Warehouse on-boarding

1.     Warehouse on-boarding

In a cloud environment or a multi warehouse environment, warehouse on boarding activity is a key to the success of the WMS implementation. It consists of multiple steps starting from functionality gap analysis to successful cutover execution.

Steps in a warehouse on-boarding

1.1  System development:

This process involves multiple tasks or activities like gap analysis and product fitment, Design and development of the missing components or functionalities in the system, testing and documenting the test results.

1.2  People alignment:

This process involves training the resources and orienting them into the new WMS product. At times the ways of working gets changed because of the new WMS including the organization structure changes. Aligning the mindset of people for a new change is a challenge in itself.

1.3  Cut over planning and execution:

System is deployed by various techniques like full bang or functionality by functionality. Deployment model varies with the level of maturity the warehousing operation is in a company. Many companies use automated warehouse creation techniques to standardize the warehouse creation procedure and to reduce the time to go live. Warehouse on –boarding itself is a herculean task.

2.     On boarding via automated scripts:

The base warehouse is created based on standard template and new warehouse creation in a multi warehouse environment happens in matter of hours from days or weeks in this model. Standardized operating procedure is needed for this to be successful. Template based solutions are highly utilized in this model and hence the organization achieves and accelerated deployment.

Once the warehouse is created, master data upload happens using scripts and control files. The policies are set in and the needed configuration is made for the system to run in a specific way.

Data take on involves warehouse elements of the WMS like part master, client creation, supplier and customer master upload, Warehouse structure like areas, zones and location master upload.

Data Take-on

3. Cutover planning:

Whether the warehouse operations migrate to newer system at one go or on a phased manner is one of the key decisions taken while cutover planning. In phased cutover, first the new system is used for receiving of good alone where-as the old system is used for shipping of the goods. For a short span of time receiving happens in both the systems in otherwise they run parallel. Beyond a point the outbound operations are also switched to the new WMS application.

 

Tax effective supply chain vs Green supply chain

We have different forms of supply chain design in these days. Couple of them are tax effective supply chain and green supply chains. While one focuses on the current competitive advantages, the other focuses on the long term sustainability. The question is can both of them co-exist or they do move in opposite direction. If they move in opposite directions then how to decide which is the better option or what should be taken as the governing principle for the supply chain designing. While focusing on the long term sustainability do i have to loss on the short term to the competition and get crushed. Certainly not. We need to weigh the pros and cons before one can decide on the strategy.

Green Supply chain Essentials

Sustainability is the key to the long term success of any organisation. Sustainability of the all the stakeholders or the entities in the supply chain is important starting from raw material source to rubishing or reusing the product after its life cycle. When one player bullies other and the other runs out of business for the same, then the supply chain is not sustainable. Having stated that vendor and consumer compliance is also important. Vendor compliance can be brought in through guidelines specification and appropriate sourcing where as consumer compliance depends on government laws and people customs or mindsets. It is really tough to make changes to the mindset or habitual ways of humans.

A tax effective supply chain sources, produces, distributes and markets in an tax effective way. Companies tax advantage of existances of tax heavens and there by increase their bottom line. A tax effective supply chain can vary the bottom line upto say 40 % compared to the competiton and this makes a huge difference to the success and sustainability of the organisation. The irony is countries changes laws according to circumstances and what is today a tax effective supply chain may not be same few years down the line.

Now aligning the green supply chain with the tax effective supply chain is a challenge in itself. The reasons are many

1. Tax effective supply chain need not be greener but needed for the survival of the company in the short term

2. Greener supply chain comes at a cost and hence a ditch in the bottom line in the intial years.

3. Share olders and management board may not entertian loosing short term advantages in view of proposed long term advantages.

4. And last but not least, tax effective supply chain can also be greenier if the law making bodies realise the importance of the same and ensure adequate laws are in place for the same.