This week, logistics consultant Frits de Wind describes the period after the summer holidays. According to De Wind, a good time to take a critical look at logistics processes within the company. "A kind of APK for logistics: are we still fit and are we still optimally equipped for our (changed) tasks?"
Recently, I was on holiday in Scandinavia. Since logistics is everywhere, and I also love my job, I couldn't resist, even though it is a holiday, looking at the world through logistics glasses there too.
That starts with loading the ferry. First of all, of course, vehicles are queued there. Depending on destination and vehicle dimensions (especially height), those queues are handled in a certain order. When a new ferry was commissioned a few years ago, the strategy for boarding vehicles also changed. The aim is, of course, within the margins of safety, to complete the loading process as quickly as possible; after all, a ferry should sail and be idle as little as possible.
Other distribution structures
Once arrived in Scandinavia, it is striking that distribution structures are quite different from what is usual in the Netherlands. Different population density, different demand patterns and different infrastructure lead to different decision criteria. Distances are often greater in both kilometres and travelling time in Scandinavia and vehicles, forced by infrastructure, are smaller. This leads to different transport flows and combinations. On some routes, public transport and goods transport are even combined: a travel bus has space for goods in the back of the vehicle, complete with a loading lift.
Whether it has all been fully optimised, I have not been able to judge; after all, I was on holiday! But it has been thought through, and when a ferry is replaced by a fixed bridge, it affects the existing distribution structures.
Read also: Cultural differences in logistics
'Never change a winning team'
I regularly visit companies where, under the motto 'never change a winning team', people have not asked themselves for ages whether they still work with the right structure and concept. The risk you then run is that the environment may have changed (considerably). The team may still be good, but is the customer pattern, demand pattern, product range and infrastructure also unchanged?
We should not change at all for the sake of changing, but often the outside world forces a change. After all, that outside world is constantly changing and to keep playing our role, we have to adapt to those changes.
MOT for logistics
By standardising or modularising a product, we may be able to stock it closer to the customer, i.e. at dealers instead of in a central distribution centre. Other products may need to be stocked centrally instead of locally due to decreasing demand. Does the material handling equipment still fit our product range, even since customers can order by the piece where it used to be by the box?
Periodically, we need to ask ourselves a number of questions, a kind of MOT for our logistics: are we still fit and are we still optimally equipped for our (changed) tasks?
I hope that, like me, you had a good holiday and are fully rested again to take a critical look at your logistics.
Frits de Wind - logistics consultant
