Warehouse audit. Warehouse audit: goals, warehouse efficiency analysis. Logistic audit and its main principle

7. Should these operations be carried out at the receiving end?

8. Should the marking “eat up” the acceptance area?

There may be more questions, it depends on the specifics of the warehouse. The main thing is that the audit itself should be manageable, and management decisions could be made on its basis. And for this, work processes (and specifically acceptance) must be described; if there is no description, then this means that they are spontaneous and there is no audit object.

Measurability Requirements

Without measurable indicators, it is pointless to conduct an audit. Some parameters can be found using measuring instruments, such as unloading time. Production raters have always worked with such indicators.

Some of the physical parameters are calculated, for example, the area occupied by pallets upon acceptance. It cannot be measured directly, but it is easy to calculate by multiplying the area of ​​the pallets by their number. Some indicators are statistical, for them it is necessary to generalize large amounts of information, in particular, the percentage of marriage. Finally, some indicators may be based on expert judgment, for example on a ten-point scale. Thus, almost everything can be measurable, as soon as the measurement technique is “invented”. Physical quantities are more suitable for measuring the performance of the process and its limitations, for quality control they will need to be converted. Peer reviews, on the other hand, are more about quality than performance. Based on measurable parameters, we form KPI (Key Performance Indicators), that is, key performance indicators.

Approaches to the formation of KPI

The set of KPIs should include only those indicators that are directly related to the acceptance processes. For example, it does not make sense to include warehouse turnover there, since it is an external factor (in terms of improving existing processes) in relation to the warehouse. You should also be careful about KPIs used to motivate employees. This is an additional feedback in the enterprise process system, so it can affect the processes themselves, and not always predictably. The process audit should take into account such possible impact, but it is better to leave these indicators out of the field of consideration, for more operational work. The scope of the set of indicators depends on the resources allocated to the audit and technological capabilities. For example, if there is an information system, statistics can be retrieved from the database, and if not, you will have to “shovel” a mountain of documents.

It is also worth considering in advance the possible activities arising from the audit. They are determined by the possibilities of influencing the process, for example, the budget. It is necessary to collect and analyze information only for specific purposes, for further management decisions. In my practice, there was a case when the personnel department offered to collect statistics on the hours worked by each employee. When asked by department heads whether we would pay overtime, optimize staffing, or do something else, the head of the personnel service replied that he did not know - we must first collect statistics. No need for such statistics! Information should cause managerial influences and be extracted only for this purpose. Otherwise it's a waste of time.

Examples of KPI development

Here are examples of KPIs that can be used in an acceptance audit. The average value of freight traffic in the short term is a constant. Daily and weekly cycles are approximately the same. It is possible to determine during the audit the value of the incoming flow in tons, cubic meters, loading units or pieces per period. You can also determine the average value of batches of deliveries. This is not a KPI yet, especially since the warehouse does not affect it. But the maximum incoming flow, the throughput of acceptance is determined by how the process is organized. But this is not yet an indicator of the process, but a limitation of the system. It can be determined during the audit process. It is enough to fix the facts of warehouse overflow and determine the flow of acceptance during these periods.

The first KPI may be the power reserve of the receive operation, which is defined as the ratio of the difference between the maximum incoming flow and the current or average incoming flow to the maximum incoming flow. Accordingly, we obtain the average and current power reserve. This formula looks like this: R = (P max - P t (cp)) / P max , where R is the reserve, P max is the maximum flow, P t (avg) is the current (or average) flow. If the reserves are minimal, then the result of the audit should be measures to increase the maximum throughput. And if the reserves are sufficient, then the average power reserve can be taken as a standard, determine the tolerances within which the current flow must be, and instruct the personnel planning the acceptance processes, managing them and, to a certain extent, implementing them, operational monitoring and such an impact on the process, which would keep him within tolerance.

We may also be interested in the idle time of transport for unloading. From a utilitarian point of view, we are not even interested in it, but in the amount of fines for downtime. Therefore, the second KPI can be exactly this amount, in rubles. It is determined for each class of rolling stock individually (in the limit for each unit, but first you need to decide at least for the class). A simple euro truck, of course, is more expensive than a simple Gazelle. As a result of the audit, this KPI is measured and one-time or ongoing measures are planned to reduce it to zero.

A few more KPIs can be related to transportation. For example, the quality of product packaging. This is also an external process in relation to the warehouse, it can be included in the set only if the activities for working with the supplier lead to something, otherwise the meaning of such indicators is small. Although from a different point of view, this affects the quality of our processes, and we can improve them. It is not enough to divide the delivery into palletized and in bulk. Pallets can be stacked correctly and somehow. Pallets may or may not have a packing list, ASN, barcode. Boxes in bulk can be stacked neatly and sequentially by article numbers, or they can be randomly dumped. All these options should be separated, their share in the total population, methods and processing standards should be determined.

Quantitative KPIs - performance indicators, of course, affect the quality, and in each warehouse it is possible to determine a reasonable set of them during the audit. Let's move on to quality. It is no secret that in many warehouses it is necessary to open packages and also carry out intra-container control. On the one hand, this requires certain labor costs (another KPI), and on the other hand, if you miss a discrepancy, it will come back to you like a boomerang from your client. Therefore, two indicators must be entered: the percentage of non-compliance received from the supplier, and the percentage of non-compliance detected by the consumer. It will not be possible to reduce them to one, we are interested in both aspects, and events on them will be different. The percentage of complaints should also be divided by the place of origin of the defect: did your warehouse make a mistake (and who, acceptance? Or was the mistake made later?) or your supplier's mistake was missed by acceptance.

It is also useful to trace the connection of complaints with peak loads and, in general, with a power reserve. Presumably, the number of errors will be greater when the workload of the reception staff is high, and, paradoxically, during periods when the workload is close to zero. Quality requires tone and rhythm, and overload and underload alike reduce it.

At the acceptance, there may also be auxiliary operations, such as quality control, product labeling, stickering, sorting into storage areas, weighing. It is imperative to determine their share in the process and quality during the audit.

Applying KPIs and developing activities

Having established the facts and received the figures, it is necessary to proceed to the development and implementation of measures to improve the process, because the audit is carried out in order to form an impact on the processes of the system. Most of the activities were already implied at the planning stage of the audit and now must be translated into reality. Activities can be divided into several categories according to the place of impact:

1. External to the business. Business is an open system, so it is necessary to influence the outside world (in our case, these are suppliers and carriers).

2. External in relation to the warehouse. In business, everything is interconnected, the warehouse serves the commodity flows of the business, and the work of the warehouse depends on other processes of the enterprise.

3. External to acceptance. For example, a related operation is the placement of goods in storage areas. If the capacity of this operation is less than that of the receiving, overstocking of the receiving area may occur.

4. Internal concerning acceptance operations.

According to the time interval, all these activities can be divided into one-time, cyclical and permanent, and according to the level of management - into operational and strategic ones. Measures (under all their categories) to increase throughput might look like this.

Disposable:

1. External to business:

a) transition to the delivery of all goods on euro pallets, which reduces the process of unloading/loading the car by 1.5 - 2 times;

b) creation of requirements for the supplier for the packing of goods.

2. External to warehouse:

a) redistribution of tasks for conflict deliveries between the purchasing department and the warehouse.

3. External to acceptance:

a) an increase in the acceptance area due to the shipping area.

4. Internal:

a) separation of operations of unloading, marking, acceptance and paperwork;

b) organization of work in several shifts, taking into account peak loads;

c) organization of a buffer storage for labeling goods.

Cyclic:

1. External to business:

a) supplier qualification.

2. External to warehouse:

a) regular company-wide meetings on quality issues with the participation of acceptance managers.

3. External to acceptance:

a) regular monitoring by the head of the warehouse of claims for errors in the warehouse.

4. Internal:

a) redeployment of personnel to teams in order to transfer experience;

b) training and retraining programs;

c) control measurements of the time of operations;

d) analysis of the acceptance area occupied by the goods, its optimization.

Permanent:

Internal:

a) measurement of KPIs that, after the audit, were found to be unsatisfactory;

b) control of loaders for alcohol intoxication;

c) unconditional adherence to job descriptions;

d) mentoring. ■

Warehouse audit will help you evaluate the efficiency of the warehouse system, its components and many logistics processes. Find possible ways to optimize work processes and reduce storage space.

The GICOM company will audit your warehouse and give a list of recommendations for improving the work.

Required data for audit:

1. Warehouse logistics questionnaire - as is and forecast for 3-5 years (or % growth)
2. Warehouse layout with dimensions
3. The list of restrictions - the maximum number of receipts to the warehouse, the maximum productivity of each line, the maximum and minimum volume and weight of one SKU, etc.
4. Photos of the current warehouse - along the outer perimeter and inside

Warehouse audit technology:

• Analysis of current intra-warehouse logistics
• Analysis of warehouse processes
• Warehouse management system audit
• Determination of the structure of cargo flows
• Audit of storage efficiency of products on racks
• Analysis of the topology of the location of equipment in the warehouse and production
• Identification of "bottlenecks" - "points of growth", the optimization of which will increase the amount of goods received and shipped, storage capacity, depending on the tasks of your warehouse and production.

Logistic audit is considered as a mandatory stage preceding the implementation of the WMS - system. Survey results and expert recommendations help to find the best solution for storing goods, optimize warehouse operations, workload and number of staff, etc. In other words, a logistics audit contributes to the understanding of what needs to be done in the warehouse in order to bring it in order before automation.

2 Turlaev Evgeny Gennadyevich Founder of the consulting company Proficom (the company's goal is to solve business problems for enterprises that have a far-sighted strategy for developing their brands), business coach, crisis manager, practitioner. More detailed information on the website Direction of activity: consulting services on business development; building a high-quality distribution sales system; work in the development of the sales department and sales strategy in trading and manufacturing companies; building logistics systems; holding open and corporate seminars; crisis management in sales and logistics.

The purpose of the logistics analysis Expert evaluation of the existing warehouse system and a constructive proposal for the introduction of new technology in the work of the warehouse, processing of technological operations with goods, technical support of the warehouse complex. 4

The key principle of the audit The key principle of the audit is the movement from the global goals of the enterprise in changing the existing warehouse logistics system to a detailed study of warehouse technological processes, the reasons for low efficiency and missed opportunities in the work of warehouse logistics. 5

Task definitions Meeting with company management. Preparation of a list of changes, which indicates the formulated project goals that are required to be achieved as a result of the changes. The list of goals is divided into priorities - mandatory, planned and desired. Mandatory targets must be defined. Planned and desired serve to evaluate individual aspects of the solution. Signing the contract and confidentiality agreement. 6

Communication with personnel Communication with employees in the warehouse, which lasts five working days; Maximum involvement of them in the ongoing processes of change, which is one of the main goals of the audit; Obtaining the maximum amount of information and an objective assessment of the work of the warehouse for today

Analysis of the received information Development of solutions in optimizing the system of interaction with other structural divisions of the company; Development of schemes of commodity flows and placement of products in the warehouse; Design and calculation of the number of storage places; Calculation of warehouse equipment by type; Development of the scheme of the technological process; Optimization of warehouse operations; Calculation of the number of personnel depending on the proposed options for the warehouse operation technology; Development of recommendations for optimizing the warehouse accounting system, workflow, information exchange.

Stanislav Zinchenko, director of the Center for Industrial Research of the business portal "Production Management".

About the author of the lesson

Stanislav Zinchenko is a specialist in audit and optimization of production and logistics systems, has experience in implementing consulting projects (more than 100) for 50 manufacturing enterprises in Germany, Russia, Ukraine. He worked as the head of industrial consulting departments, a business analyst at the World Bank, a professional trainer in the field of production management and logistics. Head and participant of a number of international projects to introduce German experience in production management in Russia and Ukraine.

The author was trained in Germany, is a specialist and trainer of REFA: Organization of work systems and processes, Process data management, Optimization of material flows, Supply chain management, Process analysis, Time economy. Passed internships in German consulting companies: REFA, LEGROS, ORTIM, SDZ in the field of production and logistics in the specializations: Work rationing, Organization and optimization of jobs, Optimization of material flows, Logistics systems management, Automation of logistics processes.

Fuss is not an indicator of efficiency

Any production, even the most perfect, has the potential for improvement, the main thing is to be able to see it. And we will start conducting the "Audit with our own eyes" from, probably, the most inconspicuous place in the entire enterprise - from the warehouse. Guests or the press are rarely brought here to show off their successes, this place is never given priority for modernization, but how the work is organized in the warehouse depends on the timeliness of the execution of orders, the smooth operation of the shops and the reputation of the entire company.

So let's go to the warehouse. Whatever it is, whatever products are stored here, its function remains unchanged: a warehouse is a buffer designed to harmonize the capacities of sites, production and sales, combined with an inventory processing zone, where the goods change shape, completeness, condition etc.

The visible basic elements of the warehouse system, which are constantly in interaction, are:

• staff;
• equipment;
• commodity-material values.

Do not forget that there are other elements involved in the operation of the system:

• processes;
• document flow and accounting system;
• organization of work.

Let's deal with each of them in turn.

When, upon entering the warehouse, we observe busy work - some workers unload goods, others load them, others move them around the warehouse, others draw up documentation, someone manages, someone performs - we involuntarily create the illusion that everything is going as it should , work is in full swing, and everyone is busy. But fuss is not an indicator of efficiency. Rather, on the contrary - it is evidence that this warehouse "organism" is sick and needs urgent treatment.

In a normally organized and managed warehouse system, by definition, there cannot be a concentration of personnel and ongoing processes in one place and at one time. Silence and tranquility reign in well-organized warehouses, work is carried out measuredly, there are no crowds of employees - only single workers, slowly and without being distracted, do their job.

Let's try to take a closer look at what is actually hidden behind the "active" life of the warehouse, described above, and determine the possible causes of the resulting rush and turmoil, which we often perceive as a natural state of affairs:

1. The presence of material crosses, intersecting material flows, indicates improper space planning and irrational distribution of work, which increases the possibility of errors and the risk that goods will be sent to the wrong destination.
2. The presence of technological crosses, intersecting routes for the movement of equipment and people, leads to a slowdown in work and increases the risk of damage (both to equipment and employees).
3. The lack of proper planning of the warehouse operation (execution of work when the need arises) leads to the fact that the planned operations overlap in time and space, creating a load on the same elements of the warehouse system.
4. The inefficiency of the shift organization of labor occurs when the load on the warehouse is estimated by average indicators (per week, day) and the shift organization of labor does not take into account the real peaks in the load on processes and operations.
5. Inefficient organization of work - when the line manager does not know what, who should do and when, employees make these decisions on their own, which, in the absence of organization and a "command center", ultimately proves to be disastrous for any system.

These are the simplest, but at the same time the most global problems of the warehouse, which are immediately evident upon careful observation of how the work is carried out.

Let's dwell on some elements of the working atmosphere of the warehouse and consider them in more detail.

Inventory

The simplest step in conducting a "do-it-yourself audit" is to monitor the condition, handling, storage and movement of inventory items.

In relation to goods and materials, a group of simple signs of the existence of problems in the warehouse system can be distinguished:

• Inventory and materials are located in the warehouse outside the system of logistics units (box, pallet, container, etc.);
• Inventory and materials are stored directly on the floor without reference to any zone (identified according to the accounting system);
• the sales packaging or storage (movement) unit of goods and materials is damaged;
• Goods and materials are in stock without any packaging;
• Goods and materials are in the warehouse without an identification system (identification is carried out by appearance or is difficult);
• Goods and materials are in packaging, in a logistic unit, but in a form that makes it impossible to process them without additional costs and operations.

The presence of such problems in the warehouse allows us to draw disappointing conclusions:

• the warehouse does not have a storage system;
• rules for working with goods and materials are not developed or not brought to the attention of employees;
• warehouse workers do not comply with the rules for working with goods and materials;
• the warehouse has not implemented an accounting system or its implementation is impossible;
• low level of performance discipline and organization of work in the warehouse;
• the level of balances in the accounting system never corresponds to the actual;
• additional costs are constantly required for rejection, repacking, purchase of packaging materials, etc.
• there are frequent cases when, at the time of the request, goods and materials are not ready for shipment, which leads to an increase in the lead time of the order or its disruption. Because if, for example, out of 10,000 boxes 50 are damaged, lost or not packed, the order cannot be considered complete. In any case, the result will be additional costs and disruption of the order.
• the problem of lack of people, equipment and space will occur regularly, as part of the resources are constantly directed to additional operations.

The worst thing for an enterprise in such a situation is not even the loss of profit from a broken order and not wasted time. It is much worse if warehouse workers (loaders, storekeepers, warehouse manager, logisticians), faced with these failures and their consequences on a daily basis, do not notice them, considering everything that happens NORMAL. In this case, the problem is not some part lying on the floor; the problem is much deeper and its solution will require the change of the entire system and, possibly, the replacement of many employees.

Warehouse storage systems

The next element that you should pay attention to when conducting an “audit with your own eyes” is warehouse storage systems and picking, in other words, various shelving structures and how they are used, how goods and materials are stored and processed in them.

There is a group of simple criteria that allow you to fix problems with the use of shelving structures:

1. Each shelving system is designed to be stored according to certain principles.

• inefficient storage and handling of product units or components on pallet racks;
• it is not efficient to place a different assortment in the tunnel of entry racks;
• it is not efficient to store items or components in a block-floor system without aisles for three-way processing.

2. Each shelving system is designed for handling by special equipment (hydraulic or picking trolley, stacker, loader, etc.).

• it is not effective to carry out manual selection of goods from racking systems intended for processing by equipment;
• it is not effective to allow personnel to work at height with goods stored on rack structures;
• it is not efficient to use one type of equipment to work with all types of shelving systems.

3. Each shelving system is an expensive structure, no less valuable than the equipment or goods stored on it. It also requires a careful attitude towards itself, therefore it is unacceptable:

• broken racks and bent beams;
• torn and missing plates and instructions.

The most common problems associated with warehouse storage systems are:

• improper design and arrangement of racking systems (without taking into account transportation routes, commodity and material flows, loading and unloading methods, etc.);
• inefficient use of shelving systems, which leads to unnecessary costs;
• permanent additional maintenance costs arising from improper handling of warehouse storage systems;
• permanent replacement of elements of shelving structures damaged due to improper handling;
• long order picking time;
• a large number of personnel required to perform the work;
• lack of space to accommodate the assortment;
• lack of equipment to maintain the system;
• lack of picking places for product selection;
• the impossibility of the normal functioning of the accounting system.

The biggest disappointment is often the lack of benefits from investing in the modernization of warehouses (building a new building, purchasing expensive equipment and racking systems). The reason for this is most often that the warehouse staff, to facilitate the work of which this investment was made, working in the usual way, nullifies all efforts, destroying the racking systems or not using their full benefits.

Warehouse equipment

Conducting an "audit with your own eyes", you can not ignore the warehouse equipment, which includes all types of mechanisms designed to move goods and materials in a warehouse.

With regard to technology, auditing is simplified, since all problem areas are usually quite obvious, although they are often ignored even by those employees who regularly encounter them:

• the equipment is in improper condition (dirty and traces of damage);
• the technique has inscriptions, drawings, devices that are not provided for in its passport;
• not all available equipment is involved in the processes;
• there are “abandoned” units of equipment on the territory of the warehouse or complex;
• in the process of work, the equipment runs out of charge or fuel;
• there is a constant problem of lack of equipment, there are regular requests to purchase several additional units;
• in the presence of maintenance services that carry out repairs under the contract, there is also its own mechanical and repair areas, where something is constantly being repaired.

The presence of the above "symptoms" indicates the existence of the following problems:

• there is no separate schedule for the operation of equipment, coordinated with the load schedule;
• real needs for equipment are not identified, there is no relationship between the volume and frequency of work and the number of units of equipment;
• the staff is not personally responsible for the equipment used;
• equipment is maintained and maintained without observing the rules of work on the data sheet.

Surprisingly, in practice it is difficult to find at least one warehouse, which, in the opinion of the manager, does not require several more units of warehouse equipment. And at the same time, in almost every warehouse you can find opportunities to reduce its quantity or increase its productivity through rational use and maintenance.

Packaging and consumables

Among all warehouses, whether industrial or commercial, there are hardly 20% where the rules and procedures for handling packaging and consumables are precisely spelled out, areas for their storage are defined and the necessary resources are allocated. The problems that arise with them are similar to the problems with goods and materials, although they have some specifics.

By taking a fresh look at your supplies and packaging, you may find that:

• they do not have a fixed storage location, being in disarray throughout the warehouse or enterprise;
• there are no exact data on the number of species used and their nomenclature;
• they are not present in the balance accounting system or their recorded amount never corresponds to the real one;
• despite the constant purchase, they are regularly in short supply, which causes delays in the processes;
• there is no current regulation for handling them, as well as responsible for their use and consumption;
• there are regular complaints from suppliers and customers about the use of the wrong materials.

Such seemingly minor problems can have very serious consequences for the business:

• without accurate accounting, the share of packaging and consumables in the unit cost of production will never be determined;
• the cost of packaging and consumables will be continuously allocated to general and overhead costs;
• you will create artificial consumption rates that will not be respected;
• due to the lack of a permanent area for packaging and consumables, their intermediate storage will be everywhere;
• clutter with materials will constantly impede the passage, they will be shifted from place to place as needed.

You must also understand that the appointment of a storekeeper and a loader responsible for packing and consumables will not solve the problem. Unlike other problems of the warehouse system, this one lies entirely in the absence of warehouse accounting, which is as different from accounting as accounting is different from financial. Only with its effective functioning it is possible to start a more rational use of packaging and consumables.

warehouse staff

Storekeepers and loaders do not become - they are born. This joke has a good reason, as the warehouse staff is unique in their characteristics. Nowhere are there so many revolutions and strikes, nowhere are so many ultimatums put forward, and nowhere are people so uninterested in the lack of a qualitative result. The secret is that they don't feel like they're value-added employees, but they're used to being blamed for everything.

The problems of this link are easily detected when observing their work:

• they walk in groups and work 2-3 on one operation, process;
• there is always one observer for one or two workers;
• if you ask a foreman or storekeeper to name all the people working in the warehouse and indicate who is working on what process at the moment, you will not hear a clear answer;
• each time a different number of people take over;
• safety precautions are not observed;
• they carelessly handle goods and materials;
• they walk in shoes and clothes that are not established by the rules;
• they talk on mobile phones and eat in the wrong place;
• profanity is constantly used;
• smoking is allowed on the premises, employees visit the smoking area in groups of 3-10 people.

This state of affairs leads to the following conclusions:

• chaos reigns in the warehouse;
• warehouse management is unprofessional;
• lack of executive discipline;
• a group of “old-timers”, experienced employees who are confident that they know how to do their job and do not recognize regulations and rules, manages work processes;

In such a situation, you find yourself completely dependent on the warehouse workers in relation to the fulfillment of orders and requests, and no system of remuneration will improve the quality of work.

In fact, it is enough to look into the "smoking room", hear the radio playing loudly, drowning out everything around, see the bustling staff imitating violent activity - and this will be enough to admit that there are problems with the warehouse staff. The difference is only in the depth of the defeat of this "disease".

Warehouse processes

The ability to prescribe processes greatly facilitates the life of a manager, allowing you to organize work in the most efficient way, constantly see the sequence of operations performed, and understand who is responsible for which part of the work. But many, having taken this method as a universal recipe for efficiency and started using it in the warehouse, are faced with complete rejection caused by the fact that, unlike the production warehouse staff, not perceiving their work as creating value for the client and the entire enterprise, they are indifferent to the concepts technologies, their sequence and production culture. Therefore, be prepared for the fact that it will not be possible to prescribe and implement the necessary warehouse processes at one time.

So, how do you do a “do it yourself audit” of warehouse processes? The most attractive thing about such an “audit” is that there are no “special” and “unique” storage facilities, and this should always be remembered. Don't be deceived by claims from storekeepers, warehouse managers, and even complex managers that the proposed methods for improving the organization of work in a warehouse will not work "because ..." - any explanations of how this warehouse differs from analogues follow. But any warehouse is designed to perform the same basic tasks: acceptance, placement, storage, picking, inventory, shipment of goods and performing a group of processes and operations related to the processing of goods (formation of kits, packaging, preparation, etc.).

Therefore, to determine how technological and correct the processes carried out in the warehouse, you can do the following:

1. Request all types of warehouse documents regulating warehouse processes (regulations, procedures, instructions, algorithms, instructions, orders, etc.), and check the knowledge of managers and employees, including how up-to-date these documents are.
2. Check any employee for understanding the implementation of the process (ask to explain what, why and why he is doing, what result this should lead to and what will happen if the process is not completed on time).
3. Try to disrupt any operation or process and see what results this will lead to, tracking the speed of reaction and decision making (and determine if changes are noticed at all).
4. Conduct certification of managers and employees using case studies, suggesting conditional situations that may arise in the process of working in a warehouse, and asking them to describe their actions. An example of a problem: a car with damaged goods arrived at the warehouse, the purchasing manager is unavailable, there is 1 hour before the end of the working day, and the driver is in a hurry to leave. Having come up with up to 20 such questions, you can fairly objectively assess the readiness of your staff for a variety of situations.
5. And finally, selectively check the value for you and customers of any 2-3 operations or sub-processes in each warehouse process.

After conducting such an audit in their warehouse, managers often come to disappointing conclusions. The most typical problems are:

• an abundance of "unidentified" (not included in the plan) processes and operations, which take up to 20-30% of working time;
• warehouse workers make decisions on processes, guided by intuition, no one knows about the decision table, there is no understanding that the same problems arise regularly and require standard solutions;
• the existing documents of the warehouse do not reflect the actual processes and operations taking place, and a number of necessary documents simply do not exist, and none of the participants in the process sees this as a problem;
• most of the processes and operations are carried out by the “public unconscious” of a group of experienced employees. This dependence becomes especially noticeable when they get sick or go on vacation - the effectiveness of work immediately drops by 30-40%;
• the level of qualification of employees does not correspond to either the cost of goods and materials, or the cost of processes for you and customers.

Unfortunately, the execution of processes in the warehouse is completely dependent on the staff, and this must be remembered. But when you optimize the processes carried out in the warehouse, guided by the principle "people are the main value", remember that the employee should not just be listed in your enterprise, but really be of value and, in turn, see the value in you and your company .

Document flow and accounting system

A constant warehouse problem that occurs in almost every enterprise is warehouse accounting, which, as mentioned above, has its own specifics in comparison with both accounting and financial accounting. Unfortunately, this is far from being always understood by the accounting service, which rarely pays due attention to what is happening in the warehouse: goods and materials are credited, balances are written off, at first glance, everything is taken into account. But the main problem of warehouse accounting that deserves an "audit with your own eyes" is the relevance of the data in the accounting system and their adequacy in relation to the real situation in the warehouse.

To study the system of accounting and workflow in the warehouse, there is no need to double-check all invoices and expense documents. “Audit with your own eyes” allows you to identify bottlenecks, revealing only the top layer of the problem.

Therefore, in order to understand how effective the accounting and document management system is, you can go down to the warehouse and ask the following questions:

• How are returns counted?
• How are surpluses accounted for?
• how is battle, marriage, scrap, theft taken into account?
• How are consumables and packaging materials accounted for?

These questions are enough to find out that even when working with an “ideal” program (from 1C to SAP), the remnants of materials are often not in the right place for storage, their quantity and nomenclature do not correspond to those specified in the documentation, there is a discrepancy in time between the actual processes and their program (documentary) write-off (relocation, posting), because of which the program can count the same unit twice. And much more.

As in other sections of the “audit with your own eyes”, the presence of problems in warehouse accounting can also be quite simply seen with your own eyes: if manual inscriptions are used to identify goods and materials in the warehouse, if documents are scattered, if you can find paper attached to a pallet with an inscription like “To pick up the storekeeper Petrov tomorrow morning”, then remember - you may have accounting, but warehouse accounting as a system and one of the most important principles for organizing work at the enterprise is missing.

Organization of work

Almost every enterprise today makes statements about the ideal warehouse. Of course, based on the fact that earlier our warehouses were more like barracks, a beautiful modern building, galvanized shelving systems and fashionable Japanese or German forklifts today can be taken as criteria for an ideal warehouse. But this picture is deceptive, it does not always help to successfully complete the work task.

An ideal warehouse, like an ideal production, does not depend on the external image, on equipment and technologies. Its "ideality", first of all, depends on the organization of work. This concept is often ignored in many warehouses, where the main thing is capacity and size. Many people forget that a warehouse is designed not for storage, but for processing, and modern indicators of warehouse performance are not the volume of stored materials, but, first of all, the number of lines collected per shift and the number of simultaneously processed orders. And in order to achieve these indicators, the effective organization of work is fundamental.

In order to identify problems in the organization of work in the warehouse, conducting an "audit with your own eyes", it is enough to observe:

• observance of the schedule of the beginning and end of the working day;
• organization of jobs;
• provision of resources for processes and operations;
• transfer of shifts;
• problem solving and decision making process;
• security and cleaning in the warehouse;
• the process of receiving tasks and distributing work.

Unfortunately, you will almost certainly see:

• unnecessary and inefficient waste of time;
• inefficient and illogical decisions;
• negligence, laziness and promiscuity;
• illiterate leadership at all levels;
• cluttered workplaces;
• constant search for documents, solutions, people.

None of the equipment will provide common sense, experience, sincere and responsible attitude to work and a cohesive team, and the creation of a warehouse, as well as a production culture, is impossible without these factors.

Of course, we hope that after conducting a “audit with your own eyes”, you will not find any of the above problems. Although this is unlikely, there is room for improvement even in the most advanced system. The main thing is not to be afraid of change.

Finally, let's reveal the main secret of detecting problems in a warehouse - the presence of chairs, sofas, armchairs, etc. If, during an “audit with your own eyes”, you see a pair of plastic chairs in the shipping / receiving area or an old sofa in the storage or processing area, then this alone is enough to understand - it's time to start planning changes!

For our part, we recommend that you regularly come to the warehouse and organize such arbitrary “audits with your own eyes” for your colleagues and subordinates, since a lot depends on the work of the warehouse: without timely shipped orders and raw materials that arrived at the production on time, the enterprise will never be work smoothly and efficiently, as a single healthy organism.

You can ask questions to Stanislav Zinchenko in the comments below.

How to audit a warehouse
Dmitry Perov, Head of the Department of Implementation and Support of Logistics Systems at ANT Technologies, © LOGISTICS and Management www.logistpro.ru

The business has been successfully automated for a long time, ERP is installed in the company, and WMS is in the warehouse. A large amount of statistics has been accumulated in the databases of these systems. It takes a lot of work to understand where, when and who makes mistakes and whether these mistakes are caused by the wrong construction of the company's business processes.
A huge advantage of this project is the deep interest and support of the top management of the company. In fact, this is permission for a complete diagnosis and readiness for any procedures, not only therapeutic, but also surgical. You can change the physical and information processes, the scheme of personnel motivation, etc.

At the first meeting, the strategic goal was defined: “In November 2008, the balance of goods in the warehouse should be such that it would be possible to refuse to rent additional warehouse space from third parties and not resort to their help throughout 2009. At the same time, the turnover of the company should not decrease.” Funding for reengineering - from savings from not renting additional space, eliminating inventory, as well as by improving the operating performance of the warehouse.

Diagnostic algorithm

Step 1. We carry out the analysis

We started, as usual, with an ABC analysis. It was carried out in the simplest way: up to 80% of the goods - group A; 80-96% - group B, the rest - group C. In one report, indicators were summarized in three parameters: in pieces, in sales and profit. Most of the goods belong to the same category for all options: AAA, BBB, CCC. It turned out that the main turnover is provided by 24% of the goods.

The excess inventory was then assessed. Added inventory for each category C item if it exceeds the annual sale of this product. It turned out to be about 400 tons. At first glance, for a warehouse of 8,000 pallet places, there are not so many, but on the other hand, due to such a low turnover, the question arises - are these positions needed at all? Together with the management, we decided that we should get rid of such positions. Based on the ABC analysis, it is difficult to judge exactly which positions should be disposed of, since there are goods that are sold in small quantities, but steadily. To refuse them means to lose even a small, but part of the income.

Step 2. Define the sales curve

XYZ analysis usually serves to identify stability and instability. In theory, everything is simple: stability is determined using the coefficient of variation, calculated by the formula (the higher the coefficient of variation, the more unstable the object):

Ni=1 (хi – х–)2
n = n ґ 100%,
X-

where xi is the value of the parameter for the assessed object for the i-th period;

x is the average value of the parameter for the evaluated object of analysis;

n is the number of periods.

After calculating the coefficient of variation, the goods are divided into groups, for example, as follows:

group X - objects, the coefficient of variation for which does not exceed 10% (stable group of goods);

group Y - objects, the coefficient of variation for which is 10–25% (a group of goods of medium stability);

group Z - objects, the coefficient of variation for which exceeds 25% (unstable group of goods).

We tried to make a head-on calculation - we got that all products belong to category Z, which was expected. This calculation option is only suitable for a business in which seasonality is either low or not all products show up. Then the calculation allows you to identify seasonal goods. In our case, the seasonality is such that some of the time the goods are not sold at all, and this applies to almost every position. As an example, the graph shows the sales of one of the products for the last 33 months. The cycles are visible to the naked eye. Every 12 months the picture is repeated, for example, from 5 to 8, from 17 to 20 and from 29 to 32 there are practically no sales. A linear trend line is built on the chart, showing that sales are growing from year to year.

Step 3. Determine the curve of a non-random process

Thus, it can be assumed that there are two processes. One is not random, it is determined by two factors: a trend that shows how the average value of sales of a given product is growing, and a seasonal factor by which the trend value must be multiplied. The second process is random (model), it causes real sales to deviate from the non-random process calculated by us. A non-random process superimposed on the fact of sales for the same product is shown in the orange curve graph. Failures are predicted quite well, but there is a problem with sales peaks, methods of dealing with which need to be thought out. For illustration, we did not specifically select a product for which the curves are close.

Step 4. Calculate the difference between the model and the fact

The random process is equal to the difference between the model and the fact. The graph shows the curve of a random process (the modulus of the difference between the model and the fact). It is this deviation that we will take into account in our coefficient of variation. In the above formula, the difference in the numerator is our modulus, and x in the denominator will be the average value not from the fact, but from the value of the model. Thus, we removed the non-random process from the coefficient of variation. For the example taken, the coefficient of variation will be 1.27 (127%).

Step 5. Determine the actual sales

It is possible that there is a more realistic model for this product, but we are interested in practical aspects, therefore, for our purposes, we consider this model adequate. For greater confidence, we made the following calculation for several dozen products: we took actual sales without the last three months, calculated the model and predicted three months in advance. It turned out quite similar to reality. In order not to make a mistake with the level of stocks at the peaks, we applied the following trick: we multiplied our model by 1 + the coefficient of variation. As you can see in the graph, the actual curve almost always lies between the two curves in our model.

Step 6. We analyze excess stocks

Let's see why excess stock is created. We already have an answer to this question - our model can give it. Let's imagine that we have no stock at point zero of the time axis, and we predict the sale in the first month on the orange dotted curve, taking into account the random component. To do this, we need to buy the quantity that should be sold in the first month. But in reality, we will not sell this amount, but what the actual sales curve shows. Next month we will buy as much as necessary to complete the stock of goods to our forecast. If the remaining stock is greater, we do not buy anything. On the graph, purchases are shown as an orange line, and balances at the end of the month are shown in blue. As you can see, in the months when there are no sales, there are leftovers in the warehouse. This is due to the fact that the decline in sales is sharp, and before it there is a peak. By stocking up to ensure the peak, we are creating those very excess stocks. The linear trend of balances in this model is decreasing, but it is different for different products. In addition, this is our ideal residual model. In fact, the orange dotted curve was predicted intuitively and real reserves are even larger than in the model.

Step 7. Measures to combat excess stock

To combat overstock, smaller batches of each item must be ordered. It's not so easy. Today, the purchasing department uses ERP sales history and intuition. The result of such work of buyers initiated our project. It is necessary to build a new procurement model and create a convenient software tool based on it. The sales model built in this article will be used by us in the future to calculate the coefficient of variation and take it into account in the XYZ analysis and draw up a sales plan. We have already made a TOR for ABC-XYZ analysis, and programmers are implementing it in ERP. Calculating 4000 products in Excel is not an easy task, so in a wonderful spreadsheet we only model approaches to our problems. We will calculate the data for real work in ERP. The difficult-to-sell part of the CZ category product will be identified, a moratorium will be announced on the purchase of this product and measures will be taken to get rid of it.

Purchasing goods in large quantities on a monthly basis creates excess stock during sales downturns

The logical scheme of software tools will be discussed by us in the next article. Then we will build a purchasing model. Next, we will design tools and activities for reengineering, regulations and motivation, and put it all into practice. We do not know what will happen in the end, but we are sure that we will lead the project to the goal we have formulated and in November the warehouse will be free from summer goods.