproductive or ineffective time.
MOST is a predetermined motion time system that is used to set the standard time in which an average worker should perform a task. Additionally, MOST has been proven globally for more than 35 years, and can be used in any type of operational environment to include administrative tasks.
Implementing Engineered Labor Standards in your warehouse operations can assist with budgeting, staff planning, scheduling, standard costing in designing worker incentive schemes, and facility capacity planning. In addition, from the workers’ standpoint, time standards provide an indication of expected output and performance.
Whether you have a Labor Management System (LMS) or not, Waller & Associates can develop specific Engineered Labor Standards for your warehouse operational processes. We have experts trained and certified in MOST that have implemented these techniques in a variety of industries. We will guide you through the techniques of engineering and optimizing your distribution
Benchmarking Warehouse Productivity and Costs
Research clearly demonstrates the value of benchmarking operations relative to like organizations. There is a demonstrated correlation between supply chain performance metrics and financial performance. According to Peter Drucker, “If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.”
At Waller & Associates, we assist organizations in defining key performance indicators, capturing data, analyzing the data, and planning actions to improve warehouse and distribution center performance.
Process and Value Stream Mapping
A distribution center can be complex. Only visuals convey enough information to understand the pieces, relationships, hidden waste and time-domain behavior.
Visualization brings a deep understanding and major breakthroughs in productivity and other performance. It leads to consensus on systemic problems and remedies. While finished charts communicate information about a situation, the real value is the mapping itself. This is where insights grow, paradigms shift and consensus builds.
Value Stream and Process Maps take different perspectives, but, the work they visualize is the same.
Value Stream Maps – show major process steps and often take a broader and wider view. They may group a wide variety of products into a single “value stream.” They are developed to identify opportunities.
Process Maps – trace the sequence of events for a single work product. While they can be done at any level, the most useful charts are quite detailed. This is important because most waste is at a micro- level. They are developed to identify specific wastes and improvements.
Waller & Associates has experts in developing Value Stream and Process Maps. More importantly, we can help you draw practical warehouse process improvement performance from their application.
Inventory Management
Thinking about converting to cycle counting? Too many inventory adjustments? Stock outs?
It is likely that your investment in inventory on hand is the most significant investment your company makes. For that reason alone, the management of this asset deserves considerable focus.
Many companies consider counting inventory as management of inventory. Certainly it is important to know the items and quantity on hand, but counting inventory does little to manage and much to disrupt.
The consultants at Waller & Associates will provide a detailed assessment of the causes of inventory variances and identify inventory practices that are contributing to shrink, adjustments, and cost.
Training and Development
Need assistance with training for your:
Warehouse or Transportation Management?
Supervision?
Material Handlers?
Drivers?
We offer a variety of standard programs for:
- Warehouse Management skills
- Warehouse Supervisory skills
- Project Management skills
- OSHA Certified Powered Industrial Trucks (Forklift) Training / Material Handling Equipment Certification
- Safety Training for the distribution center and transportation
The experts at Waller & Associates will help you grow and develop your organization.
Project Management
The need has been identified. The ROI has been justified. The project has been approved. Who’s going to manage it?
Organizations of all sizes struggle with professional program and project management. Most businesses simply add the warehouse operations project management duties to a current employee’s workload. Most of the time these individuals already have full-time responsibilities in their current role and typically posses little or no formal training in program or project management.
Waller & Associates has Certified Project Management Professionals (PMP) adept at developing and implementing large-scale warehouse, distribution and logistics solutions by integrating IT and operational processes to achieve best-in-class results.