Client Situation
A large consumer products manufacturing company recognized that the distribution and fulfillment at one of its divisions was operating inefficiently and with high costs. The company had recently acquired this division where the distribution facility was lacking in several respects. A major factor was absence of a good warehouse management system (WMS). This resulted in several ongoing inventory control issues that adversely affected customer service.
Solution
The company conducted a thorough review of the alternatives and decided to close the inefficient warehouse and transfer the inventory to a third-party logistics (”3PL”) company in the mid-south area of the US. After an RFP process with multiple 3PL’s, company management decided on a well-established firm that had been in business for seventy-five years with state-of-the art warehousing capacity located across the US. Understanding the extensive complexities and risks involved with this relocation, the company recognized the need for bringing in experienced project management to assure a smooth transition. The client engaged E78 and their team of supply chain professionals to lead the project. With a E78 partner as their Project Manager, the warehouse relocation was successfully completed within the budgeted time frame and cost.
Results
- E78’s partner as Project Manager was able to supplement the client’s internal team assigned to the project, who also had full-time responsibilities to the organization. He coordinated and led the team’s efforts in executing on the large volume of inventory transferred, involving three-million units of product and over one-hundred inter-modal trailers, while maintaining customer requirements.
- The Project Manager also coordinated with the 3PL startup team to assure a smooth transfer and troubleshoot issues before they became problems
- Simultaneously, the E78 partner coordinated and guided the efforts of the client and 3PL’s IT departments in setting up compatible EDI connectivity with numerous US retailers
- The client expects significant improvements in inventory control, customer service and satisfaction from this warehouse transition with a substantial reduction in distribution cost
