Page 9 - Warehouse Annual 2022

OPINION

Scale phase execution and optimises orders to suppliers. The
Are you Nestle or a ‘mom and pop’ organisation? Both are emphasis here is on planning.
complicated in different ways.
Making supply chain solutions efficient
Dealing with differences For many organisations, planning and execution can be
Planning and execution are affected by different IT handled by ERP alone. Efficiency comes from users’/
solutions or a combination of them. The closer your managers’ ownership of their business process/activity,
operation is to end consumers (the last sale in the supply making sure inputs are correct and on time. What does
chain), the more responsive operations must be to on- that mean?
shelf-availability and changing buyer behaviour. Planning
the next few days fed by today’s sales from outlets/shops • ERP planning: open order accuracy – make sure
leads to responsive replenishment solutions, starting with old purchase and sales orders not fully received or
a forecast, but amended rapidly to drive the correct order shipped are closed off or the system will think they’re
volumes to correct stores. Elapsed time is critical – this is still part of the plan. Ensure planning parameters
an execution-focused solution – order point, order quantity, lead time to supply,
product structures (recipe/bill of materials) should
If you run large DCs supplying many stores, forecasts reflect reality and be checked regularly (key value
can be aggregated to identify what items must be in stock items most frequently).
in what volumes at what time. You can use historical • Inventory accuracy is paramount: right place, right
point-of-sale (POS) data, including independent variables quantity, right time – ensure receipts are checked
like weather, disposable income, new car sales (whatever and captured physically and are on the system at the
fits) in a demand forecasting solution. Here, the planning same time. Regular stock checking of key products
horizon is months/quarters (not days) driving the plan ensures that system and bin reflect the same
for buying supplier goods and sophisticated warehouse quantity. Set your system to first in, first out (FIFO)
(WMS) execution. Collaborative demand drives your or first expired, first out (FEFO) appropriately so dead
enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution to time stock is avoided.
• Space utilisation/warehouse layout: space is always
restricted and usually zoned – make sure zones are
not over using space. Optimise stock mix so that fast/
valuable versus slow/cheap are balanced to effectively
use working capital.
• Picking optimisation: optimise batch or wave picks,
sort picking routes to minimise movement and time,
and include bin stock count en-routes.

For many organisations, an ERP system like SYSPRO
ERP covers the whole supply chain: forecasting material/
production planning and execution, fair warehouse
picking, product recall and inventory management/
optimisation. For very large manufacturers/suppliers,
ERP plus advanced warehouse management and
collaborative demand forecasting may be necessary.
For large retailers, solutions will be forecasting and
replenishment, ERP plus specialised warehousing and
transportation route planning software. Value-add in
warehouses includes cutting steel to size, pre-labelling
and hanging fashion items.

Efficiency comes from knowing where the
opportunities for you are, picking the right IT tools,
understanding them and using them properly. Do this to
reap service and profit rewards. •

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