Kenco, one of the largest family-owned and privately held third-party logistics (3PL) providers, offers a host of logistics management services and supply chain solutions for customers in the health and personal care, fast-moving consumer goods, industrial, and durable goods industries.
Success Story
Kenco
Warehouse Management System, Inventory Availability
Kenco improves replenishment by 50% with Blue Yonder warehouse management and labor management
The company
The business challenge
The customer’s existing technology solution lacked emergency replenishment functionality, which was interfering with their ability to fill orders rapidly and cost-effectively. “The legacy solution could not allocate orders to the pick faces without the full quantity available to fill the order, requiring the last few items of a particular lot to be physically moved out of the pick face so the system would generate a replenishment for a new lot to fill orders”
The solution
With Blue Yonder’s warehouse management capability, the customer’s replenishment processes have been enhanced by a new level of automation that has increased productivity. Primary pick locations can now be changed dynamically, there is no downtime on the pick line with users waiting for new product and no wasted product moves to clear pick-face locations.
“We have an entire team focused on the healthcare industry and growing this vertical within our customer base. In order to do so, we must have a supply chain solution that supports this initiative.”
–Vice President of IT, Kenco
Kenco helps healthcare provide better outcomes
With Blue Yonder’s warehouse management capability, the customer’s replenishment processes have been enhanced by a new level of automation that has increased productivity. Primary pick locations can now be changed dynamically, there is no downtime on the pick line with users waiting for new product and no wasted product moves to clear pick-face locations.
Handling emergencies
“Blue Yonder’s warehouse management capability drives an emergency replenishment for wave allocations in the pick face with sufficient quantity to fill customer orders. Previously, this was a completely manual process that required paper workarounds.”
Fast, successful implementation
With the help of Blue Yonder services, Kenco was able to go live with the system for its customer in only nine months, and was shipping full volumes within two weeks after go- live. “The training and on-site support we received from Blue Yonder services drove a level of user engagement that ensured our success upon go-live.”
Partnership
The partnership with Blue Yonder services provided a valuable, hands-on learning experience for the company’s implementation team members. “Our internal support team learned how to troubleshoot issues, research process changes, test rules and various configurations, maintain the system long-term, and begin structuring our own internal expertise around implementing the solution in future opportunities.”
Solution benefits
Replaced inefficient manual picking processes and solution workarounds with automated and efficient system-directed picking. Added intelligent system-directed pick waves and fulfillment processes to support customer growth and improved service to the customer’s customers. Trained Kenco resources for future customer implementations and service.
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“We chose Blue Yonder because of its strategic focus on 3PL partnerships, as well as its market leadership in the healthcare and pharmaceutical industry vertical. They have truly provided a partnership mentality to help us grow our market footprint and deliver customized models that provide value to new opportunities. The Blue Yonder team is responsive, creative and always willing to go above and beyond to service our account.”
–Vice President of IT, Kenco
