FOCUS

— July 17, 2006

Execution Technology

HighJump Buys Pinnacle Distribution Concepts; Looks to Enhance Global Supply-Chain Services
HighJump Software, the vendor of warehousing and other supply-chain execution applications, has acquired Pinnacle Distribution Concepts Inc. Pinnacle sells transportation management system (TMS) software as a hosted, “on-demand” product. That is becoming the preferred architecture for TMS implementations, according to HighJump. The Pinnacle TMS package is sold under the FreightLogic brand. It will become part of the HighJump Supply Chain Advantage suite, comprising integrated software applications which manage operations from the source of materials through final delivery. HighJump said the acquisition will result in lower shipping costs and improved customer service for its users. “On-demand transportation management solutions make a lot of sense for many business models today,” said Chris Heim, president and general manager of HighJump. “Our customers will benefit from a full line of flexible solutions that work together to create highly efficient, global supply chains.” HighJump is a subsidiary of 3M Company.
http://www.highjumpsoftware.com/

P&G Cuts Freight Costs With Implementation of Automatic Vehicle Load-Building System
Procter & Gamble has attacked the problem of optimizing truck loading with acquisition of a new Automatic Vehicle Load Building (AutoVLB) system from Warehouse Optimization, LLC. The system draws on demand data to create shipments that completely fill out trucks. It takes into account such factors as axle weight, product stackability and trailer space. For loads with varying product densities, it combines heavy and light products so that the trailer simultaneously weighs out and cubes out. “While we previously had to manually intervene to avoid the shipment of straight loads of unstackable items, like displays, AutoVLB knows to put displays on top of strong unit loads,” said Gregg Schwerdt, P&G's beauty care distribution manager. He claimed that the new system has saved the company more than 7 percent on replenishment freight costs, while reducing the need for manual intervention. “This is a significant initiative in P&G's quest to reduce supply-chain costs in this challenging transportation environment,” Schwerdt said. According to Tom Moore, president of Warehouse Optimization, AutoVLB is more than a planner; it tells the loader how to arrange pallets on the truck. The system's directions offer sufficient detail for the case selector and loader to pick load pallets in a legal, damage-free way, Moore said.
http://www.warehouseoptimization.com/

Stryker Instruments Adopts New Tools for Vendor-Managed Inventory Program
Stryker Instruments has acquired a new system for implementing vendor-managed inventory (VMI) programs with its suppliers. Stryker is a provider of surgical instruments and other types of medical technology. It was having problems sharing real-time forecasts and consumption-rate data with key suppliers. As a result, the company was suffering from inflated inventory levels, stockouts and high administrative costs. Stryker needed to share data with suppliers in the U.S. and overseas, without the help of expensive electronic data interchange (EDI) technology. It began looking for a more efficient tool for scheduling and replenishment, as well as rating supplier performance. The solution was a VMI application from TradeBeam. The vendor's GTM software suite lets the user transmit to suppliers real-time data on inventory consumption, forecasts and shipping information. Suppliers can view the entire supply-chain process, while deploying a Web browser to provide advance ship notices (ASNs) and promise-to-ship information to their customers. The tool uses active alerting technology to allow for proactive, event-based management of the direct material supply chain. According to TradeBeam, the GTM suite has helped Stryker to reduce direct material inventory by 30 percent. Suppliers have realized efficiencies as well; complete visibility of supply and demand activities allows them to design better processes for manufacturing scheduling, replenishment and shipping. In some cases, TradeBeam said, suppliers have been able to reduce their component inventories by as much as 25 percent. John Macchia, president of Advance Turning & Manufacturing Inc., said his company is importing data from Stryker directly into its production system. “As a result,” he said, “we have reduced our inventory levels, dramatically improving our production schedules for parts to Stryker Instruments.”
http://www.tradebeam.com/

Spacelabs Healthcare Centralizes Its Global Supply-Chain Management
Spacelabs Healthcare, Inc. has pulled together its processes for managing the supply chain in support of worldwide manufacturing operations. Spacelabs makes patient-monitoring systems for critical care and anesthesia, wired and wireless networks for the transmission of clinical information, and ambulatory blood pressure monitors. It also sells a variety of services for medical data management. Customers include hospitals, clinics and physicians' offices. The company provides ECG laboratory services to pharmaceutical companies undertaking clinical trials. Products are sold under such brand names as Spacelabs, Blease and Dolphin. The company undertook a review of the top enterprise resource planning (ERP) packages, settling on the Global Enterprise Edition (GXE) from QAD Inc. Dave Tilley, president and chief operating officer of Spacelabs Healthcare, said it was swayed by QAD's focus on manufacturing, as well as the system's ability to delivery enhanced controls and audit trails required for life sciences applications. “We required an approach that enabled highly efficient global manufacturing, selling and distribution in seven countries, and QAD provided a proven ERP solution that was the answer to support our multi-site needs,” Tilley said. Spacelabs will now be able to manage its operations in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, all from a central location. It will also draw on advanced functionality of various QAD applications, including the vendor's Shared Services Domain for enacting independent controls for multiple business operations on a single database, enhanced controls for Sarbanes-Oxley and 21 CFR Part 11 compliance, consignment inventory, and supply visualization.
http://www5.qad.com/

New Version of TMS From RedPrairie Includes Global Trade and Fleet Management
RedPrairie Corp. has updated its transportation management system (TMS) software. The newest version of DLx Transportation features Global Trade Management and Fleet Management options. Shippers can model and control their management of contracted carrier and fleet resources. In the process, they can structure carrier rates, manage carrier contract commitments, plan to available capacity, and electronically tender and monitor carrier performance and shipment delivery through scorecards based on performance metrics. The application features an internet-deployable client which simplifies I.T. management, according to RedPrairie. An intuitive “drag-and-drop” interface for shipment management is intended to boost user productivity. The software can be provided through a traditional licensing model, or in an on-demand ASP-hosted mode. DLx Transportation provides multiple international trade logistics capabilities, including denied-party screening, customs and duty management, shipping export paperwork creation, trade-preferential agreements and international small-package shipment management. The system also includes capabilities for managing fleet-based, same-day delivery. The Fleet Management option relies on algorithms for determining the best local street routing, by dynamically re-planning driver zones for optimal cost of delivery, or optimizing within established driver zones for the best possible service.
http://www.redprairie.com/

IWS System Addresses Large-Scale Deployment of Emergency Medical Supplies
Integrated Warehousing Solutions (IWS) has developed new software to permit large-scale emergency response by government agencies. The IRMS Mobile Emergency Response System, also known as the Go-Kit, is a warehouse and inventory-control system for use by federal, state and local agencies in the event of an emergency. It was initially designed to support the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), where up to 50 tons of pre-prepped pharmaceuticals and medical supplies would be distributed to affected areas to ensure that assistance reaches those in need as quickly as possible. According to IWS, the Go-Kit allows for distribution and treatment centers to be operational in as little as 12 minutes. It can serve as the backbone of a statewide or local distribution strategy, helping to maintain a coordinated response to large-scale bioterrorism or pandemic events.
http://www.irmswms.com/

Brooks Adds Functionality to Software for Discrete-Manufacturing Management
Brooks Software, a provider of software applications for discrete manufacturing clients, has enhanced its manufacturing execution system (MES) with a range of new functions. FACTORYworks is the core MES offering from Brooks. It is now available on the Microsoft Windows platform. At the same time, Brooks has beefed up 300works, its MES software for highly automated semiconductor manufacturing facilities, or fabs. The changes will improve productivity and make it easier for companies to integrate their execution systems with corporate-level applications, the vendor said. Many of the software's core modules within the MES application suite have been upgraded. The FACTORYworks Work Order Management module allows manufacturers to create a production work order directly from customer-order information contained in the enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. When used in conjunction with the Brooks Enterprise Interoperability Hub, the module can maintain real-time connectivity to the ERP system. A Manufacturing Bill of Materials (MBOM) module defines where parts will be consumed in the manufacturing process, stores as-built configurations and tracks the entire component genealogy. An Inventory Management module allows the ERP system to pass bills of material to the MES, eliminating duplicate manual entry. Other updated modules include Nonconformance for Manufacturing, Business Objects Reporting, and JMS Message Bus.
http://www.brookssoftware.com/

Dean Warehouse Services Implements RF Integration System in New England
Dean Warehouse Services, a warehousing, logistics and transportation services supply-chain provider focusing on the New England region, has launched the Dean's Integration System. It is a real-time, online tracking system based on radio-frequency communications technology. Customers of Dean can now track inventory throughout their supply-chain management systems, the vendor said. The system allows companies' enterprise resource planning (ERP) software to follow the information provided through their warehouse management systems (WMS). As a result, Dean said, manufacturing, warehousing, transportation and order-fulfillment processes become fully integrated. According to the company, the Integration System is more than 600 percent more effective in tracking product than traditional manual pick-and-pack operations. Dean Warehouse currently has 12 warehousing facilities in Rhode Island, with locations in Cumberland, Lincoln, Pawtucket, Central Falls and East Providence. Together they provide nearly 2 million square feet of warehouse space.
http://www.deanwarehouse.com/

New Report Examines WMS Software for Third-Party Logistics Providers
A new research report from Industrial Data & Information, Inc. (IDII) analyzes various warehouse management system (WMS) applications for third- and fourth-party logistics providers, as well as contract and public warehousing operations. The report looks at a total of 40 WMS applications, comparing them in a number of ways, and providing tips on selecting the right system. Volume 1 is entitled “Third Party Logistics WMS Software - Selection Strategies & Side-by-Side Comparisons.” Volume 2 provides detailed product profiles and product analysis. Areas of coverage include comparison of the 40 WMS packages, focusing on product features, total 3PL customers and installations, operating systems and databases supported, key field sizes, and expert insights into software selection. The report details vendors in the United Kingdom, Pacific Rim, Australia, India and other countries, in addition to previous coverage of providers in the U.S, Canada and Europe. Also included is a scorecard of advanced functionality needed by 3PLs, with side-by-side comparison of WMS systems that provide engineered labor standards and profit-and-loss analysis, among other things. Price of the report, in printed or PDF formats, is $195 for a single copy, with company-wide licensing also available.
http://www.idii.com/

Click here to subscribe or renew your subscription to Global Logistics & Supply Chain Strategies magazine