When you go to uni, Supply Chain, is sold to you as a utopia of technology and trend-setting uses of cutting-edge innovation. From what I have seen, the reality is quite different. That's okay; not everyone needs to be Amazon or Catch.
What I do find fun, though, is that you can usually label a warehouse by which era or decade it was set up in (and most of the time, where it still is today). So, let's take a tour of your warehouse based on your era of operations. Don't worry; it won't be too difficult to spot where you're at because all three have distinct markers.
The Stone Age
Characteristics: Pens, Paper, Rocks, Sticks, that kind of thing.
This warehouse was set up somewhere in the 80s and - at the time - was advanced for having all of your order lines on the same piece of paper. That was some time ago, and although things have moved on, technology like the internet, desktop PCs, mobile phones, and printed labels have come along; you find comfort in knowing things work but fear for the day someone else will come along and do the same thing that you're doing now but doing it 30% faster and by virtue many % cheaper.
The good news is you have lots of low hanging fruit to take your rocks and start rolling out changes. The bad news is that you don't know where to start, and if you're operating in Australia - you don't know where to find the talent to help you successfully deliver those changes.
Era of the Aughts.
Characteristics: Computers, Spreadsheets, RF Guns... Maybe some sensor lighting.
This is the era of the aughts, not just because you're using technology from the 2000s, but because you ought to have kept progressing and yet didn't, and things seemed to have stalled. You're stuck in an era with better music, affordable housing, and a time when global warming was simply called summer.
You were ahead by using systems and even writing down processes, but now, with automation, AI, and competition from overseas. Things are okay but... stalled, not changing. Nothing is really moving the needle.
The good news is that you have projects to work on. The bad news is that the more established you are, the bigger the changes you need to make to move the "needle", which means it's different from moving out of the Stone Age, where introducing a conveyor belt is akin to introducing standardised pallet sizes.
You're trying to see which investment will allow you to treat your supply chain as a strategic advantage - a contributor to your Brand's position in the market.
That's a challenge. A good challenge. An exciting one. But scary nonetheless.
Techtopia
You've made the jump to light speed!
Characteristics: You have robots, analytics, and real-time forecasting, and your racking is automated. You have drones that check inventory levels. You have a WMS that hands out the most efficient and interwoven commands. Your physical movements are tracked and meta-analysed to perfect precision.
You can even claim to actively use AI as part of your supply chain operations - and see benefits from doing so.
Congratulations, you're part of the 1% of companies that made it here. You can explore the new world where same-hour delivery isn't aspirational. It's quantifiable.
You have the power to turn your operations into opinion pieces fit for Forbes and titled 'Supply Chain as an advantage, a new era of modern manufacturing.'
The good news is that you are in the 1%; the bad news is that the other companies in the 1% also have the money, culture of innovation, and determination to be the only one in that 1.
The good news for everyone is that the fundamentals remain the same regardless of what era you find yourself in. We are all trying to control our operations and possess limited time and money, thus bringing about the need to prioritise our people, projects, and other resources.
These eras (defined with a heavy use of tongue and cheek) represent the tools you used to summon and control your team, facilities, and workflows. They group what was best at the time and touch on what is now required to stay with the times.
With a bit of forward-thinking, a budget, a team, and a decent roadmap, you too could be on the way to being on the cover of a magazine, riding shotgun on a self-driving forklift as you point to the flashing sensors commanding your dark warehouse operated ChatWMS!
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