I need help. Please post here if you're process has switched from using pallets to flats. How quickly did your store make the switch? What have you done differently during your unload to make the process go smoothly? How many people do you have anand are you able to get truck worked without overspending payroll?
Let's start with payroll first. The problem in making payroll is there appears to be no gain in efficiency with the new process, but a loss due to more sorting on the line with less people.
We currently have 6 Flow, Flow TL, and ETL LOG. We've unloaded two (2) trucks so far,
average 1950 pcs. at an
average time of 1hr 55 minutes ea. (6 AM start). We are not making it to the floor to push until the store opens at 8AM. We are literally loosing one (1) hour of floor time on
average before we start pushing.
We are sorting a limited number of repacks. The majority are sorted to their custom block to be pushed with the carton freight.
We have another Flow Team Member come in 6:30 AM to help pull. The rest start at various times starting at 8AM with the latest staying to 5 PM.
Our first truck, we went on break before we began pushing freight. We did better on the second one, we made it to the floor as they turned the lights on.
Slower starts:
Previously, the unload process was more efficient at the beginning due in part to the faster recovery time between line loading and unloading. This is a direct correlation to the size of the off load vehicle and the number of custom blocks (less walking).
Adding more unload points just increased the length of time by an exponential factor created by the number of custom blocks and the distance from the throwers (walking and line time) .
Here is the problem:
Let's say the optimum unload process is two (2) throwers with one (1) line sorters per three (3) unload points (custom blocks) along with two (2) pallet pullers for truck and line. The truck person also steps in for the backside of the line, transition, and line support.
With each additional unload point (custom block), you need to add additional time (payroll) to complete the process. There would also be a point where you would need to add an additional line sorter (payroll) due to the same time constraints created by the number of off load points and distance. We used to have one person per three spots on unload. That ended a couple of years ago and so did our efficiency.
At that time, the only variable to decrease efficiency (besides the truck condition) was the the time it took for freight to move down the line. The further the throwers move into the truck the more time it took to unload. This is why it is necessary to have a pusher for non powered line conveyors.
Now, we are literally overloading the flow process with the additional off load points.
The reason behind needing statistical time studies done over time along withe process reviews by qualified people prior to making such changes.
We have yet to come clean. We're carry pallets of freight over. In the past, the latest to complete the process with a skeleton crew was around 1:30 - 2:00 PM (avg. 1800 pcs.).
The canary in the coal mine:
As previously stated, time was reduced greatly in the process by having an additional person start pushing line freight upon the first sign of line conveyor lag time during unload. This was covered by the person responsible for pulling pallets off the trailer.
This gain in efficiency ended abruptly when the position was overloaded with the addition of the Market Uboat sort being staged on the backside of the line.
We had to take someone off the other side of the line to help with the additional Market sort. The only difference was the additional custom blocks.
Other problems to deal with:
Absentee, attrition, new team members, equipment and work area conditions (over crowding of processes and equipment) are all payroll killers now.
Just more work for everyone:
In our case, we stayed the same on head count due to payroll constraints and other issues. However, the amount of work increased substantially with this new process. It shows too with the appearance of the Flow Team Members involved after unload. I can see a guest complaint in the future.
We literally went from moving large quantities of freight to the floor in a shorter period of time to a substantial reduction of freight to the floor along with arguably doubling the time it takes to process (really don't want to get into that now). This is an exact opposite of what our expectations where previously. How are the stores going to come up with the additional margin to cover this expense?
I have no idea what the expectations are for this process.
You will eventually gain some efficiency upon people knowing the custom block locations, moving around custom blocks, and if possible, making sure you have equipment available and staged for the unload. Other than that, we're stuck in a time sink for the time being.
By the way, we are not getting any new equipment until sometime in August.
