Case Study: Small local facility for International Supplier
Small local facility for International Supplier struggles to acclimate to daily changing environment
Streamlined Solutions for Supply Chain Success
Key Process Elements
- Implement skills testing and strong leadership
- Cross train employees to proactively combat fluctuations
The Challenge
Our customer, a small supplier branch for a large international group provides logistic support solutions for global customers ranging from large multinational companies to small independent importers and exporters. This customer services a myriad of industries including but not limited to retail, chemicals, technology, government, defense and healthcare. Located on the Georgia coast, our customer is responsible for executing over 30 drayages* on a daily basis.
In 2010 the company hired a new General Manager who immediately recognized the need for contract labor to assist in the lumping (loading and unloading) to help facilitate staffing needs. Uncontrollable and often unpredictable fluctuations in cargo ships influence the time it takes cargo to reach port. This environment causes a high fluctuation in staffing demand, often under sensitive time requirements.
Inconsistencies in work scheduling led to unmanageable and often extreme turnover and decreased efficiency and production resulted. The quality of performance personnel was subpar and the customer was struggling.
Our Solution
An immediate action plan was put in place to address company retention and performance challenges. Skill testing for new hires led to recognizing the need to source a verifier. Our client agreed and we saw and immediate return from putting a strong lead in place. The lead helped develop the existing team and we worked alongside the partners to improve overall company operations.
Assistance in the placement of clerical staff followed as well as cross training associates in order to better respond to staffing demand fluctuations. The loaders learned to verify, the verifier learned how to properly load and several employs elected to start forklift training.
Customer Benefit
Implementing appropriate skills testing allowed and eased in the cross training of personnel. Adding strong leadership promoted from within boosted morale and motivated associates. Strong, positive leadership coupled with increased product knowledge and skill set made the difference. Shipments were filled in a timely fashion with an accuracy that met company expectations.
- Motivated Associates
- Eliminated rework and minimized no call, no shows
- Improve efficiency
- Company accuracy benchmarks met and exceeded
*In the shipping industry and logisitics, drayage is the transport of goods over a short distance, often as part of a longer overall move and is typically completed in a single work shift. Some research defines it specifically as “a truck pickup from or delivery to a seaport, border point, inland port, or intermodal terminal with both the trip orgin and destination in the same urban area.”
Drayage. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved Februrary 17, 2014, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drayage