Information for Members of the Warehousing Education and Research Council

May/june 2011

In this issue...

Mexican Trucks on U.S. Roads 4 After years of debate, the debut of Mexican trucks on U.S. roads may finally be happening.

Work = Fun? At Threadless, that’s a definite yes 8 How your DC can learn from this t-shirt company’s unique approach to the work day.

Not Your Father’s Scanner 10 A new crop of barcode scanners is making its mark in the DC.

From the Board President 12 A message from newly-elected board president, Lawrence Dean Shemesh.

Government Goes GreenA new initiative aims to green the government’s supply chain.

C ompanies in the private sector have long been working on ways to improve their carbon footprint via their supply chains. The incentive

to do so has come in the form of government support, consumer encourage-ment, and even bottom line improvements. But while the government has encouraged the private sector to green its supply chain, it didn’t get on board until recently.

At a supply chain summit in Chicago, the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) announced a new program called the GreenGov Supply Chain Partnership and Small Business Pilot, a voluntary collaboration between the federal government and its suppliers. The mis-sion—to promote clean energy and cut waste and pollution in the federal supply chain, using greenhouse gas emissions as a measurement.

Federal suppliers who join the Green-Gov partnership agree to voluntarily measure and report their organization’s greenhouse gas emissions. As the pro-

gram moves along, participating companies will share their experiences to help GSA develop a phased, incentive-based approach to developing con-tracting advantages to companies that track and disclose their greenhouse gas emissions.

The program came about as a result of President Obama’s executive order that the GSA lead the effort to make recommendations for measuring

“It is our responsibility

to lead by example to improve efficiency,

eliminate waste, and promote clean

energy in our supply chain.”

Government Services Administration(GSA)

Risks Impacting Supply Chains a Growing ConcernFocus is on supply chain risk management techniques to mitigate, eliminate potential threats.Sendai, Honshu, Japan…2011…earthquake and tsunami. Eyjafjoll, Iceland…2010…eruption of Eyjafjallajokull volcano releasing heavy volcanic ash cloud over wide swaths of Europe, effectively halting all air traffic. Gulf of Mexico, U.S.…2010…Deepwater Horizon (BP) oil spill…crude flowing for three months.

Quite obviously many global supply chains have been and continue to be severely impacted by these types of catastrophic events. Yet, a majority of supply chains remain susceptible to more limited, local crises that nevertheless can also wreak major damage and havoc. Potential supply chain risk lurks everywhere and from many sources—known and unknown.

“Supply chain risk is very costly in every way,” declares Sherry R. Gordon, president, Value Chain Group, Concord, Mass. “And it’s not a matter of if, but when supply chain risks will occur.” Companies should be thinking about not only how much a risk incident costs, but also what the impact could be on a firm’s reputation, stock price, and the amount of time and cost recovering from a risk incident

continued on page 5

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/ MAY–JUne 20112

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Writers: Amanda Loudin and Joseph Mazel

will require. “Supply chain risk can cost a lot of money and can cause permanent damage to a company’s finan-cial condition,” she warns.

Risk recognitionA company’s level of progression in supply chain risk

management tends to be directly correlated to their level of risk exposure, according to Marc Wulfraat, presi-dent, MWPVL International Inc., Montreal West, Canada. The lowest level of supply chain risk management sophistication is found in companies that are far down-

stream or customer facing. “The companies which have

made the most advancement in this area tend to be the ones that either have been directly exposed to serious supply chain disruption, or have seen a competitor incur a major business loss due to disruption,” Wulfraat main-tains. Further, these companies have “generally recognized the need to establish a function within the orga-nization structure that is dedicated to managing supply chain risk.”

“In my experience, whether or not an organization addresses risk explicitly depends on its resources, geographical dispersion, past experience, and the degree of its environmental scanning, according to William T. Walker, director of supply chain manage-ment, StarTrak Systems, LLC, Morris Plains, n.J. He explains: There is a resource tipping point that moves an organization from being reactive to being proactive.

Also, as business expands globally, organizations find themselves operating in unfamiliar environments with new and previously unknown challenges and risks. And, as a part of environmental scanning, some organizations have their “ear to the ground” and learn critical informa-tion in time to react.

Dealing with riskThe rationale to developing a supply chain risk man-

agement initiative is not necessarily to eliminate risk because that is simply not possible, according to Wulfraat. Rather the purpose of a supply chain risk initia-tive is to:

Identify the supply chains that the company is involved in

Identify and prioritize supply chain risks and potential vulnerabilities

Map the entire supply chain to show interdependencies

Brainstorm the potential failure points along the supply chain

Rank exposure to identified risk factors

Conduct a supplier and market assessment that identifies potential losses, the likelihood of disruption, and the significance of these losses

Identify and develop a formal supplier risk mitigation and response strategies

Implement and execute program

Perform continuous risk management monitoring

“Totally eliminating risk is simply not possible,” agrees Betty A. Kildow, Kildow Consulting, Lebanon, Ind. “An acceptable level of risk is critical to growth and development. What’s important is that each company determines the level of risk it is willing and able to accept and absorb, its threshold of pain, its risk appetite.”

Kildow shares that in response to a 2007 order from Congress, in June 2010 the Department of Homeland Security rolled out the Voluntary Private Sector Pre-paredness Accreditation and Certification Program (PS-PReP). This is a voluntary set of standards with the goal to help private sector companies develop prepared-ness, response, and business continuity plans to implement in the event of a disaster.

“A company that meets PS-PReP standards can be certified as conforming to preparedness standards adopted by the Department of Homeland Security,” Kildow explains. “Should PS-PReP be accepted by the business community, it can play a significant role in advancing supply chain risk management by providing a

Risks Impacting Supply Chains continued from page 1

S T R A T e G I e S

a company’s level of progression in

supply chain risk management tends

to be directly correlated to their

level of risk exposure.”

Marc Wulfraat

/ MAY–JUne 2011 3

widely accepted vehicle for measuring the continuity capability of suppliers, outsourcing companies, and other business partners.”

Risk management starting points

Supply chain risk management, for maximum effect, must be proactive in all aspects of policy, philosophy and practice. “Put in place a supply chain risk management process first,” advises Gordon. “You’ll be in a better posi-tion to be proactive about supply chain risk. When risk incidents do occur, you’ll already have developed a way to mitigate them rather than just be in a reactive mode,” she emphasizes.

Companies that have made the most advancement in supply chain risk have recognized the need to estab-lish a function within the organization that is dedicated to managing supply chain risk, according to Wulfraat. “This is a key initial step,” he explains, “because it symbol-izes a formal recognition that risk management is not a part time responsibility.”

Since supply chain risk management is still relatively new, there is no true standard approach in place. never-theless, WERCSheet’s panel of experts share a number of “starting points” from which to develop your own supply chain risk management process. Among them:

Business continuity. “There is a growing realization and understanding that business continuity planning, an

effective proactive approach to ensure the continuation or rapid restoration of delivery of the organization’s ser-vice or product following a disaster, that addresses the entire supply chain is an essential element of supply chain risk management,” assures Kildow. “View business continuity as a core business practice and a management issue, incorporate business continuity from senior management through individual process performers, and make it part of the day-to-day opera-tions and company culture,” she advises.

Business continuity as part of an overall risk manage-ment initiative is not a “check-the-box” task. “To succeed, continuity planning as part of an overall program of managing risk cannot be static,” she maintains. “Business operations change and evolve, risks change, new risks appear, and the impact of each of these risks on your operations changes.”

Documentation and analysis. “Once a month a small, cross-functional team meets for several hours to practice ‘what-if ’ risk mitigation,” says Walker. These meetings are focused on recent, actual customer order-to-delivery-to-cash (ODC) cycles, with the team keeping notes on its discussions, risk mitigation ideas, and con-tingencies.

“Risk mitigation is best done by a small, cross-func-tional team of people, each with a deep understanding

WERCSheet’s panel of experts share a number of “starting points” from which to develop your own supply chain risk management process.

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/ MAY–JUne 20114

T R A n S P O R T A T I O n

I t’s been nearly 20 years since the original version of the north American Free Trade Act (nAFTA) was

passed. While on most counts it has succeeded, one portion of it has remained in debate the entire time: the provision allowing Mexican long-haul trucks onto U.S. roadways.

Several iterations of the provi-sion have come close to making it a reality, but until recently, none have sealed the deal. A recent agreement between President Obama and Mexican President Felipe Calderon, however, has brought hope to some that the days of debate might come to an end.

A bit of history on the matter:

When it originally passed in 1994, nAFTA authorized U.S. and Mexican carriers to cross each other’s borders.

not long after, however, Congress imposed a ban on allowing Mexican trucks onto U.S. highways, citing safety issues. Much of the reason behind this move originated with pressure from Teamsters.

Mexico won a nAFTA dispute settlement, saying the ban violated the treaty and imposed retaliatory tariffs in 2009.

The latest agreement calls for Mexico to lift 50 per-cent of those tariffs immediately while Mexican truckers undergo safety, language and driver training. The nations agreed on a “phased-in program built on the highest safety standards,” according to the White House. Mexico agreed to lift the remaining 50 percent of tariffs once the first Mexican truck is given permission to drive in the United States.

Supporters and detractorsTrade between the United States and Mexico is big

business. Bilateral trade exceeds $1 billion a day. Some 70 percent of this trade moves across the border by truck.

not surprisingly, the latest agreement has both fans and opponents. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is pleased with the move. The chamber’s president, Thomas Donohue, released a statement praising the agreement and claiming that the delay had put more than 25,000 jobs at risk. now, he says, the agreement will end “job-killing tariff” by Mexico and offer “certainty to trucking companies and shippers throughout north America.”

On the other side of the debate is the Teamsters Union which claims that Mexican trucks don’t meet the same standards as U.S. trucks and therefore pose a haz-ard on the roads. In addition, the Teamsters claim that the ability of U.S. trucks to enter Mexican roadways does not benefit U.S. trucking companies, given the drug vio-lence that is currently plaguing Mexico.

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Associa-tion is also opposed to the move. This group worries about the impact of Mexican trucks on small trucking businesses based in the U.S.

To drive on U.S. highways, Mexican truckers will have to abide by U.S. motor-safety standards, undergo peri-odic screening for illegal drug use, and comply with U.S. rules on how many hours they can drive each day. To track these hours, all of the Mexican trucks coming into the U.S. will be equipped with on-board recording devices.

In addition, each driver will have combined U.S. and complete Mexican driving history checked to ensure there is no unsafe history that would disqualify them under U.S. standards. each company’s records will be examined as well and all Mexican drivers will have to be english language proficient and understand U.S. traffic laws. All of these requirements will be verified.

The latest agreement must pass through Congress before it can go into effect, so whether or not this is the final word on Mexican trucks in the United States has yet to be seen. To be sure, both opponents and proponents will be raising their voices loudly on the topic, something to which Congress will certainly pay attention before all is said and done.

Mexican Trucks on U.S. RoadsAfter years of debate, it appears that the debut of Mexican trucks on U.S. roads is finally going to happen.

The latest agreement must pass through Congress before it can go into effect, so whether or not this is the final word on Mexican trucks in the u.S. has yet to be seen.

/ MAY–JUne 2011 5

Government Goes Green continued from page 1

G O I n G G R e e n

and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the federal supply chain. The program’s format is based on those recommendations.

A portion of the new program includes a Small Busi-ness Pilot Program that will look into the benefits and challenges of measuring greenhouse gas emissions with small business participants. The GSA will provide partici-pants with technical assistance to measure, report, and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.

According to the GSA, the federal government is the single largest energy consumer in the U.S. economy and purchases more than $500 billion in goods and services every year. As such, it says, “It is our responsibility to lead by example to improve efficiency, eliminate waste, and promote clean energy in our supply chain.”

On the heels of SmartWayThe GSA program joins the environmental Protec-

tion Agency’s SmartWay transportation campaign, which began a few years ago. The SmartWay program was designed as a voluntary public-private initiative designed to improve the environmental performance of the freight delivery system in the U.S. through money saving, market-based approaches.

According to the ePA, ground freight accounts for approximately 20 percent of carbon dioxide emissions from all transportation sources. Ground freight is also a significant source for smog-forming emissions and other

harmful air pollutants that impact public health. Ground freight, in fact, accounts for up to 40 percent of the oxides of nitrogen emissions and 31 percent of the par-ticulate matter emissions from transportation sources.

The SmartWay program addresses fuel consumption and all of the pollutants that are associated with ground freight transportation. The plan’s goal—to eliminate 3 to 66 million metric tons of CO2 emissions and up to 200,000 tons of nitrogen emissions per year by 2012. This represents a savings of as much as 150 million barrels of oil per year, which is roughly equivalent to taking about 12 million cars off the road.

Partners working with ePA in the SmartWay program must create and submit an action plan describing how they will achieve their commitment. They must also pro-vide an annual progress report to the ePA.

Shippers and carriers that fulfill their commitment to the program earn the right to use the SmartWay partner logo. To do this, they must meet the performance model. Carrier partners must have a performance model com-posite score of 1.0 or higher and shipper partners must have a performance model score of 50 percent or higher.

Both programs show the government’s interest in assisting the private sector in becoming more environ-mentally responsible.

For information on the GSA’s program, go to www.gsa.gov; for information on the EPA’s SmartWay program, go to www.epa.gov/smartway.

The EPA encourages SmartWay partners to reduce the environmental impact in various ways.

For carriers, SmartWay encourages the integration of strategies such as:

For shipper partners, the EPA encourages:

Idle reduction Improved aerodynamics Improved freight logistics Automatic tires inflation systems Driver training Advanced lubricants Advanced power trains

Intermodal shipping Pick-up and delivery scheduling Full truck loads Preferential docking Warehouse improvements electric forklifts Driver comfort stations Idle reduction at docks

Look for coverage of the WERC Annual Conference held in Orlando, May 15–19, 2011 in the July/August issue of WERCSheet.

/ MAY–JUne 20116666

of the details of how your business works,” he explains. The reason for this is that the team must be “capable of imagining how external forces and events might interact to disrupt your supply chain network.”

Walker also recommends measuring pro-cess variability. “In this best practice, process time variability for ODC cycles, such as logistics delivery, are measured and then placed in rank order,” he explains. “Once the root cause of the largest variance is determined and removed, then it’s on to the next largest variance.”

Wulfraat encourages the documentation all

actual disruptions in detail citing the root cause of the disruption, reason for failure, effects of the failure, and course of action taken. “The intent is to enable the busi-ness to learn from past issues and whether or not the

corrective actions taken have been effec-tive,” he explains.

Stakeholder interaction. “Get exec-utive support and cross-functional involvement,” encourages Gordon. “Don’t try to go it alone as good supply chain risk management requires cross-func-tional input and participation to be effective.”

Walker advances the idea by includ-ing “valued trading partners” to develop process redundancy. “Work with a trading partner that is geo-graphically distant to develop compatible back-up processes for emergency execution of order-to-delivery-to-cash cycles,” he explains. “exercise the capability regularly in order to know how long it takes to turn on the redundant process.”

“Take immediate steps to fully include all elements

Risks Impacting Supply Chains continued from page 3

of the supply chain in the organization’s business con-tinuity/risk management efforts,” advises Kildow. This must include those supply chain elements outside the organization, such as suppliers, vendors, contrac-tors, transportation providers, outsourcing companies and others. “We have long passed the time when businesses are autonomous, self-sufficient entities,” she declares.Supplier participation. Consider the systematic

evaluation and monitoring of current and potential sup-pliers with respect to potential supply chain risks. Risk metric information may include the financial strength of a supplier, quality control risk exposure, technology capabilities, price competitiveness, location risk expo-sure, shipping modes and routes exposure, etc.

“The goal is to establish a scoring system that identi-fies potential high severity business disrupters over time, ” Wulfraat explains. “To this end, some firms conduct regular supplier teleconferences to perform the monitor-ing function.”

“Measure and understand supplier performance,” Gordon agrees. “Supplier performance is a leading indi-cator for supply risk.”

Kildow recommends requesting information about suppliers’ business continuity capability. “Rather than focusing solely on the traditional selection criteria, ensure that suppliers are able to manage their risks and continue to meet your needs and expectations and deliver on schedule when disasters occur,” she explains. “ensure they understand your business continuity requirements and standards.”

“Supplier performance is a leading indicator for supply risk.” Sherry Gordon

SIDeBAR

Sources of Supply Chain RiskGlobalization and the overall increase in outsourcing are key contributors

to increased supply chain risk,” observes Sherry R. Gordon, president, Value Chain Group, Concord, Mass.

“Due to increasing levels of competition, companies have been forced to improve efficiency through offshore manufacturing, lean manufacturing, out-sourcing, and just-in-time inventory,” explains Marc Wulfraat, president, MWPVL International Inc., Montreal West, Canada. “While these strategies have significantly reduced the net landed cost of goods for many companies, they also have introduced higher degrees of uncertainty and risk.”

“Some risk is internal, under your control, and sometimes self-inflicted,” maintains William T. Walker, director of supply chain management, StarTrak Systems, LLC, Morris Plains, n.J. “Other risk is external, outside your control, and with unexpected timing. The highest risk occurs under conditions of ‘double jeopardy,’ when both internal and external risk factors align against you.”

Internal risk factors within your control he identifies as excessive process variability and unnecessary product complexity. Walker classifies the “external risk factors outside your control” into 12 categories (with an example):

Competitive (company reputation) Criminal (fraud)

Relationship (trading partner Regulatory (Sarbanes-Oxley) bankruptcy) environmental (flooding)

economic (exchange rate) Political (hyperinflation)

Legal (breach of contract) Acts of War (riot)

Accidental (fire) Corporate (merger)

Technological (digital technology leapfrogging analog technology)

Business continuity consultant Betty A. Kildow, Kildow Consulting, Lebanon, Ind., itemizes the following reasons for the increase in supply chain risk:

Global operations. Lengthened supply chains with less transparency, more opportunities for things to go wrong.

Greater reliance on suppliers, outsourcing companies, contractors. This does not eliminate risk; rather it lessens control and direct oversight.

Continuing push for leaner supplier chains, leaving narrower margins for errors or disruptions.

new threats (cyber attacks) are added to old threats (pirate attacks) on an ongoing basis. Before it happened, how many companies had considered the impact a volcanic eruption is Iceland might have on the supply chain? The political situation and crisis in the Middle east (e.g., egypt, Libya, Bahrain, and Tunisia) is one example of how changes can impact the supply chain: suppliers’ failure to produce and/or deliver components or raw materials, escalating oil prices, and business travel in some countries being unsafe.

“The level of risk (low-medium-high) varies with each type of risk from one organization to another,” she explains. “What may constitute a minor inconve-nience for one may be a disaster for another.”

/ MAY–JUne 2011 7

Risks Impacting Supply Chains continued from page 3

Technology deployment. “There are new supply chain risk management software or supply chain decision support system applica-tions that have been developed to help companies develop a structured supply chain risk management program,” according to Wulfraat. These tools can provide a structured and formalized approach to monitoring sup-pliers to enable quick response to supply chain disruptions.

The use of technology and analytics also helps to assess supply chain risk. Gordon explains: “Using both internal and third-party information can help give you a more holistic view of supply chain risk than just the infor-mation available in your own four walls.”

Wulfraat concludes: “The use of a technol-ogy application to manage supply chain risk can help firms that want to mitigate risk and to be as responsive as possible when a disrup-tion occurs.”

Continuing advice… Walker declares: It is a mistake to…assign

this task to one person…silo this task in one functional area…claim that a particular infor-mation system will solve the problem…assume your trading partners or even your competitors will not help you during extreme times.

Wulfraat adds: “Supply chain risk manage-ment is not performed in an ivory tower. It requires a coordinated effort with a company’s supply chain partners. It is helpful to establish a supply chain risk management committee that consists of internal and external resources from key suppliers, and ultimately, the solutions to mitigate supply chain risk will depend on establishing strategic agreements with suppli-ers, which will require their early participation in the program.”

William T. Walker, StarTrak Systems, LLC, www.startrak.com

Marc Wulfraat, MWPVL International Inc., www.mwpvl.com

Sherry R. Gordon, Value Chain Group, www.value-chain.org

/ MAY–JUne 20118

F A C I L I T I e S

P icture, if you will, your company’s CeO rocking it out at as a DJ during the lunch hour, in the center

of your DC. Having a hard time with that image? So would most people. But for the 23 employees of the 40,000 sq. ft. Threadless DC in Chicago, that’s just a normal day.

That’s because “normal” at Threadless, owned by parent company Skinny Corp., is anything but to the rest of the world. everything about Threadless is unique, beginning with its break-the-mold design process.

“Threadless is a community-centered online apparel store,” says Lance Curran, warehouse director. “We are

what our community says we are.”That means that members of

the Threadless community—t-shirt designers and their customers—submit designs online. Threadless then releases the designs to the public for a vote; designs are rated on a scale of 0 to 5. Those selected

are then printed and sold through an online store. Creators of winning designs receive a prize of cash and store credit.

The competition for coming up with a winning design is steep—people submit some 800 designs every week. About 10 designs make the grade out of this weekly pool. Contests run every week and also include occasional special contests, known as “Loves Threadless.” These run in association with various sponsors. The com-pany sets a special theme for the designs and additional prizes are awarded to the winner, often related to the sponsor.

Threadless runs the designs in limited batches and many of the selected designs, which go into print rather quickly, sell out in just a matter of weeks. When the shirts are sold out, customers can request a reprint, something the company only does if there is enough demand.

A community“We are a community first, and a t-shirt company

second,” says Curran. “We are a community of friends.”Threadless also reaches out to the global commu-

nity. Recent t-shirt designs, for instance, aimed at raising funds for both global flood relief and the victims of the tsunami in Japan.

The company’s web site features a “community” tab chockfull of great interactivity for consumers, buyers and employees. A forum, designer interviews, and artist pro-grams are all listed under this tab.

Additionally, you can find the Threadless “Tee-V” sta-tion here. Recently-featured footage included a lunchtime basketball game in the warehouse. Yes, the DC contains a partial basketball court where employees can let off steam and get some exercise during breaks.

Social media also plays a big role in the forward-thinking company’s operations. For instance, Threadless partners with Twitter to allow users to submit tweets to be voted on by the community. The winning tweets are designed by and printed onto Threadless shirts. Winners receive cash and gift cards to the Threadless web sites. Some 1.5 million people follow the company’s tweets on Twitter.

At Threadless, that’s a definite yes. How your DC can learn from this t-shirt company’s unique

approach to the work day.

“We are a community first, and a t-shirt

company second.”Lance Curran

/ MAY–JUne 2011 9

Threadless can trace its fairly new roots—the com-pany is only about 10 years old—to cofounders Jake nickell and Jacob DeHart, who started the company with just $1,000 after winning an Internet t-shirt design contest.

The creativity and unique business model at Thread-less trickles down to every corner of the company. It’s this unique approach that keeps employees satisfied, resulting in almost non-existent attrition rates. For both the Threadless owners and employees, that’s a win-win.

What sets it apartAlejandro Mendez is like many of the employees at

the Threadless DC—quite simply, he loves coming into work every day. “This is a very unique environment and it’s a lot of fun to work here,” he says. “Where else do you get to listen to a band during your lunch hour, or have the CeO DJ for the warehouse? I look forward to coming to work.”

This isn’t Mendez’s first job in the warehousing industry, but it will likely be the place he stays. “I knew about the perks before working here,” he says. “My brother works here also, so I knew it was a good place to work. I was pretty excited when I got hired.”

Much of the fun work atmosphere in the Threadless DC can be traced to Curran’s efforts. Growing up in a manufacturing community in Indiana, Curran made the natural transition to the industry after high school. He also attended music school to feed his creative side. When he came to Threadless, he was inspired by the cre-ative nature of the business and looked for ways to take it even further, as well as improve the warehousing oper-ations. “Threadless is an inspiring place to work and I’ve worked my tail off to help it grow,” he says.

“Coming from my background, I found that most people working in a DC are there not because it is a job they want to do, but one they can do,” Curran explains. “I wanted to change that and make the workplace more exciting. I wanted to make passionate DC workers.”

To that end, Curran has put together a staff with backgrounds as unique as Threadless itself. “Many of our employees are musicians, designers or artists, and they’re very into what we do,” he says. “They work hard every day and make this an incredibly pro-ductive workplace. They’re a very dedicated group.”

Part of what makes working at Threadless so special is the concerts and DJ jam sessions men-tioned earlier. In keeping with its large social media presence, the company steams video onto various sites during the live music sessions. This not only promotes Threadless, but gives the bands extra exposure as well. “Once a month we have bands play live in the DC,” says Curran. “Many times they’re made up of our own employees.”

The company’s CeO, Tom Ryan, gets in on the act with regular DJ sessions. “During sales peaks, Tom will come out and DJ for the crew to help boost morale and productivity,” says Curran. “The staff loves this.”

employees also receive 10 free t-shirts each month. “It’s great because it allows us to wear the product and show it off to people who might not have heard of us yet,” says Mendez. “There have been a lot of great designs that Threadless has printed and I love wearing them.”

What is Threadless?According to distribution center director Lance Curran, Threadless is all of the following:

A place where people can share great creative ideas and make the ideas better

We’re also what our community says we are

Tees are simply the way we figured out how to become a thriving, inspiring place for sharing great creative ideas

We give creative people a place to have fun, feel they belong, and nurture their self worth

We inspire awesomeness—in each other, in our community, in the world.

Threadless is all about helping you turn your creativity and ideas into reality.

continued on page 11

/ MAY–JUne 201110

I f you’re a fan of the latest and greatest that technol-ogy has to offer, then you’re going to like what you

hear about the newest generation of data capture instru-ments. not only are they small, light and inexpensive, but some of them coordinate with gadgets like smart phones and iPads. Who said scanning can’t be fun?

Certainly not the folks at Serialio or Socket mobile. Both companies are on board with this new wave of scanners and are looking to expand even deeper into the warehousing market. “We have a wide range of customers in the DC, from large operations with 1,000 of our scanners, to small operations using just a dozen or so units,” explains Les Lee, vice president of OeM for newark, Calif.-based Socket. “This is a product that’s perfectly suited to pick and pack operations.”

Both companies are looking to go deeper into the market, citing plenty of reasons for why potential customers would want to consider this new wave of technology.

Into the futureThe Socket products—which include a cordless

Bluetooth ring scanner and the small, pocket-sized series 7 scanner—are fairly new to the market. The ring scanner was originally designed at the request of Fedex Ground several years ago. “We worked directly with Fedex to design a product that would work with their pick and pack operations,” says Lee. “It didn’t go any further than the design stages with them, but they were still inter-ested and we recognized that there could be a market for a product like this.”

Lee points to the ring scanner’s hands-free design as one of its draws. “It’s ideal for fast-moving environments where multi-tasking is essential,” he says. “It improves productivity in those cases where repetitive scanning and package handling is necessary. It can fit on any finger and has a laser scanner with two buttons on either size. The cable is attached to a wrist unit where the battery pack is located.”

Serialio’s product, the Scanfob 2002, is small and can be easily attached to a retractable belt key holder. It comes with a lanyard so that it can also hang around a user’s neck, if that’s more comfortable. “The Scanfob

scanners are exceptionally handy in the warehouse for a variety of reasons,” says Dave Boydston, president. He lists those reasons as the following:

The scanners can accommodate both real-time and batch data collection projects, allowing the customer to leverage a single scanning device for many opera-tions, reducing the cost to train users and the cost of scanner inventory.

They work with a wide variety of scanning software solutions.

The Scanfob can be bundled with software options depending on user requirements.

Another advantage of the Scanfob devices, according to Boydston, is the fact that it is a quad-mode scanner. This means that it the options for how to use the device are many. Among them, users can:

Scan data in real-time and post to cursor location on Windows PC, like a traditional scanner

Scan data in real time and post to cursor location on Windows7/Vista and on down to 2000; OS X, Android iOS (iPad/iPhone/Touch), BlackBerry, Windows Mobile, Symbian, and old PalmOS devices, as well as other computing devices

Scan in batch mode to scanner memory and download via cable connection to PC

Scan in batch mode to scanner memory and download via wireless Bluetooth connection to many different platforms listed above.

“The scanners are exceptionally

handy in the warehouse for a

variety of reasons.”

Dave Boydston

S Y S T e M S

Not Your Father’s ScannerA new crop of barcode scanners is making its mark in the DC.

Socket’s Cordless Bluetooth Ring Scanner

Serialio’s Scanfob 2002

/ MAY–JUne 2011 11

AffordabilityOne advantage of the newer version of scanners is

that they offer affordability. “The cost depends on what software options are desired/required for the applica-tion,” says Boydston. “The base hardware list cost is $314 and users can purchase from our web store for $299.”

The Socket Series 7 product also enables interaction with smart phones. It can work with Bluetooth enabled computers running Windows, as well as with BlackBerry and nokia e71 smart phones.

Its price starts at just $395. To work with an iPad to track inventory, additional software is required, but some of this can be found for next to nothing, or in some cases, even free as an iPad app.

You can bundle the scanners with a variety of soft-ware options as well, making it more flexible. Using the iPad and special software, the Scanfob can allow users to count inventory in the DC without the need for network access during counting. “This is very nice for some ware-house setups that have fenced in enclosures that prevent network access, called ‘Faraday Cages,’” says Boydston.

However you slice it, these newer scanners are surely just scratching the surface for what’s to come. Conve-nience, good price points, and yes, the “sexiness” of a product that can coordinate with tools like an iPad, all make for an appealing product.

Les Lee, Socket, www.socketmobile.com Dave Boydston, Serialio.com, www.serialio.com

Threadless fosters employee involvement at all lev-els. For instance, the company has regular “DIY” or do it yourself, days. “everyone submits ideas and we help them see those ideas through to reality,” explains Curran.

He took advantage of this himself last year. “I had an idea to launch a line of t-shirts written by comic book people,” he says. “The company liked the idea and helped me get it off the ground. now it’s one of our lines. Thread-less is all about helping you turn your creativity and ideas into reality. It’s a great benefit.”

In the DCAll the enthusiasm for work that Threadless builds

into its employees goes a long way to keep the company successful, especially during its big peak volume periods. “We have about a month-long peak at the holidays and one- to two-week long peaks during sales,” Curran explains. “During this time, we spike from about 2,000 orders per day to around 40,000.”

That requires that Threadless brings on a large temp staff, usually in the range of 50 people. “This is often the source of new employees for us,” he says. “The existing staff often works its way up in the company as we bring new people on. It’s all about the work ethic we see in our employees.”

Curran likens coming to work at Threadless to “hang-ing out with your friends. I’ve never seen guys put out such an effort,” he says. “everyone here is totally invested in what we do.”

Curran has worked hard at organizing the DC and making technical improvements. “everything here is home grown,” he explains.

Curran first organized the DC’s layout to make a

more streamlined process. He also downsized the equip-ment the team was using. “We were using label printers and the process was much too laborious and slow,” he says. “We switched to one-size shipments and got rid of the printers. We also organized the pickers into teams to speed up that process.”

The end result was huge. “It used to take us a month to finish all the peak orders,” Curran says. “now we can do it in just 12 hours.”

In general, the DC operates on a nine to five sched-ule. During peak hours, however, that changes to three overlapping shifts. Returns don’t play much of a role in the operations, as only about two percent of the prod-ucts ever come back.

Into the futureRight now Threadless is in a rapid growth mode. “We

have aggressive plans for spreading to other products,” says Curran. “Our international business is a big place for growth—more than 50 percent of our orders are from overseas.”

“Threadless is a unique company with a very differ-ent vibe than most places,” Mendez says. “I would hope that all companies would try to make their workplaces as enjoyable as Threadless does. I think a lot of the methods used at Threadless would work at other companies as well.”

Curran has this to say about the approach: “At most companies, everyone is well versed in logistics, but they don’t bring different approaches to making the work-place fun and inspiring for employees. We do, and we’ve found it makes all the difference.”

Lance Curran, Threadless, www.threadless.com

Work = Fun? continued from page 9

PeRIODICALS

Lawrence Dean Shemesh Acceptance speech given at the WERC Annual Conference in Orlando, May 16, 2011.

I am honored and privileged to accept the board presidency at a time when the supply chain logistics industry is undergoing profound evolutionary change.

Do you remember the old paradigm, “you can have it fast, good, or cheap… pick any two”? It no longer applies. Today, our customers are demanding excellent quality, lightening fast delivery, and extreme value. And at a time when our customers are asking more of us, a weakened economy is causing us to reach for these loftier goals with fewer resources. evolutionary change in the supply chain is inevitable and corporate Darwinism is a fact; only the fittest, most agile, organi-zations will survive.

As operations professionals…

We CAn IGNORE CHAnGe… And perish rapidly as our competitors adapt.

OR We CAn REACT TO CHAnGe… in which case we will manage crisis, fight fires, and wither slowly.

OR We CAn PLAN FOR CHAnGe… to smooth operational turbulence, mitigate risk, and survive

OR We CAn DO WHAT WeRC MeMBeRS STRIVe TO DO… We DRIVE CHAnGe. By doing so, we can achieve a strategic advantage and tactical superiority. By driving change, we can assure our place as the proverbial king of the supply chain jungle.

WERC members are forward thinking supply chain logistics pro-fessionals. And the WeRC organization is committed to researching, developing, and delivering timely, relevant, and actionable educa-tional content to its members through our annual conference as well as WeRC’s seminar series, online learning programs, publications, web resources, and local WeRCouncil events.

Just as you have chosen to evolve and grow, the WeRC organization has been morphing to meet your changing needs. There are a few membership initiatives that I would like to share with you today.

Because we firmly believe in giving back to the industry by support-ing young supply chain logistics professionals, WeRC offers a mentoring membership.

As a full WeRC member, you may choose to “mentor” as many protégé members as you would like. This means that for half the cost of a traditional membership, you can share the same WeRC benefits that you enjoy with those just starting their careers. This is a great way to take a fledgling under your wing and provide an incredible learning and training opportunity.

Additionally, we are very excited about our new corporate member-ship program. A flexible and economically attractive corporate membership package has been developed to provide WeRC re-sources to more associates within your organization. Please contact the WeRC office for details regarding these and other membership, educational, and sponsorship opportunities.

Finally, I ask each of you to help spread the word about the value of a WeRC membership. A growing membership base allows us to expand our investment in research and develop new offerings to our mem-bers. next year, we may welcome twice as many logistics professionals at conference because of your outreach efforts. In closing, THANk YOU for allowing me, the rest of the board, and staff, the honor of working on your behalf.

From the Board President