UNEX Manufacturing Pickologist Selected as Supply Chain Pro to Know

UNEX Manufacturing, Inc., the trusted industry leader in providing innovative order picking solutions, announces that Craig Moberg, Flow Cell and Roller Rack Product Manager, has been selected as a 2018 Supply Chain Provider Pro to Know by Supply & Demand Chain Executive magazine. The Pros to Know Awards recognize supply chain executives, and manufacturing and non-manufacturing enterprises, that are leading initiatives to help prepare their companies’ supply chains for the significant challenges of today’s business climate. Craig was chosen for helping clients save mission-critical time, optimize product flow at point-of-pick, and maximize total cost of ownership through UNEX solutions.

“UNEX customers face many challenges, depending on their industry focus, such as e-commerce retailers needing to speed order picking with the new consumer mindset of wanting orders immediately,” said Brian C. Neuwirth, VP of Sales and Marketing at UNEX Manufacturing and a prior Pros to Know recipient. “Other UNEX customers address the food and beverage industries, whose challenges include minimizing touches of products, maximizing movement through the warehouse and speeding fulfillment processes so that food arrives as fresh as possible on the grocery shelf. Craig is a problem-solver with hands-on experience and expertise in a variety of industries. We congratulate this valuable team member on his prestigious award.”

“Supply & Demand Chain Executive congratulates the 2018 Supply & Demand Chain Executive Pros to Know recipients. The Pros to Know is a listing of exceptional corporate executives at manufacturing and non-manufacturing enterprises who are leading initiatives to help prepare their companies’ supply chains for the significant challenges in the year ahead,” says John Yuva, editor of Supply & Demand Chain Executive. “We commend this year’s recipients for their achievements in supply chain and for paving the way for the next generation of exceptional supply chain leaders. This year’s recipients embody the commitment to transformative supply chain tools and processes, earning these individuals a rightful place in this year’s Pros to Know listing.”

Craig Moberg is an experienced Product Manager with a demonstrated history of working in the Material Handling, logistics and supply chain industry. Craig has succeeded in consultative ROI solution sales roles within Retail (i.e. brick-and-mortar and eCommerce), Product Distributors (i.e. pharma, grocery) and Original Equipment Manufacturer (i.e. automotive, heavy equipment) industries and other verticals. At UNEX, he successfully relaunched one of the company’s portfolio products, the RollerRack™, by increasing the overall value proposition of the product with core enhancements.

This year’s list includes the 2018 Provider Pros to Know—individuals from software firms and service providers, consultancies or academia, who helped their supply chain clients or the supply chain community at large prepare to meet these challenges—and Practitioner Pros, who do the same within their own companies.

About Supply & Demand Chain Executive

Supply & Demand Chain Executive is the executive’s user manual for successful supply and demand chain transformation, utilizing hard-hitting analysis, viewpoints and unbiased case studies to steer executives and supply management professionals through the complicated, yet critical, world of supply and demand chain enablement to gain competitive advantage. You can visit them on the web here.

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source http://www.unex.com/supply-chain-pro-craig-moberg/

Manufacturing Trends: 2018 & Beyond

Manufacturing around the world is undergoing some of the most innovative changes since the Industrial Revolution, and these emerging technological innovations have the potential to be just as transformative by enabling exponentially greater speed, transparency and accuracy throughout the supply chain. According to IDC FutureScape, a global survey, some of the manufacturing trends you can anticipate by the year 2020 include:

• 60% will use digital platforms for connectivity, collaboration and coordination. As cloud-based technologies grow into open-access ecosystems with seamless connectivity, the exchange of information, money, trust and capabilities will be faster, easier and more secure.
• 20% will use embedded intelligence to automate and streamline processes and production. Building on IoT, blockchain, cognitive computing and other existing and emerging technologies, self-learning systems will accelerate the pace of innovation and allow currently unanticipated manufacturing trends to flourish.
• 75% will share data via industry clouds. Cloud capabilities are simplifying the processes and reducing the costs of data sharing, increasing both the applications and value of the data.
• 30% of technical staff will need direct experience in both IT and OT. As connectivity increases, these two technical functions will increasingly overlap and blend to optimize effectiveness.
• 50% will collaborate on product design through crowdsourcing, virtual reality, simulation, virtualization and other interactive tools. Gathering input from suppliers, customers and consumers to make dynamic improvements during product development will increase product success rates and speed time to market.
• 20% of customer service and field service work will transition to contract workers using augmented reality and mobile devices. Placing “experts for hire” in service and field positions gives manufacturers greater access to talent, while the digital infrastructure gives gig workers the data visibility necessary to complete their tasks.
• 33% of supply chains will incorporate analytics-driven cognitive technologies. In addition to gathering reams of raw data from multiple sources, supply chain systems will increasingly incorporate cognitive computing, including data mining and analysis and machine learning, to transform massive volumes of data into specific insights and understanding.
• 80% of supply chain interactions will occur across cloud-based networks. Collaborating with business partners is faster, easier, more transparent and more cost effective over flexible cloud architectures, a critical factor in reducing supply chain disruptions.
• 25% will implement increasingly demand-driven operations. Pairing data collection and analysis technologies with flexible automated operating processes will give manufacturers the ability to respond in real time to variations in demand, the need for personalization, changes in resource availability and other market variables.
• 15% will add edge analytics to speed visibility and operational flexibility. Among the many potential benefits of the cloud is the ability to push certain automated analytics and computation out to sensor, switch or other connected device rather than waiting for central collection and analysis. By filtering and interpreting certain data at the network’s “edge,” manufacturers can improve reaction time, reduce storage and capacity requirements, and distribute demand on processing systems.

Obviously, none of these manufacturing trends will become ubiquitous overnight, and many will not come to pass in the forms and functions we expect (predictions are like that), but even incremental changes can lead to radical improvements in manufacturing processes and capabilities.  The year 2020 is closer than you think. Are you focusing far enough ahead?

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source http://www.unex.com/manufacturing-trends-2018/

Great Expectations in the Retail Supply Chain

Based on 2017 sales, a robust economy and growing consumer confidence, retailers are looking forward to 2018 with a level of optimism and enthusiasm they haven’t shown in years, and with proof in their pockets. According to NRF (National Retail Federation) figures, the 2017 US holiday shopping season (November 1 – December 24) showed the largest increase in sales since 2011. Compared to the same period last year:

• Holiday retail sales rose 4.9%
• Online retail shopping increased 18.1%
• Sales of electronics and appliances grew 7.5%
• Home furniture and furnishings purchases were up 5.1%
• Jewelry sales rose 5.9%.

Clearly, online sales were key. According to The Washington Post, “Amazon announced record-breaking sales from the 2017 holiday season, with more than 1 billion items ordered worldwide. In a single week alone, more than 4 million people signed up for a trial of Amazon Prime, a premium membership that comes with expedited shipping and other benefits.” eMarketer estimates that total online sales in 2017 reached approximately $452.76 billion, a 15.8% increase over 2016. Online sales now make up 9% of total retail sales, and Forrester projects that that to increase to 17% by 2022.

Mobile commerce sales grew 38%, representing more than a third of all ecommerce sales. Business Insider reports that November 28, 2017 – Cyber Monday – was mobile commerce’s first $2 billion day.

Retailers imported much of 2017’s merchandise, according to Global Port Tracker, a monthly report released by NRF and Hackett Associates. Retail imports increased 7% during 2017, compared to 2016 levels, a record-breaking result. While the report states that the rate of import growth is expected to slow in 2018, there is no foreseeable decline in cargo volume.

By 2020 total retail sales are projected to be $5.48 trillion, up from $4.35 trillion in 2012, reports Statistica.

The future looks bright for retailers as long as they continue to develop the capabilities and capacity to meet the changing demands of omnichannel and e-commerce. That’s why UNEX is attending the 2018 Retail Supply Chain Conference in Phoenix, Arizona from February 25-28. Our order picking and material handling solutions are ideal for retailers who need to maximize space usage while minimizing order fulfillment time and errors, a must when competing with the giants of the e-commerce retail world.

Ready to step up to the e-commerce challenge? Visit us at booth 452 at the RILA show, or contact your friendly neighborhood Pickologist!

 

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source http://www.unex.com/retail-supply-chain-great-expectations/

UNEX To Exhibit Redesigned Roller Rack at RILA Conference

UNEX Manufacturing, Inc., the trusted industry leader in providing innovative order picking solutions, will showcase their innovative material handling products and accessories at the upcoming RILA Retail Supply Chain Conference 2018. Top executives in the retail supply chain space attending the show are encouraged to visit UNEX in Booth 452 to learn about the latest, most reliable order picking technology from UNEX that speeds throughput, maximizes space utilization and increases order fulfillment rates.

UNEX will showcase in Booth 452 its Roller Rack structures, which are ideal for distribution, manufacturing and retail operations where carton flow is required and there is no need to store pallets above the rack. Roller Racks are pre-configured, easy-to-assemble and ready when facilities need them. Roller Racks feature the UNEX Span-Track patented carton flow system with available:

• Wheel-Beds – maximize product flexibility and flow allowing retailers to position multiple-sized products on the same shelf. Wheel beds maximize space and increase throughput by 150%.
• Roller Lane – Span-Track carton flow rollers provide the industry’s most efficient, reliable and durable carton flow solution for full-case and split-case order picking. Our patented designs easily drop into existing structures and create the ultimate carton flow rack roller system, keeping product at the pick point for the worker.
• Pallet-Track – Pallet flow systems optimize flow of pallets. A spring-loaded rear stop prevents pallets from being accidentally pushed back and falling off the rack.

UNEX Span-Track has dozens of accessories that will also be highlighted, including:

• Shark Fin infeed guides – Guides snap onto wheel axles, providing a visual indicator for a SKU’s location, keeping inventory organized in its designated lane. The guides prevent hang-ups in neighboring lanes from off-center products, allowing cartons and products to smoothly flow forward for faster order picking.
• Impact Zone – Added rollers or wheels to the first 12” or 18” of the load end of the track that help absorb the impact load without damaging rollers and losing the ability to flow.
• Impact Plate – Steel impact plates snap onto rollers to provide a steel surface for impact loading.
• Guard Rails – Full-length lane dividers that bolt onto the side channels of the track allowing companies to create a dedicated lane of carton flow on Span-Track universal wheel beds.
• Slow Down Strips – Narrow strips that snap onto rollers for prices flow modulation. Perfect for working with a lot of depth or fragile SKU’s. The strips also make it easier to pick products by creating a small space between the box at the point of pick and the box on the slow down strips, which reduces pressure on the box at the point of pick.

The RILA Retail Supply Chain Conference 2018 gathers top executives in the retail supply chain in Phoenix on February 25^th – 28^th to gain powerful insights on innovative solutions that will address a host of complex challenges. UNEX will be showcasing their state-of-the-art material handling solutions in Booth 452, which is located just outside the Innovation Hub and Demo Zone.

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source http://www.unex.com/rila-conference/

How to Limit Employee Injuries

This article first appeared in Industrial Distribution Magazine

In any work environment, as noise and activity levels increase, the risk of danger also increases. In a busy warehouse environment, filled with conveyors, forklifts, rack systems and other moving parts and multiple shifts running at high volumes, the danger of serious workplace injury or even fatality is a very real possibility. From distracted workers to defective equipment to deadly premises violations, employee injuries are distressingly common, and not just of the slip-and-fall variety.

In 2014, approximately 3 million employee injuries were reported by private industry employers to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. These injuries have a staggering financial impact upon the operations and facilities where the injury takes place. According to the 2016 Liberty Mutual Workplace Safety Index, the most disabling, nonfatal workplace injuries amounted to nearly $62 billion in direct U.S. workers compensation costs. These costs can easily cripple an operation.

According to the Joint & Bone Initiative, “Seventy percent of persons reporting bed and lost work days reported having a musculoskeletal condition. This is more than twice the proportion reporting depression, the second most common medical condition listed for causing lost work days, and five or more times the proportion for other major health conditions. Overall, the high proportion of workers reporting lost work days or bed days as a result of a musculoskeletal condition results in an economic burden on the economy — much higher than that reported for chronic circulatory or chronic respiratory conditions.”

When it comes to the material handling industry, back injuries are one of the most common issues reported by facilities. Per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, back injuries accounted for 19.6 percent of 905,690 injuries referenced in the private sector, higher than the hand, which is 13.4 percent and shoulder, which is 7.5 percent. The total time lost to work-related injuries in 2013 was 60 million days and another 35 million years of productive time was lost the same year because of permanently disabling injuries that had occurred in prior years.

Lifting and moving equipment, pallets and boxes in the warehouse can lead to fatigue and injury, especially when the worker performs the task repeatedly or for long periods of time. The National Safety Council reports that these injuries occur because of “awkward postures, repetitive motions, forceful exertions and static postures.”

Musculoskeletal disorders can be prevented by implementing solutions that reduce the need for the worker to reach awkwardly or to overexert themselves.

Ergonomics is the Answer

Ergonomics is the science of designing the job to fit the worker instead of physically forcing the worker’s body to fit the job. It lessens muscle fatigue, increases productivity, and reduces the number and severity of work-related musculoskeletal disorders.

Eliminate unnecessary manual lifts by incorporating simple lifts, using carts and conveyors or implementing carton flow systems to move boxes or items. Carton and gravity flow systems install easily into existing pallet racks, helping to create ergonomic workstations ideal for picking, assembly, or line side storage.

Make sure employees stand correctly and use safe lifting techniques. Test the weight and stability of the item to be lifted before lifting to make sure things won’t shift unexpectedly, throwing the worker off guard and leading to possible injury. If the load is unstable, it may need to be repacked.

When lifting items, get a secure grip using both hands, if possible. Keep the load in the “golden zone,” which is above the knees, below the shoulders and close to the body. Use the legs to lift the load; not the back or shoulders. Don’t twist body; instead step to one side to turn.

If a case is stored on a pallet on the floor, workers have to bend and reach, limiting their ability to properly lift the case and increasing their odds for injury. If the case is stored deep within a pallet rack, visibility and reach is compromised and further jeopardizes the worker’s safety when picking a case. Using pallet racks with rollers or that are tilted so when a box or pallet is removed, the next one to pick moves forward, eliminating the need for stretching and reaching is best for minimizing injury. Making sure products are at the point of pick so workers don’t have to climb into the pallet rack makes lifts easy and safer.

OSHA provides these 7 steps of an ergonomic process:

1. Provide management support, with a strong commitment by management being critical to the overall success of the process.
2. Involve workers in hazard assessments, solution development, and also implementation.
3. Provide training so that workers are aware of ergonomics’ benefits and will know why is it important to report early symptoms of MSDs.
4. Identify ergonomic problems in the workplace before they result in MSDs.
5. Encourage early reporting of symptoms, which is important for preventing serious injuries and lost-time claims.
6. Implement solutions to control the hazards.
7. Evaluate your progress periodically to ensure continuous improvement and long-term success.

The focus on ergonomics doesn’t just help prevent injury, it maximizes employee output and productivity. UNEX solutions are built with worker safety in mind, allowing your operation to run smoothly while increasing efficiency. From Flow Cell to Span-Track to Pick Plank, UNEX solutions drastically reduce ergonomic hazards that can plague your operation with injuries.

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source http://www.unex.com/how-to-limit-employee-injuries/