Warehouses are, by their very nature, a supply chain inefficiency. A warehouse is a decoupling point in the supply chain where material flow stops, and when that material flow stops, then non-value costs start to accrue. Our team are here to ensure non-value costs are minimised and material flow is optimised.
Of course, there are no physical supply chains where storage is not required at some stage. Consequently, one of the key areas of supply chain management is how to make warehousing, handling procedures and inventory management as efficient as possible.
Whether the warehouse is a store that supports a manufacturing operation, or a retail distribution centre for a fast-paced ecommerce operation, the principle remains the same – be organised, efficient and reduce time and cost wherever possible. The reduction of time, in terms of order cycle time, and cost can be leveraged from many areas of the warehouse operation: reconfiguration of the layout may help to improve pick speed; updating MHE can help improve the material handling flow and optimising inventory will help free space.
As customer demand in modern supply chains continues to evolve towards faster, more frequent deliveries at lower volumes, the pressures on warehouses are increasing. Changes in throughput velocity are exposing weaknesses in many businesses warehouse operations and those weaknesses are driving increased cost and lowered service levels.
Our warehouse consultants are here to help you get your warehouse operations back on track.