Student Articles Crossword Puzzle Do You Know?? Industry Facts
OCTANE−The Octaphi Newsletter Volume 06, Issue 04, October 2017.
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“Standards should not be forced down from above but rather set by the production workers themselves.” Taiichi Ohno
5) Will your pallets hold their shape when fully loaded? The heavier your product is, the higher stiffness rating you’ll need to transport your products safely. Pallets seem like simple item, but are essential to creating an efficient, costeffective supply chain.
Pallets are simple in their construction layered pieces of plywood or plastic designed to be loaded with anything and everything that needs to be shipped in bulk. Wooden pallets are most commonly used and easiest to recycle, but more companies have started to use plastic Source: Inbound Logistics, 2017 pallets because they are more durable ~ Sahil Singla (13 JGBS) and safer. The main shortcoming of plastic pallets is that they are expensive, but their durability means supply chains Industry Facts are spending less money on pallets. They reduce loading and unloading Toyota V4 Framework in supply time. Instead of moving individual boxes chains: or packages, pallets allow products to be Velocity of product flow (Rate of moved in bulk. A properly loaded pallet is Production) safer than loosely stacked products that Variability (Fluctuation in sale) can fall and cause injury. They reduce Visibility (Information) warehouse costs and improve logistics. Variety Efficient loading and unloading times help improve scheduling and reduce payroll costs because there’s no need for overtime. Also, they improve working conditions and worker safety. Five things to consider before investing in pallets: 1) What is the budget and which type will provide the best value? Pallets that are cost effective and last long are needed. 2) Will the pallets work with existing equipment? Most pallet jacks and forklifts use the same design, but sometimes pallets or equipment do not mesh. Make sure before investing. 3) Can pallets handle the load that they will be expected to carry? Lightweight wooden pallets might not be robust to carry the product once fully loaded. 4) How long will the pallets last when hauling shipment after shipment? High shipment numbers or heavy loads need durable pallets to get best value for the money.
Inventory is the raw materials, work-inprocess products and finished goods that are part of business's assets. The management of inventory becomes a concern if issues are identified in the process. While forcing budget or using reorder points or having too many SKUs in many places, and not-communicating internally are major inventory related blunders, below are two key mistakes generally missed: Having unqualified employees manage inventory: Inventory management is a professional skill that requires upfront and ongoing education. If warehouse managers, office clerks, and other employees without specific inventorymanagement training make inventorymanagement decisions, then it is certain
that wasteful inventory is piling up throughout the system. Usually, this model reflects a company with no clear goals or strategy for inventory planning. Recognize that inventory management requires professional job skills Secondly, centralize inventory planning where ever possible, as this improves the standardization of processes and easier to manage consistently. Forecast management without a disciplined process: No one in the supply chain owns the forecast management process, but everyone blames the forecast. This disconnects inventory planning from customer demand, and puts customer satisfaction in jeopardy by risking the ability to fill orders. Understanding that the forecasting process is a collaborative endeavour, make forecast management a full-time job. Implementing forecast accuracy measures into the job of maintaining an accurate forecast in turn shall become a prerequisite to continuous forecast management and inventory planning improvement. Source: Supply Chain Brain, 2017.
~ Vishnukant Ramachandran (16 JGBS)
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How it all Began
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Future Trends in Transportation
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How it all Began…………. Initially, Ford operated with the brand name Detroit Automobile Company. But in 1901, the company faced bankruptcy. The company made several attempts to regain its lost glory. The brand was finally revived by some angel investors and renamed as Ford Motor Co. From this success story we can conclude that with continuous effort and patience, one can achieve success in life.
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Clues: Across: 1. The process by which supply contracts are let by purchasing. 2. A multiple of units in a plant designated for any purpose such as packaging, outside services, etc. The number of production units in an aggregation of units that can be produced by an activity. 3. Customer requirements measured in production or sales per unit time. Down: 4. Usually the prediction of customer sales and the subsequent manufacturing schedule. 5. Ordering of production to meet forecasted or actual customer demand. 6. A formal complaint filed by a union member against a company. The resolution of grievances is a formal process also defined by contract. 7. The excess of the cost of an acquired company over the book value. Intangible values on a company balance sheet.
~ S. Kumar Jagannath (16 JGBS)
Student’s Feedback Corner
Source: Global Supply Chain Institute, 2017
~ Subhasis Pradhan (16JGBS)
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Search for an intuitive newsletter ends at OCTANE. The way the articles are written is eye-catching and develops interest to read. The language used is very simple and structure of the newsletter is attractive. ~ Akshay Tutika (17 IIM-R) I prefer reading octane mainly due to the interesting columns it has like Do You Know? Industry Facts, etc. Solving the crossword is another point of attraction to read Octane. ~ Pravin Singh (17 SPJIMR)
Editorial Board: Contact us:
Saroj Koul, Vasudha Kamra Jindal Global Business School, Delhi NCR octaphi@jgu.edu.in
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Answers – Vol. 6, Issue 3:
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Across: 1. GANTT 3. EFFICIENCY 6. BATCH Down: 2. BUFFERING 4. DOWNTIME 5. KAIZEN 7. CAPACITY PROGRESS; 8. FORECAST ; 9. AGILE
Transportation represents the largest element of most firms’ supply chain logistics cost. Over the past decade, transportation has faced several challenges including sharp fluctuations in fuel pricing, driver shortages, expansion of 3PL/4PL providers, commoditization of carrier pricing, expansion in use of technology and tools, increasing regulation and the digitization capabilities. In order to enable organizations to successfully manage transportation, a recent white paper by the Global Supply Chain Institute (2017) has identified the following megatrends that will impact the transportation industry over the next ten years: First, as the traditional brick and mortar retailers are shifting to online sales to serve a large customer base which brings in the need to build an efficient and robust omni-channel distribution system. The need to deliver a product to the end customer in shortest possible time at a competitive price. Companies are now focussed on building customer relations. Second, the companies are depending on technology in a different way in the past they are buying the technology and installing in house, but as the current trend provides software as a service (SaaS) which helps companies to use technology to manage their supply chain without significant financial investment. It’s not an end but the technology helps in enabling integrated supply chain operations, providing better visibility to all players involved in the system, thereby reducing the inventory costs, transportation costs and providing better customer service. Third, the companies are appointing Chief Supply Chain Officers (CSCO) in their supply network and the report suggests that profitability is increased. Although CEO’s have an understanding of the supply chain but this is not enough for supply chain success unless they are clear about the transportation. The role of CSCO is important as they are involved in procurement as well as transportation. Hence, they have a holistic view of supply chain which is helpful in increasing profitability.