Footwear firm’s warehouse productivity jumps 60% with improved inbound receiving

Using time-in-motion studies and Six Sigma D-M-A-I-C methodology, DSV’s contract logistics group identified a logjam in the warehouse receiving process for a global footwear and sports apparel company. Processing was being slowed down at the point where workers lifted items by hand from containers up onto pallets. DSV replaced old, labour-intensive equipment with expandable rollers. Items could be rolled directly from the containers onto the pallets, without being lifted by hand. This expedited the process of filling pallets, which had a big impact on operational efficiency. Productivity jumped by 60 percent, and the introduction of expandable rollers allowed employees to handle other tasks and reduced the need for more manpower, bringing down labour costs for the customer.