Written by Adam Levy of SHIFT
Study No. 1: Global Consumer Products Manufacturer
Communication Supply Chain elements
Document publishing, multiple language management, document revision management, managed document inventory levels, just in time (JIT) documentation materials production and delivery
Situation
The client is a global manufacturer of gas grills, charcoal grills and accessories. They have multiple locations in the Midwestern United States and overseas where their products are manufactured and assembled. Within the Client’s world, product and parts documentation are critical elements to efficient overall manufacturing operations; continuous content changes are the norm.
Solution
A Communication Supply Chain Audit was conducted to provide operational understanding and uncover efficiency opportunities. Working with the Client’s SAP enterprise resource planning system, it became clear that much of what was desired, regarding the development of planned document production, revision and delivery solutions would be available. IT Engineers from both sides determined that desiredfunctionality not available within the Client’s IT environment could be provided via an IT systems integration with our IT infrastructure.
Results
The combined Client/SHIFT systems integration was able to fully provide for planned document creation, revision and delivery process functions. SHIFT was able to reduce purchasing department labor via a forecasted purchasing model,provide JIT production and delivery that matched manufacturing demand, reduce/eliminate document inventories, eliminate obsolescence, allow for more frequent document revisions and decrease overall process costs.
SHIFT communication supply chain refinements provided unprecedented order accuracy of 99.96%.
Study No. 2: Information Technology Hardware Manufacturer
Communication Supply Chain elements
Just in time (JIT) document production and delivery, secure rights managed electronic file delivery, document revision management, digital asset library administration, comprehensive automated ordering, on-line catalog and a custom built administrative interface integrated with client’s IT infrastructure.
Situation
The Client is the largest computer manufacturer in the world. They also provide a variety of network hardware technology solutions for enterprise business environments and for specialized verticals. As part of the client’s overall business strategy, they train tens of thousands of students annually.
Results
The Client’s Education division has far exceeded program cost-reduction objectives, transforming what was a cost center into a profit center; they continue to expand their global reach. SHIFT communication supply chain refinements provide unprecedented order accuracy of 99.8%. Prior material management issues related to waste have been eliminated. Timely, efficient scheduling, structured pricing, improved order visibility and communication has allowed the Client to manage more with greater efficiency and a smaller staff.
With a variety of different material production and delivery options including print-on-demand and secure, electronic digital rights managed files, our client has eliminated stored inventory, obsolete materials, expedited shipments and all associated costs.
Conclusion
At a time when we are all struggling to be as efficient as possible, we should be focused on optimizing not only the way we produce, modify, distribute and store communication assets, but also the workflow processes that support these tactical events – The Communication Supply Chain. If we do, it will lead to significant savings enterprise-wide.
