The New Normal

Change is coming, what has been the norm for all of us, especially if you are working in logistics, warehousing and distribution before COVID-19 I believe we are going to be operating differently in a post COVID world.

There have been many improvements made in supply chain operations over the years and indeed recent initiatives like Outsourcing, Offshoring and LEAN, all principally driven to reduce cost, will not be the most important element in the new “ways of working”.

Supply chains as we know them will undoubtedly change, no longer will it be all about cost.

The reality is the cost of an item can be constantly reduced by operating in the environments mentioned above, but if you do not have the specified item you need because the supply chain is compromised then the cost of the item is irrelevant.

Many major players will now incur the cost and time to create end to end supplier network mapping so that they can have visibility and understanding of where their goods are in the delivery cycle at any point in time. This new way of planning is known as concurrency planning and basically means end-end connectivity.

Redundancies will be built in and added to the cost of the item as businesses potentially create dual sourcing channels for the same critical items to ensure supply.

Distribution Centres

Operation of distribution centres, clearly this will vary depending on size. There is no one size fits all, but there are some similar practices that will and should be considered by all players.

Operating Hours

Starting with hours of operation, it is highly likely that shift start times will be staggered, allowing people to be socially distanced and human to human interaction be minimized. With special attention to locker rooms, canteens/cafeterias and at prayer.

The new protocols MUST become habit.

• These protocols until we get a vaccine are:
• Temperature Checks for incoming personnel
• Medical support staff on site during working hours
• Wearing Face covering in public.
• Safe distancing.
• Continued hand washing and disinfecting

Protocols will cost

• Increased consumables – PPE – Masks – Hand Sanitizer
• Addendums to existing contracts & SLA’s
• Discussions will be required on who pays
• Doing this up-front will be important.

Physical activity will be driven by warehouse operations

• Receiving
• Put away picking
• Dispatch

In the case of increased each picking, investment will likely be made in automation with Robots & Cobots limiting human interaction and minimizing potential for mistakes.

• RFID picking should eliminate the need for person to person checking and improve efficiency.
• Deliveries to Outer Islands and stock transfer orders Warehouse to warehouse should all be full pallet transfers. This eliminates person to person interaction between despatch staff and porters and improves loading time and truck turnaround times.
• Smaller loads with higher frequency deliveries need to be co-ordinated with receiving destinations, with new SLA’s to reflect contactless deliveries.
• Goods in the form of totes or equivalent should be confirmed by electronic proof of delivery (ePod) via smartphone and that picture should be uploaded to the customer’s order interface.
• The implementation of tech-driven portals enabling customers to track progress of goods end-end the term is Concurrency.

(V.U.C.A.) In today’s environment of

VOLATILITY, UNCERTAINTY, COMPLEXITY and AMBIGUITY.

Businesses should be thinking about:

V = Vision, the path may be different, but the end game is the same.

U = Understanding, your people’s emotions are high.

C = Communicate, be clear and concise.

A = Agile, changing things is OK, but do it quickly and accurately.

Truck drivers will all need to be equipped with smart phones as a condition of employment, GPS will track location and be fed via customer portal to customer order desk.

Pictures of deliveries taken by driver’s smartphone will be uploaded to customer sales dept./order desk providing electronic proof of delivery (ePod) and linked to invoice payment.

The smartphone will have a pre-loaded cash wallet to enable payment of Fuel, Parking, and Meals, eliminating the need for petty cash.