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IDII Software Newsletter October 26th 2007 - Volume 8 Number 11 For PROFESSIONALS in Software for Warehousing, Logistics, and Supply Chain.  |
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CSCMP Conference Details Great conference with another large attendance! Phil Obal of IDII spoke on “WMS and TMS Integration” along with Susan Rider and Steve Muliak. Overall, CSCMP presentations were organized well this year – I.E., SCOR track, China presentations,... Two major themes currents were Global and Green. Green environment is a new trend that has impacts in the supply chain with future legislations to be seen more and more. Therefore, a number of the larger companies are embracing Green to be good outstanding corporate citizens. Richard Murphy in “Strategic Trends in Warehousing” indicates that trucking industry is in a stage that will be limiting warehouse operations and manufacturing plants that are in rural areas. This is due to fuel costs and the high turnover rate in TL drivers. There is a trend to move rural warehouses and rural manufacturing plants to the suburbs of major cities. At the same time, suburbs around are major cities are growing, land prices have become expensive. An issue to locate warehouses closer in, BUT reasonable land prices in cities is a challenge! Construction costs have risen and lease rates are higher – and will be higher for the next few years. Some are locking in LONGER contract lengths of 5 to 7 years. With land prices a major concern – some are raising the roof (from 18’ to 38’) on existing warehouses. In a few super-expensive cities – some have gone to multi-story warehouses. Order Profile is now 90/10 and not the old 80/20. We must have accessibility to more inventory – does not mean that you have to warehouse more items, but most just need be have instant availability to it. Starting to see serious discussion of higher inventory costs versus rising transportation costs. Seeing a 6 to 10 warehouse network trend versus the old 1 to 5 network. Within 20 years, we will see Green Roofs. Cost is 3 to 4 times the normal roof. LEED Certification (Leadership in energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Design System. Why not use these green roofs for something? Tennis court? Solar power stations? BIG MONEY SAVING TIP: Company SunEdison will design it, build it, and run it – with “Nothing out of pocket”. See many white roofs now, but green roofs are the trend. RFID and Voice are current technology trends in WMS and the good WMS players have RF, Voice, and RFID ready to go. 11 year life of WMS – so many of us are ready to buy now and in the next few years. 3PL’s are doing better than the Fortune 500 companies. Richard Sharpe of Competitive Logistics and Karena presented “Needle in a Haystack “an excellent presentation on supply chain analysis and metrics using a graphically toolset. This presentation with the many excellent software generated charts “makes you think” and give you the capability to see what exactly is highly profitable to extreme losers. Data is sliced and diced numerous AND EFFECTIVE WAYS in order to let one drill into the actual data for “take action” type individuals. A triple bar chart (one bar for Revenue $, one bar for Cost $, one bar for Margin $) was shown in multiple analysis – Top Stores, Top Parts, Top Product Lines, Top Suppliers. In the case study, 20% of total sku’s produced 90% of gross margin contribution… Note: the 90/20 and the old 80/20 is slowly dying out. Also covered was SKU Rationalization, Net Landed Costs (Source to Store). Dr. Marshall Fisher presented a very good presentation called “How Do Events within a Stores Four Walls Affect Sales and Customer Satisfaction”. Dr Fisher measured and proved the obvious. It proved (1) retailers having actual on-the-shelf inventory, (2) knowledgeable employees, and (3) available employees does increase customer satisfaction and increases sales. Think of Lowes and Best Buy in contrast to Circuit City and Home Depot. Can you find it? Can you find a knowledgeable employee? Many tips were given by Dr. Fisher – JIT store deliveries, eliminate the backroom, perform root cause on stock outs with outside firm, repeated JIT (do not send more than will fit on floor and no backroom – which eliminates “finding” and “waiting” for it to be replenished). Zara, a retailer, requires associates to “capture” and enter into the database any time a customer did not buy an item. That is a great analysis of really finding out the “why” the purchase was NOT made. Sales are impacted in a store also based on the store manager. Store manager's impact on sales is a shocking 25%!!! It’s a 25% difference between a mediocre and good store manager! Think about it - He impacts employees, customers, and how well the store is run. At CSCMP, IDII found a few software vendors with innovative products! Watch for news about them in the next newsletter! Written by Philip Obal of IDII. Contact Phil at philobal@idii.com |
EXCITING RESOURCES
Supply Chain Books Rapidly find the books that you need! Over 30 topics.
See books on Warehouse Management or Inventory Management or Facility Planning & Layout or Software & Technology or RFID or WMS or MRP or Metrics-KPIs-Dashboards and more!
IDII News
IDII releases the NEW 2nd Edition of "Selecting Warehouse Software from WMS and ERP Providers - EXPANDED EDITION". New content in all areas! Now taking orders!"Glossary of Supply Chain Terminology" is now ONLINE! Are you a WERC member? Then check it out via the WERC website. IDII has partnered with WERC to provide an ever growing encyclopedia of definitions. Now with crossword puzzles to challenge you!
New White Papers - White Paper Index -Suggest A White Paper
Navigating the TMS Marketplace - How to select an ASP / SaaS version of a Transportation Management System - from LMS Logistics see http://www.lmslogistics.comCurrent and Future Green Transportation and Logistics Strategies - http://www.eft.com/supplychain/free_report.shtml?source=idii
Technology & Software Product News
HighJump Software Launches Warehouse Advantage-45 for small business featuring 45-Day Implementations. HighJump Software designed the new WMS specifically for smaller businesses and the challenges they face supporting growth and increasing efficiency. HighJump Warehouse Advantage-45 will deliver benefits such as tracking and visibility of inbound orders, accurate receiving, directed put-away, rapid picking, shipping and replenishment. Editor's Note: 45 day implementations make GREAT NEWS, but reality is that the companies work force may be fatigued to pull this off in 45 days. That's a grueling schedule. 90 days is a much more relaxed schedule, so you do not burn your people out!Logility Announces New Carrier On-Boarding Capabilities. Logility's Voyager Transportation Planning and Management solution enables shippers and carriers to collaborate more effectively via a Carrier Web Portal and EDI processes that provides shippers and carriers with streamlined business processes and increased visibility into important information including loads, tenders, bids, shipment status information, and freight payment. Additionally, to get EDI-based carriers up and running quickly, Logility has teamed with Kleinschmidt, a leader in transportation EDI services.
Logility's Carrier Web Portal already supports hundreds of non-EDI carriers that collaborate with shippers via a WEB browser. Carriers can easily gain visibility to all of their relevant information and business processes. This secure collaboration portal limits access to carrier-specific loads and enables them to quickly review load tenders offered including stops, equipment, delivery requirements, and order details. The carriers can then accept or reject the load(s) as well as enter shipment status information, record appointments, actual pickup or delivery information, and enroute status. Carriers can also bid on loads, enter the available equipment, enter freight bills, and check the status of payment.
PetroChina Selects Retalix Point-of-Sale and Fuel Software Solutions. China's largest petroleum retailer, has selected Retalix StorePoint(TM) and Retalix Fuel(TM) for deployment in its service stations across China. The selection strengthens Retalix's position in the Chinese retail market. Retalix's partners in China, Shanghai-based Rinpak Technology Ltd. and Beijing-based MSGSB, will provide domestic integration and support services to PetroChina.
RedPrairie announced that Nordic Cold Storage LLC, a national temperature-controlled warehousing and transportation company, has gone live with RedPrairie's WMS to support their growing business. Nordic is one of the ten largest providers of temperature-controlled storage, freezing, distribution and transportation services in North America. More information on Nordic can be found at www.nordiccold.com Editor's Note: SPECIAL FUNCTIONALITY is required for cold storage (frozen food) and only a limited number of WMS solutions have this timed blast freezer logic.
Scripture to Ponder - List of Scriptures to Ponder from prior issues.
"Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom." - Ecclesiastes 9:10Famous Quotes to Ponder - List of Quotes to Ponder from prior issues.
"The spirit, the will to win, and the will to excel are the things that endure. These qualities are so much more important than the events that occur." - Vince LombardiYesbutters have all the answers:
* Yesbut Sales won't listen to our plans
* Yesbut we couldn't sell it to our staff
* Yesbut we can't explain it to our management
* Yesbut the WS doesn't support that
* Yesbut it already didn't seem like a good idea last week either
Yesbutters don't just kill ideas. They kill companies. Whynotters move companies. The next time you are in a brainstorm session, apply the following rules:
1. Whynotters welcome, yesbutters out
2. Say whynot to every (little) idea: let your heart and imagination speak
3. Silence is allowed
4. It is OK to take time for a good idea, when necessary we can sleep on it
Whynotters dare to dream and to act. By acting, they achieve what others see as unachievable. Why not, indeed?
- From: Brain Storming Sessions (In "Integral Warehousing" Book, Page 145)
Websites To Check Out
Inspirational Business Quotes| IDII Supply Chain Book Directory | Over 30 Supply Chain Topics | |
| Books on Warehousing, Inventory, Logistics, Supply Chain, Metrics, RFID, ERP, MRP, WMS, Software, Project Management, and more! View IDII Supply Chain Book Directory |
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