Inbound Logistics Advance Medical Manufacturing

Solution

Three innovations vastly improved operational efficiency and reliability:

1. Kitting Solution

The materials needs of the 12 lines were not uniform. Some production lines required 12 pallets, while others needed 20. To address this, FIDELITONE developed a kitting solution for line-specific material quantities for just-in-time delivery, thereby streamlining material fl ow to the production lines.

2. Custom Box Truck

Furthermore, the inbound materials warehouse at the plant was too small to accommodate full 53′ trailers, yet capacity of a standard 26′ box truck was insufficient to feed the production line. To maximize space utilization, the FIDELITONE team designed a 26′ long x 109″ tall box truck with a barn door and reinforced floors for forklift use that yielded 2X the capacity of a standard box truck. Operating an additional warehouse nearby, FIDELITONE boosted frequency of materials delivery to the plant by a factor of 2.5 and upgraded delivery turnaround to 4 hours or less.

3. Raising the Bar for Carriers

This client was being taxed with routinely damaged shipments. FIDELITONE raised the bar and began tracking carrier performance through a customized quality scorecard. Only high-performing, cost-effective carriers remained on board. FIDELITONE also evaluated third-party carrier lanes to reduce overall waste of empty or unutilized trucks, saving the client $78K/year in cartage costs. Materials from nearly 20 suppliers now arrive at the FIDELITONE materials warehouse reliably fi t and ready for use.