SOURCING & LOGISTICS
ID 234122638 © BiancoBlue |
Dreamstime.com
Choose proper material handling tools to prevent warehouse from becoming a war zone
by Rick Dana Barlow A
side from gaining access to products (which has been an enduring challenge the last two years), one of the primary tactics of supply chain is moving products
effectively around with an inherent strategy of handling mate- rials as efficiently as possible. Labor, process and workflow and technology and tools drive effectiveness and top it off with efficiency if healthcare organizations choose their options wisely based on their orga- nizational needs.
That’s why provider organizations must determine what product and process improvements they may need based on self-assessments of their materials handling operations. As a result, Healthcare Purchasing News queried a small group of executives well-versed about material handling and supply chain operations about relevant and useful products and technologies for storerooms and warehouses. Fortifying the storeroom and/or warehouse with the gamut
of material handling products and technologies may seem like a luxury to some but a necessity to others. So HPN asked material handling experts to evaluate more than 18 options to determine which were luxuries versus necessities to manage supply chain operations. Those products and technologies generating unanimous decisions are listed in the “Complete” categories. Those gleaning mixed decisions are listed in the appropriate “Leaning” categories. Based on current events
and against the backdrop of supply chain disruptions during the last two years, the points of view may be surprising to some, realistic to others or not forward-thinking enough to a third group. Tom Redding, Senior Managing Director, Healthcare Services, St. Onge Co., initially points to “the availability of reliable labor” as a continual challenge for most industries, including healthcare, when looking to improve material handling per- formance and that likely motivates increasing interest in technology. “Supply chain leaders will explore options to proactively manage potential service failures with technologies as [automated guided vehi- cles], process automation, demand management and cloud-based solutions,” Redding told HPN. “These types of technologies and systems will provide visibility, access and control across the enterprise to manage the business more effectively. Leveraging these types of technologies will require a more thoughtful and coordinated effort with the broader IT/IS business plan. Making decisions in a silo will no longer work with the future of high-integrated solutions.” However, striving for operational improvement must be
Tom Redding
balanced with the realistic capabilities of future-oriented tech- nologies, according to Redding.
10 February 2023 • HEALTHCARE PURCHASING NEWS •
hpnonline.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46
