BRIDGE TO THE FUTURE: THE INTERVIEWS
Leveraging New Technologies Finding innovative solutions to increase efficiency and reduce costs will be imperative in coming years By CHRISTINE UMBRELL
N
EW TECHNOLOGIES ARE HAVING
Bridge to the Future: The Interviews is a monthly column for 2017. As part of AOPA’s Centennial Celebration, O&P Almanac will look to the next 100 years—by interviewing noted experts in the O&P field to learn their vision for the future of O&P. This month, we speak with Jeff Collins, CPA, on the topic of embracing new technologies in O&P distribution.
an impact on all aspects of O&P care—and those facilities that embrace appropriate technologies stand to benefit in the long run. Rather than viewing technology as the enemy, O&P professionals who recognize the value technology offers and learn to use it properly may gain a competitive advantage. Those who are willing to adapt and innovate while remaining ethical and true to the purpose of improving patients’ lives stand to benefit in many ways. “It all begins with looking at what’s happening around us and adapting your solutions,” says Jeff Collins, CPA, chief executive officer of Cascade Orthopedic Supply and AOPA treasurer. This strategy is not unique to O&P—but it is important to recognize, and find ways to leverage new technologies to provide O&P services more efficiently and cost-effectively, when possible.
Case Study in Shipping
Collins recently put his words into action when he led his O&P distribution company in an overhaul of its shipping methods. Recently, the major shippers, including FedEx and UPS, moved to a dimension-based pricing model that resulted in not only increased shipping costs but also confusion when calculating those costs for O&P facilities. It became difficult for Cascade to accurately quote shipping costs to its customers, particularly for items with an irregular shape. This 42
APRIL 2017 | O&P ALMANAC
uncertainty also made it challenging for the company to audit its expenses to ensure it wasn’t being overcharged. “The ability to quote freight costs to customers using our website had become a struggle, given the variety of items that we sell,” says Collins. “Since the carriers now use dimensional weights, just knowing the weight of individual products isn’t enough. We need to know the total dimensional size of every outgoing package to give customers a lot more transparency into total cost. We also saw this as an opportunity to differentiate ourselves from our competitors.” Faced with these challenges, Collins and his team decided to search for technologies that could assist them in navigating the new shipping climate. Rather than tackling individual issues and improvements piecemeal, Cascade sought to create a new standard for industry best practice to improve distribution speed, cost effectiveness, and quality. “We needed to adjust our operations to find technology solutions to adapt to the situation,” says Collins. Cascade was already using PathGuide’s core Latitude WMS functionality with the Manifest and Shipping System. But it found that adding Postea’s QubeVu DimStation for dimensioning, and integrating that new solution with the PathGuide system, resulted in a comprehensive solution that was competitively priced and fast and allowed for accurate dimension calculating for irregular shapes associated with many O&P items.