The spectrum of services, technology and years in business is incredibly wide when it comes to 3PLs. Some have been in business for multiple generations and some were born out of the pandemic e-commerce boom. No matter where the 3PL is on that spectrum there is one thing for certain, DTC fulfilment is increasingly becoming a need to have service offering. As we head into the IWLA Fulfillment Forum next week, I'm hosting a panel tomorrow to discuss 3 of the top things you need to nail in order...
21 days ago • 1 min read
Last week I got the chance to reminisce about some of my first experiences of working in a distribution center. I was discussing my role as an inventory control specialist back in 2012 with a start up who is trying to solve for data gaps in warehouse systems (lots of gaps to solve there!). We specifically started diving into the inventory discrepancies that I was responsible for solving between the ERP system and the WMS. While it could be a maddening task some days, this experience is what...
22 days ago • 3 min read
How fun is 5S and continuous improvement? I have to be honest I've been missing the little projects and the little tweaks that come up on a daily basis being in the warehouse regularly. I got the bug this weekend and did some garage clean out and organizing. Didn't tape the floors but did get some better space utilization out of it. Not fully optimized but much better than it was before. When I think about continuous improvement, especially when it comes to waste reduction, I like to think of...
29 days ago • 2 min read
I had an interesting customer experience this week and while it was not in a warehouse environment, the root cause was something that can be a takeaway for any warehouse. The root cause was preventive maintenance. On Sunday I was flying out of EWR and everything seemed to be on time with no issues. Pre-boarding happened, zones 1 and 2 were called to board, then our zone was called. We got into the line and then a couple minutes passed and we seemed to be stalled. Then it came, the dreaded...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
Hope you had a great weekend and were able to have some fun! It feels like we are dodging either scorching hot temperatures or severe thunderstorms here in New Jersey. Honestly feels more like Florida than NJ right now! During these heat waves it's important to remember those that are working on the warehouse floor which more often than not have no air conditioning. Product keeps moving and people still need to move it. For those that are on the floor, be sure to add extra breaks, provide...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
This is quite the late recap from last week but I was on a road trip with my son through Wednesday as we went from NJ to Chicago to hit the Pokemon exhibit at The Field Museum. We also hit Bucc-ee's for the first time on our way through Ohio. What a crazy experience, it was absolutely mobbed with people. The brisket sandwich was good though! I wanted to send out this note and let you know that we have been working on how to evolve what we do from an email content perspective. Currently, we...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Just a reminder that I am going live today at 11am EST with Rueben Scriven of Interact Analysis to talk about warehouse automation trends coming out of the first half of the year. Join us on LinkedIn or YouTube. Bring your questions! If you can't make it but have questions, reply to this email and let me know. You'll be able to watch the replay later. Have a great day! Thank you, Kevin
about 2 months ago • 1 min read
First off, Happy Father's Day to the Dad's out there! I enjoyed mine with my son and my father the past two days. It's certainly my most enjoyable role to date! Coming up this week we've got two special events that I want to make sure you are aware of: Warehousing After Dark (virtual) is happening this Tuesday (6/23) at 8pm EST. If you've been on the fence about attending, it's an incredibly laidback atmosphere and everyone is there to just hang out. No constant pitching, no hunger to close...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Writing to you from beautiful Big Sky, Montana today! I've been away for the past few days on a non-work related trip for once and enjoying every second of resetting. If you have not been to Big Sky or Yellowstone, I would now rank it as a must do in everyone's lifetime. The natural beauty here is just unmatched and while you can take some incredible pictures here, they are just no match for the sheer scale of stunning views in real life. Part of this trip is to reset mentally as we start to...
2 months ago • 3 min read