log.india april 2011 issue

INDIA

GOOD TO GO: GST Bill looks well on its way. The industry weighs in...10STOPWATCH: Warehouses need to set labor standards. Here’s why...20

How Atul Agarwal, Associate General Manager (Supply-Chain), Dabur India Ltd., runs a lean supply-chain for its over 300 products. Page 24

LIFE SUPPLY

April 2011 Vol. 4 — No.8 `100INDIA

TElEcom logisTics 20Movement of telecom network equipment opens a window of opportunity

NEglEcTEd waTErways 44India is ignoring inland waterways at its own peril

low adopTioN 24Why WMS still does not have enough takers in India

amit mukherjee, Vice-president (iT and supply chain) and group cio at rpg, has deployed exemplary supply-chain strategies at spencer‘s retail >> page 34

Method In Motion

October 2010 | Vol. 4 – No.2

IndIa’s LeadIng LOgIstIcs MagazIne

` 100

www.logisticsweek.com

RIGHT MOVES: What goes into choosing the right location for a warehouse...46

TOWERING ABOVE 38Unravelling India’s telecom logistics, end to end.

eDITORIAL >

5INDIA| April 2011 | www.logisticsweek.com

Last year, at the time of putting together our first warehouse handbook (disclosure: this editorial is not to plug our latest warehouse handbook), I got in touch with several domain

experts, and requested them to write a chapter each on a topic of interest. Accordingly, I got in touch with an expert who I regard as a talented and an accomplished consultant and requested him to write on warehouse design. The expert didn’t appear very thrilled with the prospect.

He said, “In the logistics sector in India, I have seen that a lot of ‘so-called’ domain experts look to borrow other people’s ideas rather than working to evolve and execute their own. If I write my thoughts on warehouse design, I may risk giving away some of my ideas for which companies pay me. Worse, there are people out there who will blatantly copy them, without understanding the fundamentals, and end up ruining the experience.”

He further told me that he has already had a bad experience with a column he had written for a newspaper – he found out that some people had been passing off his ideas (revealed in his column) as their own.

That set me thinking: Is this a common issue with domain experts in our industry? That they are wary of sharing their ideas with the media? From my point of view, and the limited experience I’ve had studying and working with our management and business publications, I think the answer is yes.

This issue is not only limited to the experts or to the field of logistics, even companies in India across industries have long been wary, almost paranoid about sharing their management practices with the Indian media. Even when they do, it is calibrated – there is precious little that the readers can learn from the shared information. How often do we read a case study, or an Indian CEO’s interview, or an in-depth article from a practicing consultant that opened our eyes to the essentials of a subject? I am not talking about paid research reports, or articles in select management/scientific journals meant for peer-evaluation. I am referring to content that is open for all to read and use. As innocuous as this issue appears, it has a huge bearing on the quality of products and services that we see and consume as professionals and users. Above all, it harms the keepers of the information the most – a great example of the laws of karma at work. Take the issue of warehouse design. I know many talented consultants who are not getting enough work in this area. They attribute it to a general lack of awareness among warehouse owners and logistics professionals in warehouse design. Now you know where I am going with this. The point is that if the experts don’t talk about warehouse design – giving away the fundamentals, making a case for warehouse design in a transparent, lucid and convincing way – what they will get is a general sense of apathy on this subject. As for the fear of people stealing ideas, they need to realize that no amount of idea-thievery can beat tenacity and domain experience.

I will give you another quick example. For long, logistics magazines (like the one in your hand) have been publishing content

only for, to, and about the logistics service providers. Why? Because Indian companies have long been wary of sharing their supply-chain information with the media for various reasons – some owing to the nascent nature of the logistics industry, some owing to the mediocre quality of media reporting.

Exactly a year ago, we at Log.India tried changing the norm. We decided to do stories on supply-chain models of companies. In other words, we started doing ‘enterprise’ supply-chain stories (which is the norm across the developed world). As expected, it was not easy. After failing to convince a few big companies to part with their SCM info, we tried, to use a military term, the ‘shotgun’ approach.

We made a long list of companies from FMCG, pharma, retail and other such sectors and started flooding them with our requests, trying to convince them that they could trust us with all the critical SCM information.

Our big break came with HyperCity Retail when Col Vijay Nair saw it before anyone else how his SCM practices could benefit the industry. It seems that the HyperCity story opened a floodgate. Ever since, we have done stories on many big companies such as GCPL, Dell India, Ericsson India, Tata Motors and now, Dabur. The idea is that companies share their SCM best practices, the LSPs gain from the knowledge and use it to improve their quality of service, which in turn benefits the users in general.

And now has come the time for us at Log.India to turn it up a notch. We have realized that it’s high time we celebrate India Inc.’s SCM success stories and honor our heroes who make them possible. Therefore, on May 20, we will be presenting arguably India’s first ‘enterprise only’ SCM awards – the India International Logistics Forum (IILF) awards.

See you there.

Aanand [email protected]

www.twitter.com/logisisticsweek www.facebook.com/logisticsweek

Aanand PandeyEditor

What Goes Around, Comes Around

Contents

IntervIewGunning For Green

FeatureMaking Waves

upshotAnd The Twain Shall MeetTwo events, the SCLC's summit on private equity in logistics sector, and M+R Spedag's acquisition of PL Shipping & Logistics, were the highlights of the month.

ColumnMeasure For MeasureCompanies employ workforce based on the amount of work they perceive. But is the workforce gainfully utilized at all times? Calculating a time and motion study can help.

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INDIA| April 2011 | www.logisticsweek.com6

A tête-à-tête with Christopher Ong, VP- Business Development, for DHL Asia Pacific, Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), on its GoGreen initiatives and progress.

The advancements made by India in the telecom industry have placed it on a high growth trajectory. The breakneck speed of operations have put people employed in this sector on their toes, in terms of bringing in change or adapting to changes.

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Cover storythe Chain Is the LinkRunning a complex supply-chain, not to mention managing over 300 products could deter even the most dauntless. For Atul Agarwal, AGM (Supply-Chain), Dabur India, it is all in a day's work.

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APRIL 2011

BooK eXtraCt

panorama

FeatureSelecting Your Warehouse's LocationWith costs exploding in the market, the location of a warehouse is crucial for an organization’s profitability. With the sophisticated tools available today, a distribution network can be optimized.

The petroleum industry has invested considerable effort in developing sophisticated mathematical programming models to help planners provide strategies and directions for refinery operations.

Books, Journals, Blogs, Technology, C-Profile, and Solutions - a look at what's new in and for the supply chain industry.

ADVeRtIseRs InDeX

3rd Annual Supply Chain Summit .............................15

BLR ......................................................................... 33

Capricorn Logistics .........................................56 & 57

Drive India Enterprise Solution .............................. IFC

EXIDE Industrial .......................................................17

Gandhi Automation .......................................... 11 & 65

Greenearth Translogistics .........................................19

India Warehousing Show 2011 ................................ 59

Mahindra Navistar .................................................. IBC

Man Force Trucks ....................................................BC

6th Southern Asia 2011 ........................................... 65

Strategic Procurement & Pricing ............................. 64

Safexpress .............................................................. 23

State Bank of India .................................................... 3

Shree Rajlaxmi ............................................... 27 & 29

SSI Schaefer ..................................................... 60-61

Vijay Logistics ........................................................... 4

Vodafone ............................................................. 8 & 9

IILF Award ................................................................13

INDIA

ICTT ON: The much-awaited Vallarpadam terminal is open. A report...20

OVER THE CUBICLE: Why cross-functional trust is critical to SCM...24

Abhijit Chaudhuri, Director (SCM), Ispat Industries Ltd., has successfully managed Ispat‘s supply-chain under testing conditions. The story.

Page 30

A MAN OF A MAN OF A MAN OF METTLEMETTLEMETTLE

March 2011 Vol. 4 — No.7 `100

INDIA





Method In Motion



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MOVING STORIES: The SCM of the popular online book vendor Flipkart...26

THINGS TO BE 42Experts weigh in on logistics industry trends.

marCh 2011

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RNI No. MAHENG/2007/23777 l Registration No.MH/MR/South-279/2011-13Allowed to post at Patrika Channel Sorting Office G.P.O. Mumbai - 400001 Date of mailing: 5th of every month issue

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INDIA| April 2011 | www.logisticsweek.com

Look, It’s MovingThe much-awaited GsT, that can help india’s economy with gains of over $1 trillion, finally looks to have gained momentum. However, it is not likely to be rolled out before June next year, reports Frewin Francis

The biggest issue is the absence of an efficient supply chain.

Moving products from one place to another is difficult. Then, there’s a complex taxation structure, making things worse. Add to that the worry of real estate.

— Raj Jain, President, Wal-Mart india

in an interview to Business Standard.

Train of ThoughT

We don’t have the legacy of the old stuff to protect. Older companies have installed the established way of doing it. We’re all about the future. It’s all about return on investment for the customers.

— Michael saul Dell, CEO, Dell

on ways Dell differentiates its offerings in the IT space in an interview

to Corporate Dossier.

The railways have a lot of benefits in terms of wear and tear, and faster network. Although rail transport is a good option and the industry wants to explore it, they will have to make it cheaper and cost effective. Logistically, the industry needs to have more details.

— Vishnu Mathur,Director-General, siAM

on the lack of clarity in Railways’ freight business in an interview to Mint.

The month of March saw two important cornerstones laid on the road to GST (Goods and Services Tax) implementa-

tion – both in quick succession. On March 22, the Government tabled the Constitution Amendment Bill for GST in Lok Sabha, just a week after the Union Cabinet green-lighted the Bill. The road to GST, however, still looks be-set by challenges. The GST rollout has already missed this year’s target of April 1, and it looks highly unlikely that it will meet the new dead-line of April 2012.

The Bill is expected to go to a standing com-mittee of the Parliament, headed by Yashwant Sinha, for scrutiny. The committee will send the Bill back to the Parliament with recommenda-tions that the Parliament is not bound to accept. The whole process is not expected to finish any-time before the monsoon session of the Parlia-ment. Hopefully, if the Bill is passed by the Par-

liament, it will have to be cleared by not less than half of India’s states. Following which, the Bill stipulates the formation of a GST Council head-ed by the Finance Minister and the respective finance ministers of every state. The Council will decide on tax rates, exemp-tions and threshold limits, where every recommenda-tion will be passed through general consensus among its members. The GST coun-cil is to be set up through a Presidential order within a few months after the Bill in passed in the Parliament and the State assemblies.

Then there is the issue of get-ting in place an IT infrastructure

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that can handle the transition. While presenting the Un-ion Budget 2011-12, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee stressed on the importance of computerization of com-mercial taxes. He stated that initiatives like ‘Mission Mode Projects’ for computerization of Commercial Taxes in States will allow the states to align with the rollout of GST. Funds have been released for 31 such projects received from the States and Union Territories.

Also, the Central Govern-ment has set up an Empow-ered Group under the chair-manship of Nandan Nilekani to f inalize the design of ap-propriate IT system for the GST regime. The Group has proposed to the Ministry the setting up of a system termed

as ‘National Information Util-ities’ which would be made through Special Purpose Vehi-cles (SPVs) with private part-nership. These SPVs would be creating integrated databases interlinking all IT projects in the areas of Goods and Serv-ices Tax, among other things. According to recent media reports, the government is thinking of f loating an SPV to create an IT infrastructure for GST. The SPV, called GST Net, will have National Securities Depository (NSDL) as its tech-nology partner. According to reports, NSDL will start a pi-lot project on GST in 11 states.

About The BillThe Bill makes its goal clear with its ‘Statement of Ob-jects and Reasons’ that says,

among other things, “The goods and services tax would replace a number of indirect taxes presently being levied by the Central Government and the State Governments and is intended to remove cas-cading of taxes and provide a common national market for goods and services.”

As for the nitty-gritty, the Bill seeks to subsume the Central and State indirect tax-es and levies like Central Ex-cise Duty, Additional Excise Duties, Service Tax, Counter-vailing Duty (CVD) as well as State Value Added Tax (VAT)/Sales Tax, Luxury Tax, State Cesses and Surcharges and Entry Tax (not levied by lo-cal bodies) will be subsumed under GST (See the box ‘GST Bill Highlights’). Apparently,

in 1954, GsT WAs inTRODuCED fOR THE fiRsT TiME in fRAnCE.

the component of taxes like Octroi and entertainment tax that are levied by local bod-ies will be outside the GST ambit. In other words, the industry may not see the com-plete abolishment of Octroi, a much-opposed tax, as per the Amendment Bill.

What’s more, it excludes products like petrol, diesel, crude petroleum, aviation tur-bine fuel (ATF), natural gas and alcohol (for human consump-tion) from GST’s purview.

The Bill also stipulates the forming of a GST Dispute Set-tlement Authority that will address the grievances of the Centre and the States on

The Constitution Amendment Bill recently tabled in the Lok Sabha provides for: The Bill proposes a dual structure – one

for Center and other for States. Tax rates, exemption lists and threshold

limits to be decided by a GST Council. Covers goods other than crude petrole-

um, diesel, petrol, aviation turbine fuel, natural gas, alcohol (for human consumption). Various Central and State indirect taxes

and levies like Central Excise Duty, Additional Excise Duties, Service Tax, Countervailing

Duty (CVD) to be subsumed under GST (excluding those applicable to goods excluded from GST). State VAT/Sales Tax, Luxury Tax, State

Cesses and Surcharges and Entry tax (not levied by local bodies) to be subsumed under GST. Parliament to provide for the establish-

ment of a GST Tax Dispute Settlement Author-ity to adjudicate any dispute or complaint referred to it by a State Government or the Government.

GST Bill Highlights

The Bill also stipulates the forming of a GST Dispute Settlement Authority that will address the grievances of the Centre and the States on matters related to GST.

While trading hubs like Delhi might tend to gain, manufacturing hubs like Maharashtra, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu might see a different implication with excise and other taxes getting wiped off."

— nihar Parida,COO, Logistics & Marketing),

Uniworld Logistics

Sour

ce: p

rsin

dia.

org

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THE fiRsT inCOME TAx suGGEsTED in THE uniTED sTATEs WAs DuRinG THE WAR Of 1812.

matters related to GST. The authority will be chaired by a retired judge of the Supreme Court or the Chief Justice of a High Court, to be appointed by the President on the recom-mendation of the Chief Justice of India.

What it Means for The industryTalking about the introduc-tion of the Bill in the Parlia-ment, Nihar Parida, COO, Logistics & Marketing, Uni-world Logistics, said that companies are taking it in the

Gagan Seksaria, Associate Director (Trans-portation & Logistics), KPMG, offers some pointers on how companies can ready ready themselves for GST.

While there is disappointment in some quarters about delays in the implementa-tion of this lead time, businesses must realize that the transition may be quite challenging and therefore they should use this lead time to get a grip on their entire operation and of doing a detailed impact analysis of functioning in the proposed GST regime.

The design of the GST is already in the public domain and there is sufficient information available to do model simula-tions and appreciate the pros and cons, and of course the concern areas. As a first step, businesses would do well for themselves in setting up cross-functional project teams — having, apart from finance, representation from the market-ing, logistics and IT functions. This team should work on a milestone-based time bound transition plan while ensuring that different functions are continually sensi-tised to the possible implications of GST in their respective domains.

Businesses, with the help of cross-functional project teams, may find the fol-lowing guidelines useful to undertake the following preparatory steps towards their smooth transition into the GST regime.

1. Business Operation And supply Chain simulations: It is crucial that businesses undertake an extensive map-ping of their existing business operations and supply chains. This should include

preparation of product-wise/state-wise matrices to be able to map the entire procurement and distribution structure in turn to get an understanding of the changing tax triggers and quantum and create basis for critical decision making.2. Pricing: Suppliers of both goods and services will now have to determine the valuation and pricing of their products as the bases of indirect taxation shifts from manufacture to supply. Complete cross-credit will be allowed between goods and services and this will result in a greater credit pool and cost saving, in turn affect-ing pricing decisions.3. financial impact Analysis: It will be critical for companies to do a financial impact analysis of their businesses with the new regime in mind. It would be ideal to run simulations on the basis of actual figures of the preceding fiscal to get a detailed understanding of how the operations and numbers would have looked different if GST were already in place. Such a comprehensive exercise shall prove useful towards the evalua-tion of all operation options and supply chain patterns with multiple permutations and combinations with respect to tax, pricing and bandwidth. Businesses also need to understand how the existing tax exemptions (which it presently enjoys) if withdrawn or modified, would impact their bottom lines, particularly in respect of the area-based excise exemptions. Similarly, it would be prudent to examine the pricing structures evolving with the changing taxation structures.4. Contracts & Agreements: An important area of examination should

be the existing agreements and con-tracts with customers and vendors and whether they appropriately account for the potential applicability of a GST within 12 months time. 5. Compliance: Suppliers of goods and services will now have to come under the ambit of both Central and State govern-ment and register with both authorities. Currently service providers would only need to register with central government. The industry will have to ensure that compliance with the new tax legislation is met and that they are prepared to do so within the next 12 months. Businesses must also critically evaluate the tax, audit and finance consultants they seek services from today and whether these suppliers continue to be effective and relevant in the GST set up.6. iT-Readiness: Businesses will have to examine and potentially modify or upgrade their IT infrastructure and set-ups to support the changed regime. The incidence of the tax will change and so will the credit mechanism and the ERP systems must be modified to reflect this change.7. stakeholder inclusion: It is impera-tive, once the specific impact of GST is well understood internally, to initiate discussions with the customers and vendors to be able to iron out any pointy operational areas that might crop up after the GST implementation.8. Training: Relevant individuals in finance, procurement, operations, IT and sales department will have to be trained to bring them up to speed with new legis-lation, its effects and its compliances.

Ready for GST?

same way as they did during the time of implementation of VAT. How the States will take to the new amendments is unclear, he said. Mr. Parida further stated that while trad-ing hubs like Delhi might tend to gain, manufacturing hubs

like Maharashtra, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu might see a different implication with ex-cise and other taxes getting wiped off.

On being asked how com-panies are bracing themselves for GST, Srinath Manda, Pro-

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fEDEx WAs THE fiRsT TO EQuiP DEliVERy VAns WiTH TECHnOlOGy TO TRACK PACKAGEsDuRinG THE VARiOus REiGns Of THE PHARAOHs, TAx COllECTORs WERE KnOWn As sCRiBEs.

gram Manager, Automotive & Transportation, Frost & Sulli-van (South Asia & Middle East) said, “Due to the uncertainty of the f inal tax structure, ad-ministrative policies and the timeline of implementation, most companies are adopting a ‘wait and watch’ approach regarding GST. Furthermore, since large companies with manufacturing units in mul-tiple states are likely to be impacted more than small companies with a single man-

ufacturing unit, the majority of small companies are not taking a serious note of the developments.”

Apparently, a number of logistics service providers (LSPs), on their part, are plan-ning ahead in anticipation that the GST regime would most likely offer opportuni-ties in the form of nationwide transport services and large warehousing infrastructure. For all the companies in the industry, thus far, an inabil-ity to offset the input excise duty and service tax against the output tax has lead to the cascading of taxes. Moreo-ver, a lack of uniformity in State VAT laws with respect to rates of taxes, threshold lim-its, compliance requirements, etc. has lead to unnecessary compliance burden on them.

Pradeep Chechani, Busi-ness Head and Vice President (Supply Chain) at Wadhawan Retail feels that, from an op-erations perspective, GST is def initely going to make life better for the logistics profes-sionals. Complications like multiple points of control and various tax-related documen-tation would get minimized.

Critical supply-chain func-tions such as warehousing, logistics and distribution are some other key areas that would be directly and posi-

The coalition government is dealing with the GST issue rationally by alleviating any misconceptions and feedbacks from all affected parties via the GST Council."

— sharmila Amin,India Head (Panprojects

and Oil and Gas Business), Panalpina World Transport (I)

Critical supply-chain functions such as warehousing, logistics and distribution are some other key areas that would be directly and positively impacted with the introduction of GST.

tively impacted with the in-troduction of GST. Currently, most companies prefer to maintain decentralized ware-houses across states to avoid sunk cost of central sales tax, leading to high operational costs.

To a large extent, the new regime would also mean that there will be cost reduction at the point of origin. Compa-nies and business too would have to gear up their opera-tions to accommodate GST. Gagan Seksaria, Associate Director, Transportation & Logistics at KPMG points out some of the ways in which he feels companies can brace themselves for GST (See box: Ready for GST?).

Commenting on the pro-posed rollout of GST, DHL Global Forwarding Chief Executive Off icer Christoph Remund opined that compa-nies will have to adopt more advanced IT solutions and larger and more advanced in-frastructures. Companies that quickly adapt to the changing scenario will not only differ-entiate themselves, but also successfully capture this ma-jor growth opportunity.

Percy Avari Country Man-ager, Aramex International (India Regional Off ice), stated that f inding and or-ganizing large sized organ-

Companies will have to adopt more advanced IT solutions and larger and more advanced infrastructures."

— Christoph Remund,CEO, DHL Global Forwarding

ized warehousing facilities and streamlining paper-work challenges for inter-state movements would be some new challenges that will come with the transition.

The road to GST is tough, but industry stakeholders seem confident about the gov-ernment’s approach to GST implementation. According to Sharmila Amin, India Head (Panprojects and Oil & Gas Business), Panalpina World Transport (I), “The coalition government is dealing with the whole GST issue rational-ly, the steps taken to alleviate any misconceptions and feed-back from all affected parties is being taken into account via the GST Council.”

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The Supply Chain Lead-ership Council (SCLC)

organized the third edition of its summit on ‘PE, M&A in Transport Infrastructure and Logistics’ on March 10, at the Orchid Ecotel, Mumbai. The summit held a vigorous discussion on the future of private equity investments in the logistics sector and the numerous mergers and acquisitions taking place in this sector.

The conference was attended by over 100 pri-vate equity investors, logistics companies’ pro-moters and CEOs along with a sizable number of investment bankers and dealmakers.

According to noted industry sources, India will be a $5 trillion economy by 2022-25. Keep-ing this figure in mind, it has been estimated that transport and logistics will constitute an impressive 12-13 percent of India’s GDP in a

little over a decade. According to Mr. Manish Saigal, Executive Director, KPMG, “It is then not surprising that there have been over 160 deals in the sector in the last five years alone, roughly split half and half between PE and stra-tegic transactions, making it one of the most active M&A sectors in India today.”

Vinod Giri, Director, IDFC PE, noted that “transport infrastructure investments, espe-cially roads and minor ports, are doing better on current price basis as opposed to services investments.”

A M Sundar, CFO, Snowman Frozen Foods, opined that Indian companies would need to invest at least ̀ 20,000 crore to meet the demand for cold storage space.

However, Chetan Dikshit, Director, Roth-schild, stated that it was his belief that freight-forwarding companies received a premium as compared to logistics businesses globally. But he still expected large Japanese and Korean companies to come forward with significant M&A proposals.

Swiss logistics company, M+R Spedag Group, announced that it has completed

the acquisition of PL Shipping & Logistics Pvt Ltd. The new entity will henceforth be known as M+R Logistics (India) Pvt. Ltd. Until now, M+R Spedag managed its operations in India through PL Shipping & Logistics.

Daniel Richner, Owner, M+R Spedag Group, said, "Mergers always pose a great challenge, as they involve all stakeholders. With us, there was already a strong degree of identification, result-ing in a smooth integration."

He added, "What sets one apart is the port-folio of services you offer. Our niche custom-ers buy a host of products from different coun-tries. We arrange for the procurement and the supply chain."

Ramkumar Ramachandran, Managing Di-rector and local partner of M+R Logistics (In-dia) Pvt. Ltd. said, "M+R Spedag will focus on providing solutions for management of freight on at a global level. Moreover, with our extensive use of IT, our services will come at a premium."

With over 35 branches and more than 1,000 employees in East Asia and the Indian Subconti-nent, M+R Spedag Group is a major provider of transportation and logistics services.

M+R Spedag Group is a Swiss based interna-tional logistics company, founded in 1952. The company group has 72 branches in five conti-nents, and an annual turnover of $500 million.

Date: March 10, 2011Event: PE, M&A in Transport Infrastructure and Logistics Organizer: Supply Chain Leadership Council Venue: Orchid Ecotel

Date: March 29, 2011Event: M+R Logistics (India) Organizer: M+R Logistics (India) Pvt. Ltd.Venue: Sahara Star, Mumbai

Daniel Richner, Owner, M+R Spedag and Ramkumar Ramachandra, MD, M+R Logis-tics (India), speaking at the event.

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Big Deals All Around

Building New Links

Vinod Giri, Director, IDFC PE; Sachin Bhanushali, Presi-dent, GRFL; and Manish Saigal, ED, KPMG.

INDIA|Apri l 2011| www.logisticsweek.com

< upshot

PAN India Warehousing (3PL/4PL)

Reverse Logistics

Primary & Secondary Transportation

In-transit Damage Reduction Solutions

Partnership in Road Safety Programs

Logistics BPO

Logistics Staffing Services

Logistics Consultancy & Training

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E-04, Devashree Garden, Rutu Park Service Road,Majiwada Naka, Thane (W) – 400601. Maharashtra

Contacts : (+91) 99879 22244/9820761645E-mail: [email protected]

20 INDIA| April 2011 | www.logisticsweek.com

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From Logistics To Supply Chain

Padmini Pagadala General Manager, TPG Consulting, Mumbai

The idea of logistics has expanded over the years to become the interesting, all-encompassing entity - supply chain - that it is today. Padmini Pagadala explores the two terms.

What’s in a name one may ask? We may shrug off the discussion, but not so the ex-perts in our industry. Recently, i was at a cocktail party with some international veter-ans from our industry, and they started talk-ing about what the right word was to refer to the industry we work in. they discussed the subject with so much vigor and argued back and forth, that i thought it would be valu-able to recount their conversation. More than that, it’s important because i think it shows how the field has evolved.

What’s interesting for me as a relative new-comer to this field is that we haven’t always been called supply chain professionals. according to these “veterans,” our profession has really changed its name three times over in the last 50 years or so. it wasn’t until the beginning of the new millennium that our recent name change to supply chain professionals took place.

Why did the change take place? as we in india follow the supply chain evolution path that the West has mapped, it’s worthy to con-sider each step and whether or not that step was really necessary or relevant. the biggest mistake we can make is copying for the sake of copying. it strikes me that sometimes even the logistics terms used might not transfer as well as the practices.

The BeginningMost of you would be familiar with the Coun-cil of supply Chain Management Professionals (CsCMP). the CsCMP is the world’s pre-eminent organization of supply chain professionals . there are thriving chapters of the organization in Mumbai and Delhi. But, what most readers may not be familiar with is that in the very begin-ning in 1963, when the founders came together to set it up, that’s not what they called it.

PADmInI PAGADAlA General Manager, TPG Consulting, Mumbai

Companies employ workforce based on the amount of work they perceive. But is the workforce gainfully utilized at all times? Calculating a time and motion study can help.

AT THE CSCMP Mumbai Roundtable in end-February, Steve Mulaik of The Progress Group, Atlanta, gave an insightful presen-tation on ways to improve labor productiv-ity in large scale warehouse operations. Mr. Mulaik began his address by asking the au-dience if labor cost mattered in India. Bust-ing the myth that labor is cheap in India, Mr. Mulaik illustrated how productivity is of utmost importance not just from an opera-tional expense perspective but also demon-strated how slow associates could increase the number of Material Handling Equipment and hence the capital costs associated with large scale operations by about 5 percent.

How labor Standards Evolved“If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it,” said Peter Drucker. The f irst thing one needs to do in order to improve productivity is to track it which might seem obvious now

but that’s only because of the interesting history of the Labor Standards (Productivi-ty Standards). Back in 1912, Fredrick Taylor decided to observe scores of American men loading railcars so as to come up with the standard times that it ought to take to get a task done. He stated that there was ‘one best way’ to do things and was intent on f inding it and teaching it to the personnel working in the facilities. This was the birth of time studies.

Through a great deal of evangelizing, other fi rms picked this concept up and began making their own standards or ‘piece rates’. The times were tough and in the United States there were more people than there were jobs. The employers took advantage of the situa-tion and used standards to their advantage. Most piece rates were skewed in favour of the employers, using the very best person in a fa-cility to set the “standard” piece rate.

Measure For Measure


In the 1920s, Frank and Lillian Gilbreth took a different route towards improving labor productivi-ty. Their focus was on the methods being used rather than speed. The Gilbreths studied the motions in-volved in a task and spent time researching the best methods to do a job. They called this process “Mo-tion Study”.

They observed the hand motions of the work-ers and came up with better methods to do a job by eliminating non-value added steps or f iguring ways where both hands could stay busy at the same time. Again, their emphasis was on methods rather than speed. Taylor, on the other hand, was concerned with speed.

It was these stalwarts – Taylor and the Gilbreths – who laid the foundation for modern day time and mo-tion studies and hence labor standards. The next big innovation occurred in the 1940s, when researchers started developing what is known as Pre-determined Motion Time Standards (PMTS).

PMTS owes its origins to the US Government which outlawed the use of stopwatches for time studies. The concern was that the methods used to determine rates using Taylor’s methods ended up with “unfair” standards. Also, the ongoing War at the time meant that the US needed to use every per-son as effectively as they could. They needed to esti-mate how fast an “average” person would take to do a job and not the “best” person to help them plan war time production accurately.

The PMTS researchers observed thousands of peo-ple (American men in this case) performing various jobs. They broke down these jobs into very basic mo-tions (e.g. grab something, walk 10 feet, etc) and came up with the time it required to perform these specific motions. They sampled individuals that was statisti-cally deemed adequate and proposed that their average times represented the time it would take an average person to perform these motions. These predeter-mined motion times were used to evaluate the labor standards developed with stopwatches and in some in-stances to develop labor standards without the use of stopwatches. At long last, labor standards were finally being seen as “fair”.

Although there are a number of ways to arrive at a standard, labor standard is imperative to maintain an average performance of the employees. Getting back to improving productivity in your facility, you need to address the following questions individually:

1. Are your associates working all the time?2. Are good methods being used?3. Are your associates working hard enough?

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Utilization Of TimeIt is necessary to know if your associates are working all the time. As outrageous as this may seem on paper, this could mean several things on the floor.

The very first being a situation where associates con-stantly run out of work. In the case of running out of work, it is unavoidable that the associates pace them-selves out so as to ‘keep working’ for the whole day. There could be other avoidable delays such as conveyor failures, Material Handling Equipment failures, bad floors that prevent access to areas efficiently, system downtime, unfinished replenishment moves or various other things that may contribute to an associate unable to work for all of the stipulated time; of course, they could also be meandering, but this is less of an issue as the other delays.

Consequently, the first step in the productivity im-provement journey is to ensure that the obstacles that hinder an employee’s inability to work for all of his/her time are addressed. Once these are settled, the in-

dustrial engineer can then take a stopwatch and do a time study to estimate the amount of time it takes to perform each of the sub-operations or “elements” as-sociated with a job.

Conducting a time study sounds easy but in reality it might not be so. The toughest part is rating the pace of the person who is being watched. If you cannot rate the employee properly, that is, to an international ex-pected pace rate, you are likely to end up with stand-ards that may be grossly unfair to your associates or even you. There are international norms about how pace rating may be done but to be able to learn and ap-ply these takes great skill.

Once the time studies are done, the standards ought to be explained to the workforce and to the supervisors. It is then the responsibility of the supervisors to keep the workforce busy. I am aware of warehouses where the supervisors are assessed based on the both the ef-ficiency of the workers in their areas and also the em-

Conducting a time study sounds easy but in reality it might not be so. The toughest part is rating the pace of the person who is being watched.


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ployee utilization numbers in their respective areas.

Right methodsOnce it is ensured that the associates are assured of constant work, before setting the labor standards (that determine how fast the associates should be work-ing), it is important to check if the job subject to labor standards is being performed in the best manner. This work can be significant. It could involve a separate project from that of setting labor standards.

To determine the best method, engineers go out on to the floor, study the processes and then mobilize better methods to perform the same operation. Some-times these improvements can involve changing the software or equipment used. For example, if a certain operation involves having to key in the location of the pick each time, the engineer may fix the system such that a scan may replace the hand-keying of data.

More often, however, the changes uncovered by the engineer are simply “common sense” changes to how the operator proceeds through the work. For example, at one

site we taught packing operators to grab and stuff two shirts at a time into a bag instead of one shirt at a time.

Once the best methods have been derived, they need to be taught to the associates. Once these methods are well practiced, time studies need to be redone and the labor standard revisited to reflect the new process.

Payback TimeIt is only after you have tried your best in the above two areas, should you trudge onto the path of incentives or paying workers directly based on their performance. Setting up an incentive scheme should be the last resort and needs to be done only after you have made sure that all the obstacles to productivity have been removed, your supervisors have been trained to keep personnel busy all the time and the best methods implemented.

Many people jump into incentive programs too early without considering the implications. The reasons why

you should consider incentives as the last option is be-cause a) you don’t want to pay workers more because they have figured out a better method that you could have taught everyone. They should only make more if they work harder than the rest, and b) getting into in-centives can drain the management and stress the em-ployees. It may also give rise to questions that have nev-er been dealt with such as a situation when an employee who may regularly perform over the incentive mark in one area but way below the acceptable level in another area of the operations needs to be paid. The employee may not want to work in areas where he can’t perform as well, but the business may require him to do so.

Several other key questions also need to be carefully thought out before setting up an incentive program. With incentives, one needs to decide where the incentive would need to kick in and how much of the incentive the opera-tor would get. If an operator worked at 130 percent the rate of an average employee, would he/she get 130 percent of the average person’s pay or only 120 percent?

Incentives are but the last mile, though fruitful. Ac-cording to Ralph Barnes, an industrial engineer, who has done massive amounts of work in this area, merely implementing incentives could increase the productiv-ity of an operation by about 25 percent.

A labor standards project for a warehouse with about 15 different operations may take up to three to four months. But if the labor saved is about 25 percent, the payback would be in less than six months for an operation with more than 200 people. Developing the labor standards for a warehousing operation can prob-ably generate most payback than almost anything else you can do in warehousing.

Back at the seminar, a question was posed from the audience about when the transition needed to occur from manual operations with labor standards to auto-mated operations in order to improve productivity fur-ther. Mr. Mulaik answered by saying that the first foray or big investment one needed to make before jumping into hardware automation such as conveyors, sorters, etc was into good software.

In Mr. Mulaik’s mind, software could have an even greater impact on operations and not cost as much as hardware does. Mr. Mulaik said firms should con-sider buying a good Labor Management System or warehouse management system first, because these applications could often times provide a significant and more cost effective lift in productivity as an in-terim step before automation. That’s a very interesting thought to take back to your operations.

Developing the labor standards for a warehousing operation can probably generate most payback than almost anything else you can do in warehousing.

The author can be reached at [email protected].

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Photos: Vikram Barwal



aTuL aGarWaL,associate General Manager (Supply-Chain),Dabur INDIa LTD.

running a complex supply-chain, not to mention managing over 300 products (and counting) could deter even the most dauntless. However, for Atul Agarwal, Associate General Manager (Supply-Chain), Dabur India, it is all in a day's work, reports Jayashree Mendes.

25

THE CHaIN THE CHaIN THE CHaIN IS THE LINK IS THE LINK IS THE LINK

With overall revenue touching `3,000 crore in 2010-11, Dabur India Ltd is aim-ing for 4̀,000 crore in 2011-12 through organic and inorganic growth — an aspiration it tries to fulfi ll every year. Through acquisitions such as Hobi Koz-metik, Namaste Laboratories, among others, Dabur expects to offer a range of products to customers in each segment. So how intricate is the supply-chain

of a company sending out 300-plus product groups and adding a few more each year through in-novations or acquisitions?

The question is put to Atul Agarwal, Associate General Manager (Supply-Chain), Dabur India Ltd, who has been in this position 10 months after his predecessor took leave. He says, “Supply-chain is about getting your fundamentals right and connecting all of them together correctly to make it robust. Hence, wherever required, we have tweaked our supply-chain for numerous products, based on strategy and markets.”

Understandably, the supply-chain at Dabur is multilayered because of the variety of products man-ufactured and sold. Different products have different supply-chain strategies and each product has its own exclusivity – manufacturing lead times, manufacturing processes, specifi c and rare raw materi-als, storing and stacking norms, not to forget the different licenses required for validations of for-mulations across most products, based on the Granthas [for herbal and Ayurvedic over-the-counter (OTC)] products and pharmacopeia (for Ayurvedic prescription medicines). To add to the enormity of work at the back end, the company has wide-ranging customers at the front end: general trade, modern trade, canteen stores, and institutional sale with each of them seeking specifi c requirements.

Mr. Agarwal attributes the end result of connecting the basics to only one thing: The products must be available on the shelves when customers demand them . He says matter-of-factly, “Our three divisions, the Consumer Care Division (CCD) have more than 100 products alone, the Con-sumer Health Division (CHD) and International Business Division (IHD) together have 500 prod-ucts. So it is the suppleness of the supply-chain that is constantly put to test.”

What’s more, the introduction of new products – depending upon the segment it is intended for – calls for fi ne-tuning of the supply-chain. Mr. Agarwal says: “What could throw us out of gear


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on choices in a region, for Dabur it means an increase in the complexity at the production front from a supply-chain point of view. It also translates into increasing the number of stock-keeping units (SKUs), thus inflating the freight bill.

Mr. Agarwal does admit that the increasing demands from custom-ers and promotions have made the supply-chain more challenging due to the addition of SKUs, products, not to mention the increasing costs of

materials, freight, rentals, managing inventory, etc.

The various acquisitions that the company has added to its kitty in the recent past have added to the learn-ing. For instance, in 2009, when the company completed the acquisition of Fem Care Pharma Ltd, a product that Dabur sells as premium skin-care, it discovered that its stockists were unwilling to pick up stocks as the value of the shipments were high. The company had to reduce the case size of FEM products keeping in mind the value per case. Moreover, Dabur had to create a parallel sup-ply-chain for the same.

Sizing Up the CitiesTo differentiate between market demands, Dabur has separate dis-tribution strategies for rural and urban markets. This enables the

26

as quickly as possible. For instance, Mr. Agarwal is currently engaged in, among myriad things, smoothening out the supply-chain at its operations in Nepal and Bangladesh.

Mr. Agarwal attributes his grounding in planning and alloca-tion to his postgraduate degree in Operations Research from Delhi University, a specific stream of math-ematics that comes in handy for sup-ply-chain professionals, a stream of study that covers the Queuing Theo-ry and the deployment of resources, whether for machine scheduling or deploying finished goods to the in-voicing location using mathematical programming techniques, among others. A one-year diploma course from IMT Ghaziabad in Operations further polished the learning.

Beating the DeadlineAn FMCG with products ranging from health care to personal care to home care and foods to Ayurvedic products (See box: Products at a glance), the com-pany also has to manage the supply of customized lots to its modern trade partners – such as Reliance Fresh, Bharti Wal-Mart, among others – to whom it supplies directly.

“For instance, Reliance Fresh may demand a particular product packed in sixes, while Bharti Wal-Mart may want it in fours. And we sell in eights.” Just-in-Time deliveries are sacrosanct for the company. Never mind that late consignments could stand the risk of penalties.

The FMCG company faces an-other challenge, namely of banding together the complimentary prod-ucts (the freebies offered with the schemes), with the mother product. The mom-and-pop stores prefer the freebies clubbed with the original product for sale. At times, when a shampoo is clubbed with a condi-tioner, a homegrown retailer may ask for a shampoo with a hair oil, and a specific one at that.

As consumer promotions are based

Market size: Market capitalization - `16,800 crore; Annual revenue – `3,000 crore

Direct distributors: 3,300

total number of distributors: 3,600

Warehouses: 5Warehouse Locations: Zirakpur (Punjab), Sahiba-bad, Bhiwandi, Kolkata, and Hyderabad

SKUs: 1,000

Large LSPs: TNT Couriers, DARCL, Western Carri-ers, Inland road Transport

Inventory turn ratio: 1.2

technology Providers: SAP, Accenture, Ariba

retail outlets (owned and franchisee) : 550,000

Shelf-fulfillment rates: 90 percent

retailers: 2.8 million

Dabur: SCM HIGHLIGHTS

at times is adjusting the supply-chain for the new products. For instance, when we acquired Balsara in 2005, we didn’t have a supply-chain strategy for home-care products, as it is only with this acquisition that we entered the home-care segment.”

“The home care segment being significantly different from a typical foods business, called for a new ap-proach towards designing a supply-chain that is both unique and cost-efficient. The rethinking resulted in devising revised stocking norms at depot level, achieving efficiencies in transportation and careful product handling throughout its journey from factory to depot,” he adds.

This was a high point for Mr. Agar-wal (then deputy general manager), who employed his skills at planning, forecasting, and inventory manage-ment, garnered from his 12-year ex-perience with Ranbaxy as regional de-mand planner, prior to joining Dabur in end-2006.

As Dabur has become more global in expanse and nature over the years, the supply-chain has become lengthi-er and more complex, and Mr. Agarw-al’s job is to ensure new supply-chains are connected and made operational

Just-in-time deliveries are sacrosanct. Never mind that late consignments stand the risk of penalties.


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company to push the various prod-ucts across geographies based on user status and lifestyle. For instance, premium products are confined to urban and semi-urban areas, while keeping it at a trickle in rural. Simultaneously, it has stepped up its rural distribution reach in 71 high potential districts in eight key states through an ag-gressive marketing strategy.

Says Mr. Agarwal: “Our distri-bution strategy in rural India in-volves two layers—a stockist (or a super-stockist) and a sub-stockist. Sub-stockists in small towns are spread out in remote locations, and our transport to these areas could be conventional, such as a two-or a three-wheeler. Orders are picked up from the sub-stockist and passed on to the stockist for supply.” Ay-urvedic products, the prescrip-tion ones, are delivered directly to the sub-stockist. The stress is on prompt customer service and its 5,000 stockists across the country facilitate the process.

In urban markets, Dabur moves goods through a stockist or a super-stockist or a distributor from where

it moves to the destination store. Or-ders placed are accepted through the IT system (installed at both ends) such as electronic order. The stocks move out of the Carrying & Forward-ing Agents (CFAs) to a particular stockist based on quantity ordered, frequency of orders and distance of the stockist from the CFA.

How the Wheels turnDabur transports almost all its prod-ucts in India by road. Using the serv-ices of a third party company, Ariba, Dabur conducts reverse auctions twice a year to select transporters. The com-pany works with about 25 transport-

ers across the country.To understand the requirements

for primary freight, the company car-ries out studies on a regular basis to ascertain the number of trucks and its rates for carrying goods from a unit to a mother warehouse or to an invoicing location, on a regular basis.

The number of transporters used is directly proportional to the amount of business garnered from that particular sector. Ariba sends out a request for quotations (RFQ) to transporters every six months. Some prerequisites in the RFQ men-tioned are: fleet range, number of trucks, the cost of the business gar-nered during the period, the transit time expected, areas covered across the country, etc. Participating trans-porters are cued in to the Dabur method of bidding in reverse auction through training by Ariba.

According to Nandan Narvekar, Director at Ariba India Pvt Ltd, “There are a few challenges here, both internal and external. Internal challenges are a lack of standardized and documented sourcing processes, and continuously reinventing to build win-win situations for company and its suppliers. Some external challeng-es we face are, coping with changing needs due to changing end-customer needs, and helping maintain a cost-effective supply-chain with inflation-ary pressures.”

However, Mr. Agarwal says: “The reverse auction has helped us

Stocks remain in transit at warehouses for a day and

are moved out the next day to an invoicing location.

MaNuFaCTurING LOCaTIONSIndia

Jammu

Baddi, Himachal Pradesh (two plants)

Sahibabad, Uttar Pradesh

Pantnagar, Uttaranchal (two plants)

Jaipur, Rajasthan

Birganj, Nepal

Narendrapur, West Bengal

Katni, Madhya Pradesh

Silvassa

International

United Kingdom

Turkey

Egypt

Nigeria

United Arab Emirates

Nepal

Bangladesh


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to identify competitive transport-ers and bring down freight outlay considerably. This has been done by maintaining the competition among service providers and transparency of the entire process. The entire process of reverse auction takes three days vis-à-vis 20 days earlier.”

In secondary freight, which is from an invoicing location to a stockist, Dabur directly negotiates with the local transporters. Lo-cal companies are briefed on the weight and per kit that needs to be transported. For all this, a network analysis is carried out quarterly to optimize the distribution network while improving transit times, thus keeping costs low and improving service levels.

To better the method and make it efficacious, Dabur evaluates its ven-dors every month. Vendors are judged on three major parameters and given a report. The parameters are: transit time adherence, timely placement of trucks, and value of goods damaged during transit. The report is then dis-cussed with the transporter and feed-back taken from them.

And transporters are happy with the arrangement. Jitender Bansal, Manager (Fleet), Delhi, DARCL, says, “The hurdles in road transpor-tation are many. But few companies look into offering feedback on the service provided and ask for feed-back in return.”

Manufacturing Locations). For instance, Lal Dant Manjan (Red Tooth Powder) is produced at two locations: Baddi in Himachal Pradesh and Pithampur in Madhya Pradesh. Mr. Agarwal says: “If planning is suboptimal, inventories overlap. We had to find an optimum method to distribute the products evenly across the country. We thought of a hub-and-spoke model in 2009 and saw remarkable results.”

The company runs three hubs for distribution based in Kolkata, Hydera-bad, and Bhiwandi in Mumbai.

Working out an effective supply-chain not only improved service lev-els, but helped minimize loss of sales. Hub-and-spoke also helped the com-pany replenish faster and realize an increase in turnover. Beginning with the East, it was then extended to the South and then to the West.

In keeping with its aspirations to offer wide-ranging world-class products, Dabur has slowly, but steadily, eyed acquisitions or tie-ups with international companies. Last year it completed the acquisition of Turkish company Hobi Kozmetik, thus adding hair care and skincare products like Hobby and New Era. Recently, the company completed the acquisition of the US-based Namaste Laboratories dealing in skincare products. Prior to that, it was Ra Pazarlama Ltd Sti,

an Istanbul-based wholesaler of cleaning products, and many others before that.

The acquisitions are well planned and reasoned out. While it expands the com-pany’s scale of operations, it also gives ac-cess to technology that runs production and supply-chain. Dabur uses the technology to understand packaging, the processes and the ERP packages and replicate that strategy in India, simultaneously connecting the India offices with the global ones.

GLObaL aCQuISITIONS

The mechanized warehouses have an installation of a conveyor belt thus

saving workers the inconvenience of mounting stairs when moving stocks.

Hub-And-SpokeWith 18 manufacturing plants estab-lished globally, and eleven in India alone, Dabur manufactures various products across India based on de-mand, nearness to market, availabil-ity of material, fiscal benefits (See box:


Behind the ScenesAn efficient supply-chain manage-ment has three main objectives to fulfill: maintaining the right stocks at the right place and time; keep-ing low inventories; and achieving all this with the lowest operational costs. Dabur ensures a First-In-First-Out (FIFO) policy for both raw ma-terials and finished goods to ensure freshness of stocks.

Running the supply-chain are IT solutions like SAP APO, SAP ERP and homegrown tools for transaction, real time information, analysis and plan-ning. The SAP APO (Advanced Planner and Optimizer) module was deployed not very long ago to optimize demand planning, production planning, and production scheduling.

SAP APO benefited the company in several ways: Sales loss has re-

duced from 6 percent to 2.5 percent; forecast accuracy has improved from 35 percent to 45 percent; DIFOT (De-livered In-Full, On-Time) bettered from 85 percent to 90 percent; pro-duction adherence from 75 percent to 90 percent; and planning cycle re-duced from four days to two days.

For stockists, Dabur has utilized Drishti, an in-house package con-nected via server to the company.

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Drishti tracks the daily sales or goods received on a daily basis ac-crued from the invoicing location and entered real-time. It also gener-ates “Suggested Orders” based on a replenishment model. Mr. Agar-wal says confidently that about 80 percent of Dabur's distributors use Drishti.

A Business Intelligence (BI) tool helps in effective decision making,

transportation vendors are judged on three major parameters and given a report. the parameters are: transit time adherence, timely placement of trucks, and value of goods damaged during transit.

HeALtHCAreHealth Supplementsn Chyawanprash (5 flavours)n Honey n Glucose (3 flavours)Oral Caren Dabur Lal Dant Manjann Meswakn Promisen BaboolDigestiven Hajmola (Tablets & Candy)

PerSoNAL CAreHair Caren Oiln Amlan CoconutShampoon Vatika (variants available)n Vatika Conditioner

bleaches & Soapsn FEM Creme Bleachn Oxy Bleachn Saka Oxygen Bleach for menn Hair Removal Creamn Liquid Soap

Skin Caren Uveda Fairness Creamn Clarifying Face Washn 2-in-1 moisturisern Gulabari (Rose Water, face freshener, Moisturing cream and lotion)

FooDSn real Juice (14 flavors)n activ — Fruit juice (Apple, Orange)— Fruit Vegetable (3 variants)n Hommade Cooking

Pastes (Ginger garlic, gar-lic, Coconut milk, Tomato puree, Tamarind paste)

n Burrst (four flavours)n Capsicon Lemoneez

HoMe CAren Dazzl floor cleanern Odomosn Odonil (freshener - aerosol and tablets)n Odopicn Sani fresh

AyUrveDIC otCn Gastro-intestinal—Pudin

haran Memory Enhancer—

Shankha Pushpin Cough and cold—Honitus

Cough Syrupn Medicated oils—Badam Oiln Rejuvenation—Shilajit Goldn Baby care—Lal tail, Janma

Ghunti, Gripe watern Women's health—Active

Blood Purifiern Rubs and balms—Balm

Strong

etHICAL AyUrveDIC ProDUCtSn Stresscomn Broncoridn Madhuvaanin Trifgoln Lipistatn Rheumatil (Oil, Gel and Tablets)n Mensta

PrODuCTS aT a GLaNCE


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production plan adherence, reduc-tion of forecast error, and improve-ment in fill rates." The intangible benefits were institutionalizing enhanced processes such as a rigor-ous Standard & Operating Procedure (S&OP) framework, implementation of enabling technology solutions, and organizational alignment.

Warehouse ManagementWith five warehouses, of which only one is owned by the company, the rest are run by third-parties. Used expedi-tiously, stocks remain in transit for a day and are moved out the next day to an invoicing location.

Goods at the warehouses are shipped out batch-wise. This helps us with easy identification of its production, shipping, location, and sale – all managed with SAP. Com-ing from a pharmaceutical back-ground, Mr. Agarwal introduced the system of maintaining the stocks at the warehouses in batch-es. He recalls: “Electronic bin cards built into the inventory system offer up-to-date information about the stocks at the warehouse, thus in-creasing efficiencies in warehouse operations. Bin cards help in locat-ing a particular batch of a stock in the warehouse.”

The warehouse has also been

divided into parts with specific al-location for various products. For instance, home care products and food products are kept far apart. The supply-chain department keeps a sharp eye on ascending warehouse costs as near-prohibitory real estate/rental prices would defeat the pur-pose of a lean supply-chain. Racks at the warehouses help in utilizing the warehouse space optimally and ensure stacking norms to minimize damages during storage.

According to Mr. Agarwal, “For some time, we have been mulling implementing RFID to improve warehouse efficiencies, though the idea is still costly in India at this point in time.”

For its CFAs, the supply-chain de-partment undertakes a 360 degree performance evaluation through in-ternal and external feedback mecha-nism, also enabled by an e-portal on a regular basis.

Inventory ManagementInventory management is conducted at the production level, the CFA level and the warehouse level. The sup-ply-chain for production planning is undertaken every week for a par-ticular SKU. The deployment of SAP APO for the planning process helps its program.

The company ensures optimum inventory to ensure targeted service levels, taking care of variation in de-mand, keeping low working capital, and all the time maintaining fresh-ness of stocks. For example, stocks of seasonal products or herbs are built before the start of the season based on past sales trends and cur-rent sale plans. This is to make sure that inventory build-up should be sufficient, while maintaining serv-ice levels during the peak season.

Inventory turnover is critical especially when the shelf life dif-fers for three different products – Food, FMCG and Ayurvedic. Food products have the lowest shelf life

Inventory management is conducted at the production level, the CFA level and the warehouse level.

where the company gets its Manage-ment Information Systems (MIS) on a daily basis on various aspects like sales, stocks received, floor stock, goods in transit, etc.

In the year 2003, Dabur roped in Accenture to help identify oppor-tunities keeping in mind the short-term and long-term goals of the or-ganization. The relationship is an ongoing one to date. Realizing that all the different arms would need different strategies, not to mention its just-planned retail, Accenture helped Dabur to achieve operational excellence, tangible and intangible.

According to a spokesperson at Accenture, "Dabur saw some tangi-ble benefits such as improvement of depot availability, reduction in ‘lost sales at stockist’, improvement in

Food products have the lowest shelf life and thus a turnover of 14 days, FMCG products 21 days, and Ayurvedic products 35 days.


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and thus a turnover of 14 days, FMCG products 21 days, and Ayurvedic 35 days.

The company’s manufacturing strategy is in keeping with its Vision III, a timely program (2010-2014) in-volving cognitive content. For one, it is dedicated to the health and well-being of every household, a line of ar-gument inherent to Dabur's business philosophy and the reason it carries out extensive research for totting up so many herbal products.

Within the company, Vision calls for seeing numbers (in terms of sales) and methods to acquire the same. In terms of manufacturing, in Vision III, Dabur has decided to increase manu-facturing by 25 percent and improve the supply-chain efficiency to keep pace with the increased throughput.

Accordingly, the manufacturing decisions (and the supply-chain sup-port) are taken keeping in view the type of the product. For example, while Chyawanprash is manufac-tured at its own units, shampoo is produced in-house as well as out-sourced to a third-party.

Just as it conducts reverse auctions for transporters, the FMCG has a process to identify capable third-party manufacturers. Dabur’s Research & Foundation based at Sahibabad along with its Central Quality team explore the capabilities of the vendor.

Consumers, especially semi-urban and rural, are keen to absorb high value products available in small packs. Ac-cording to Mr. Agarwal, “Managing smaller packs which take away a lot of manufacturing capacity and increases distribution cost to move the stocks by that extra mile to be delivered to the bottom of the pyramid, was a challenge to the supply-chain team at Dabur.”

Supply-Chain risksMr. Agarwal keeps a hawk's eye on supply-chain risks. Sometime ago, a manufacturing team at a unit in Nepal was showing signs of dissent. Movement of goods had stopped

Goods at the warehouses are

shipped out batch-wise. this helps

us with easy identification of their production,

shipping, location, and sale – all

managed with SAP.

for more than two months. During such a crisis period, Mr. Agarwal had to identify an alternative mode of transportation and worked with Concor to mitigate that risk.

An abrupt transporters strike also cannot be ruled out in the subconti-nent. There are also potential risks as-sociated with non-availability of criti-cal raw materials either due to crop failure or some local disturbances at supplier facilities.

the Way Forward As Dabur grows both organically and inorganically in line with its Vi-sion III, it becomes imperative for supply chain to evaluate its perform-ance. Mr. Agarwal understands this aspect and is working on the follow-ing dimensions to ensure that the supply chain stays efficient and runs like a well-oiled machine:Process: Benchmarking against com-petitors is one way to assess where Dabur stands today. The company leverages in-house capabilities and experience along with inputs from external consultants to identify areas of performance improvement. Technology: As complexities grow, it is near impossible for any organi-zation to manage it without an ad-equate IT tool in place. Dabur is working closely with Accenture to de-ploy supply planning for all its busi-nesses. The focus is to reap benefits by having optimized and constrained manufacturing plans that ultimately reduce costs and ensure better capac-ity utilization at factories.Organization: As businesses adopt new models and ways of working, it is essential that supply-chain teams have the mindset to adapt to the new environment.

For Mr. Agarwal, the movement forward comprises adjustments in technology and acquisitions, while building up the supply-chain as the company continues to gain more products, through local and foreign buyouts.

Don’t miss the chance to win the latest version of the drool-worthy iPad. All you have to do is subscribe to Log.India for a minimum period of one year and you will stand a chance to win an iPad 2 through a lucky draw. Even better, if you subscribe for two years, and you are the lucky winner of the draw, we will pack in our latest and much-acclaimed 2011 edition of the

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For quite a while, DHL has been very active on the Green front – recently, DHL global forwarding joined the US green freight initiative, and DHL is feted often at several green supply-chain conferences globally. What is the idea behind the green drive? What explains its assert-iveness? It goes back to our global CEO, Frank Appel. He had stressed on the climate change issue very early, much before most people in the industry. The foremost in-tent is to minimize carbon footprint in supply-chains which will have a huge positive impact on the global climate situation. Furthermore, it increases our trust among our customers in the sense that, when we give them their emission levels, they can trust it. By doing

this with maintaining very high standards, we are set-ting industry benchmarks that other competitors would need to follow.

As more and more companies are turning towards corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, we want to be at the forefront.

Can you tell us about the experience and legacy that DHL GOGREEN carbon neutral service brings to the recent DNVPS deal? DNV Petroleum Services (DNVPS) is one of our re-cent customers for DHL Carbon neutral service. Our Carbon Neutral service, on its own, has been around since 2007.

Essentially, the Carbon Neutral service doesn’t re-quire any special handling. The shipment follows a full normal shipment process. It is a standard ship-ment, but what is different, is that we calculate the customers’ carbon footprint by using our service.

It also helps neutralize the customers’ carbon foot-print. There is no fundamental difference in how we handle a normal shipment and a GoGreen shipment. It is just that we calculate it for the customer under the GoGreen initiative and neutralize it for them.

Can I have an example of how you calculate the footprint?We capture the data at the ground, in over 2,000 logistics facilities, across 56 countries around the world. Every

month, we collect this information, and store it in a cen-tralized database. At the same time we also collect our aviation data, which is the emission from the aircrafts. These two could be called as carbon inventory. We then have a tool that flips this carbon inventory level onto a shipment level.

When a particular package goes from Singapore to the US, it follows a particular route. We track the emis-sion at every stage of the shipment and adding all this together, we can determine the carbon footprint of a particular package.

Where and how do GOGREEN’s services come into play while covering the outbound transport of DNVPS’ sampling equipment and the inbound transportation of bunker oil samples?The arrangements have been set up and they are ready, apart from the service. Basically they rely on us to do the delivery and we in turn tell them the carbon footprint and the amount of emissions and the amount they can neutralize by using our service.

Which are the other sectors you offer these services to? Who are your other customers in the past four years?We don’t talk openly about our customers, although we have been getting a lot of interest from financial organi-zations such as Barclay Capital.

It’s quite interesting because the promise to measure carbon footprints is very good for branding. In the bank-ing sector, everything is about relationships and brand-ing. It is catching up because they can show others that they are good corporate citizens. Hence by being carbon neutral, we help them attract customers.

In the banking sector, could you name the areas where carbon footprint can be reduced? The banking sector enjoys the service similar to DNVPS since it’s basically carbon neutralization. Other than offering them a neutral solution, we inter-nally try to achieve our targets with respect to carbon footprint by reducing emissions. We are also in the process of upgrading our f leet by adding new aircraft

For some time, DHL Express has been actively intimating its customers to take advantage of its GoGreen Program. While the company claims to have made inroads globally, Asia Pacific companies seem reserved and reluctant. Christopher Ong, Vice President - Business Development, First Choice and GoGreen for DHL Asia Pacific, Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), explains to Log.India the benefits of the program.

Gunning For Green

Christopher OngV P - Business Development, First Choice and GoGreen for DHL Asia Pacific, EMEA.

< intErViEW


37INDIA| April 2011 | www.logisticsweek.com 37

and this means reduction in the level of carbon foot-print because newer vehicles offer better fuel eff icien-cy. We are also looking at alternative fuel vehicles. We are moving from diesel to CNG and trying out hybrid vehicles and electric vehicles. We aren’t just reducing our customers’ footprint but also helping them make the whole process eff icient. This works well because the more eff icient we are, the less we have to pay for the neutralization. As DP (Deutsche Post) DHL, we have committed to a 10 percent improvement in car-bon emissions by 2012, and 30 to 40 percent by 2020. This means for every kilo of shipment we carry, we want to reduce the amount of carbon emissions that we produce.

What are the regions where you offer these services?The services are provided worldwide. Currently we offer it in 36 countries and progressively add countries. The 36 countries are the biggest countries in the world and represent a lion’s share of shipments and volume. We are also in the process of offering this to developing mar-kets. For example in Asia Pacific, we offer this service in 17 countries and are looking at moving into emerging markets as well.

Does this include India?When we signed up with Barclays, it was an Asia Pa-cif ic deal. Any shipment in and out of India enjoys this service. About a year ago we organized a media round-table in India explicating the GoGreen topic, where DHL Express’s John Pearson talked about measuring carbon footprint in India.

Right now we are refreshing our market knowl-edge of the service. India has been one of our best performing countries in terms of year-on-year im-provement in turnover. Having said that, on a global scale India is not one of the most eff icient countries when it comes to carbon emissions.

In smaller countries like Hong Kong and Singapore, the traffic is extremely dense. The carbon footprint can be reduced as it is possible to achieve very low emissions per kilo. But in countries with large geographies like In-dia and China, it becomes more challenging because of the larger distances to travel.

What are the challenges you see, particularly in India and Asia Pacific? What is the mindset of the companies?Generally speaking, most of the customers we are en-gaged with are multinational companies that are based

out of Asia. At a global level, these companies strive to be strong in their CSR and sustainability and the in-tent trickles down to countries in Asia where they are present. What we have yet to see is more indigenous Asian companies asking for carbon neutralization serv-ice. The requests have mainly come from developed mar-kets like Taiwan, Korea, etc. but not so much from South East Asia, China or India.

But soon, with more legislations coming in place, companies cannot ignore it any more. Companies in Australia are seeking out more information because they are talking gaining carbon taxes. After the recent Can-cun talks, more governments are moving towards bring-ing in legislations that stresses on emissions.

In terms of return on investment, have you been able to recover costs on this front?Moving down the sustainability path has been financial-ly beneficial for us. This is because, in the last two years, during the crisis, we went on a cost efficiency drive. Car-bon efficiency equated to cost efficiency too. If we spend less money on petrol, fuel or electricity for every kilo that we move, we are becoming carbon efficient and also cost efficient.

At our end, it has required plenty of engagements to see a behavioral change. For example, we had to under-stand ways of using mechanical handling systems while utilizing it fully and ensuring it is turned off when not in use. Drivers are trained to be more fuel efficient. We look at optimization. As part of our efficiency drive, we also optimize our routes. Our operational changes increase our efficiency.

Of course, we are investing. We converted some of our diesel engines to CNG.

How does that translate into benefits for clients?Obviously, we are more cost-effective and efficient for the client if we have lesser carbon footprint. This would effectively reduce the amount the customer would pay to neutralize their carbon emissions over time. This is our goal.

Are you actively marketing this service to Indian companies?We have a process in India. But few companies have ex-pressed interest. This trend is common to not only India but other indigenous Asian companies. We are review-ing the aspect of GoGreen in India and hopefully you will see a lot more on the front very soon.

< featurefeature< feature

As of February 2011, statistics show India as the fastest growing wireless market with

752 million subscribers. This is a steep rise from 2001 when the subscriber base was a mere fi ve million. By 2013, it is expected to hit 1.2 billion. Adding more value to India’s telecom story is the implementation of 3G and number portability.

It is therefore only mandatory that this dynamic scenario receive grave attention, since such an ever-chang-

Making Wavesthe advancements made by India in the telecom industry have placed it on a high growth trajectory. the breakneck speed of operations and processes have put people employed in this sector on their toes, in terms of bringing in change or adapting to changes being thrust upon them. Frewin Francis and Remya Philip report.

ing industry is bound to meet nu-merous challenges. Analyzing these challenges and understanding how to cope with them are essential for smooth and sustainable growth for this sector. This is precisely what the telecom event organized by LOG.India on March 10, 2011, focused on. The event ‘Telecom Logistics - Managing Change’ held at the Hyatt Regency, Mumbai, saw a gathering of some prominent heads from the Indian tel-ecom sector.

In a fi rst-of-its-kind event cover-ing various topics, eminent persons presented, discussed and debated current issues facing India’s telecom supply-chain.

How fast Can they Go?The supply-chain of telecom equip-ment encompasses great diversity. Anil Khanna, Head (Hub Opera-tions), Drive India Enterprise Solu-tions Ltd (DIESL), asserting this point said, “Catering to about four to

Rekha Jain, Associate Coordinator at the Centre for Telecom Policy Studies, IIM (Ahmedabad), and Jacob Puthenparambil, Publisher, LOG.India, start off the event with the lighting of the lamp.



fi ve different elements in one supply-chain makes it highly fragmented and complex. The main reason for this is the high number of Stock Keeping Units (SKUs).”

However, the multilayered nature of the telecom supply-chain consist-ing of manufacturers, OEMs, etc. is not the only reason for its increasing complexity (See Fig 1). Amongst oth-ers lie the constant advancements in technological trends like migration from 3G to 4G and the regulatory is-sues facing the industry.

SKUs can be divided into three main categories—packaged re-tail products, network installation products and value products. The packaged retail products include wireless or wired-line phones, mo-bile handsets, modems, etc. Net-

How telecom equipment Moves

Confirm the Inventory to

Client

Fixed Qty of CAFs/ CTN

Move Cartons to Storage

location

Upload Inventory in

WMS

Packing of CAFs in standard

CTNs

Creating a soft copy data base /

Unique IMEI no.must

Inventorisation of CAFs

Move CAFs to Storage Facility

Verification of CAFs

CAFs picked fm Distributors

All mandatory doc.s like proof of res./age, etc

along with CAFs

Frequency of pick up -weekly

As indicated/ mapped in the

WMS

Acknowledgement to Client

CAF as well as CTN bar code to

be added

Sequencing in line with the soft

copy with CAF bar code inventory

Source: DIESL

Source: DIESL

fig. 1

Managing Customer acquisition formsfig. 2


< feature

work installation products comprise communication antennae/dishes, network tower cables/ducts, etc., while the value products are mainly the SIM cards, starting kits, memory cards, etc. The supply-chain strategy followed for every kind of equip-ment is tailor-made and has to meet its own explicit parameters.

Apart from the movement of products through the supply chain, value-added services provided to the customers also come under the pur-view of the LSPs. These services are the creation of starter packs, which includes all activities such as pack-ing, kitting, bundling, etc.

Another important function that forms a part of the logistics sector is the maintenance of consumer ac-quisition forms (CAF). This is an ex-tensive process that involves picking up forms from distributors, verifying the details, moving the CAFs to the storage facilities, uploading the in-ventory, etc. (See Fig. 2).

Although much effort is being put in to enhance the customer’s experi-ence, Rekha Jain, Associate Coordi-nator at the Centre for Telecom Policy Studies, IIM (Ahmedabad), said, “Lo-gistics costs are about 8-10 percent of the cost of equipment. This might seem small, but what we need to fo-cus on is value provisions.”

the Vendor-Client WarConsidering that the telecom sup-ply-chain is made up of several tiers, each party is faced with a unique set of challenges. Vendors often find that clients’ lack of foresight in de-mand forecasting makes it impos-sible to execute demand at short no-tice. Another issue that often crops up is cost. Vendors have long-term contracts and make allowances for additional costs of freight for un-planned items; sub-vendors, on the other hand, make the vendors pay for premium freight when they expe-dite orders.

Catering to about four to five different elements in one supply-chain makes it highly fragmented and complex. The main reason for this is the high number of SKUs."

— anil Khanna,Head (Hub Operations), DIESL

From L-R: Ajay Chopra, CEO, DIESL; Shashikant Garg, Sr. VP (Commercial), Idea Cellular; Lalit Das, GM (Lead Logistics Solutions) India, Kuehne+Nagel and Soumyadipta Datta, Manager, Mobility (HQ-Contract and Commercial), Tata Teleservices, explain the pain points in terms of people and locations that the telecom industry faces.

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WHAT‘S IN A NAME What is the right term? Is it logistics? Or is it supply chain?

INDIA

MEETING OF TITANS 16CSCMP’s 2010 conference at San Diego was bigger and richer than ever

MARITIME‘S ALBATROSS 38Policy and infra issues that are hurting India’s maritime growth

MORE FOR LESS 34Four levers that can help improve transport efficiency

Prem K Verma, CEO, TML Distribution Company Limited, a Tata Motors subsidiary, discusses supply-chain in depth and offers innovative strategies >>

Page 22

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< feature

Adding to woes is the stiff com-petition between the vendors as servicing a strategic market requires building up inventory, irrespective of the cost. But this entails a subse-quent rise in logistics costs some-times caused by a lack of commu-nication between the government bodies required for certifi cation or clearances. Yielding to this inevita-bility, vendors ship products only after orders are placed.

The clients’ story is as poignant. They face shortcomings due to a dearth in supplier-vendor collabora-tions, evident in other industries like retail. Manufacturers are also known to provide broad targets of product lines without offering granulated data on specifi c components.

Getting the Center rightA part of logistics that has been fraught with growing pains is the warehousing segment. Several ele-ments to this large aspect of logistics remain largely untouched.

A crucial element of telecom lo-gistics is the requirement of state-of-the-art placement and design of warehouses. Lalit Das, General

Manager (Lead Logistics Solutions), Kuehne+Nagel India, said, “Engi-neering studies need to go into build-ing of hubs to ensure that a warehouse is strategically placed and designed. As a warehouse is a temporary storage site, building smaller warehouses will put pressure on faster movement of inventory, and help reduce costs.”

Warehouses have come a long way to become what they are today. Many names and set-up changes later, they have grown from rooms with just four walls and a roof to technology-inclined warehouses spread over wide spaces and dedicated infra-structure. Ajay Chopra, CEO, DIESL, defi ned the role of warehouses by saying, “A warehouse is to the sup-ply-chain what the heart is to the human body. How well a warehouse functions signifi es the effectiveness of the supply-chain.”

A panel discussion examined other issues facing the warehous-ing sector. Sashikant Garg, Head (Logistics), Nokia Siemens Network (NSN), said, “Of the 8 to 10 percent that constitute the logistics costs, warehousing alone takes up 25 to 30 percent. This shows how signifi -cantly the warehousing costs need to be optimized.”

A crucial pain point facing telecom warehousing is the labor involved. The complex nature of the telecom equipment makes it imperative to have experienced people handling the warehouses and its logistics. Mr. Garg explained, “If we are talking about kit-ting, the people performing this activ-ity should have a fair knowledge of the material they are dealing with.”

Accentuating the need for effi-cient skillsets, Soumyadipta Datta, Manager, Mobility HQ – Contract and Commercial, Tata Teleservices Ltd. said, “We are extremely peo-ple dependent. So it’s not unusual that the departure of the one person handling the materials and proc-esses at a warehouse could leave the others handicapped.”

Logistics costs are about 8-10 percent of the cost of equipment. This might seem small, but what we need to focus on is value provisions."

— rekha Jain,Associate Coordinator at the

Centre for Telecom Policy Studies, IIM (Ahmedabad)

• External obsolescence• Functional obsolescence.

Functional obsolescence results from a flaw in the structures, materials, or design that diminishes the function, utility, and value of an asset.

• Anticipate Obsolescence when investing in technology

fig. 3: Sliding Into Obsolescence

Source: Indus Towers


There is also a dire lack of institu-tions producing logistics profession-als in India. Logistics, especially of telecom equipment, is an area that requires certain specialized skills and technical training.

The business model is an area that needs to be worked on as well. It is important for the LSPs and others involved in the warehouse sphere to decide on a common business model that should be followed, and one that will help reduce costs drastically.

Mr. Das of Kuehne+Nagel India opined that warehousing needs to be studied from a strategic angle, to understand how operations can be smoothened out. A slack inventory management also leads to faster obsolescence.

Underlining on the collaboration between 3PLs, suppliers and service providers, Mr. Datta said, “This howev-er requires extensive planning, and one that is highly inadequate. The plan-ning should involve ways to gauge the inventory that is optimal and ways to reduce inventory holding time.” Safety at warehouses too needs to be ensured not just with respect to the material and equipment but the labor as well.

The panel discussion also touched upon the effect of imple-mentation of goods and services tax (GST). Participants agreed that although GST would affect an el-emental part of logistics costs, it would bring in some amount of con-solidation. Mr. Datta added, “Lo-gistics costs with regard to network equipment will see a consolidation, but I’m skeptical about any consoli-dation with regard to SIM cards and support equipment.”

The issue of road permits and bottlenecks faced in transporting of equipment to or from the warehous-es is another major concern. This is a result of document related problems arising from a lack of concreteness from the regulatory bodies. Assuring that there’s still hope, Mr. Chopra said, “Although the regulatory bodies do need to work towards this area, there are several work groups striv-ing to achieve seamless movement for the carriers, trucks, etc.”

the Obsolescence IssuePeriodic migration to newer tech-nologies makes earlier technologies obsolete. SK Balasubramaniam,

Supply-chain managers must understand the current effects and future requirements which would enable the choice of right technology and solutions leading to better results."

— SK Balasubramaniam,Chief (SCM), Indus Towers

From L-R: Rishiraj Bhagwat, Head, Commercial (Maharashtra and Goa), Unitech Wireless; Rekha Jain, Associate Coordinator at the Centre for Telecom Policy Studies, IIM (Ahmedabad); Aanand Pandey, Editor, Log.India; and SK Balasubramaniam, Chief (SCM), Indus Towers, discuss the logistics of customer acquisition concerning the revenue chain.


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Chief, Supply Chain Management, Indus Towers, def ined technol-ogy obsolescence as a measure of an asset’s loss in value resulting from a reduction in the utility of the asset relative to market ex-pectations. It is inescapable and working on ways to deal with it should be the priority of manufac-turers (See Fig. 3).

From a device industry perspec-tive, Mr. Garg of NSN said, “Com-ponents become obsolete in eight months’ time. It then either goes into price drops or gets stuck in the chan-nel and has to be given credit notes. These are risks we face with obsoles-cence. As compared to FMCG who can retain over four to five months, in the telecom industry stocks have to be channelized in eight to ten days.”

Obsolescence is mainly of two types – External and Functional.

External obsolescence occurs as a result of market conditions, cus-tomer demands and regulations, while functional obsolescence is due to structural, material or design issues. In India, it is mostly external obsolescence that affects telecom technology as most of them are tried and tested abroad.

Obsolescence is most impactful in the case of network infrastructure and supply-chain plays a critical role in managing it. Mr. Balasubrama-niam stated, “Supply-chain manag-ers must understand the current ef-fects and future requirements which would enable the choice of right technology and solutions leading to better results.”

When technology peaks, the ob-solete hardware could be efficiently collected and refurbished and later on deployed to the developing countries. Mr. Balasubramanium added, “The components of hand-sets can be consolidated to produce cheaper pieces at cheaper rates. These can then be sent to develop-ing countries where telecommuni-cations is just burgeoning.”

Mr. Garg stated that changing technology makes product ramp-up capability of the supplier difficult. It also results in tougher sourcing of certain components thus affect-ing the supply-chain. “For instance, it poses challenges in forecasting in terms of meeting customer require-ments and provisioning space in the warehouse.”

Redesigning and reengineering the supply-chain is the way forward to keep obsolescence at a minimum. Participants agreed that they need to move from a supply-push model to a demand-pull one and while doing so streamline the purchasing process-es. It is important that supply-chain managers work on ways to reduce the time-to-market and automate it. One of the challenges automation poses is to figure out a way by which the end-customer can be connected

with each of the parties providing the various services. For this, a sys-tem to break item codes of a device into multiple item codes is neces-sary, so that they can be sent back to the original suppliers.

Another way to counter obsoles-cence would be by sharing infrastruc-ture. Telecom companies could share antennas, frequencies or even base stations. Outsourcing of backend activities could help reduce costs and keep obsolescence minimum.

Catering to DemandThe revenue/customer acquisition side of telecom logistics is a subject rarely spoken about. It is that part of the supply-chain that caters to the end-consumer and is responsible for the addition of 20 million new subscribers every month. SIM cards, new subscribers and their needs, all come under this area.

This aspect, simply referred to as the demand side of the supply-chain, is quickly emerging. However, the lack of visibility in the system makes this appear a complex process. Supply-chain managers have little information at their disposal about the retailers and their activities. Cus-tomer acquisition at the rural level is even less and there is little scope of identifying the retailers. Retailers too suffer due to the lack of visibility or access to the corporate offices.

Rishiraj Bhagwat, Head (Com-mercial), Maharashtra and Goa, Unitech Wireless Pvt. Ltd. stressed that this side of the supply-chain is one that deserves advanced and rigorous planning. He elaborated, “SIM cards take at least a month-and-a-half to reach India as they are manufactured abroad, after which it needs to move up the supply-chain one stage after the other. The time lapse needs to be taken into consideration.”

Companies involved with the supply-chain management of SIM cards therefore need to be well aware

A warehouse is to the supply-chain what the heart is to the human body. How well a warehouse functions signifies the effectiveness of the supply-chain."

— ajay Chopra,CEO, DIESL


of the locations they are catering to in order to ensure timely deliveries. With rural areas showing demand, care must be taken to ensure that these areas are not neglected. What is lacking is a system that depicts if the consumer demands are being met and how. Mr. Balasubramanium said, “How do we analyze consump-tion rates? If this is done with the help of forecasts, are supply-chain managers in a position to explore if the sales are really happening ac-cording to the forecasts?” Presently there are no methods to move non-moving SIMs to places where they are in demand.

The reverse chain of getting mon-ey routed back as and when such a situation arises is one of the other constraints that exist with the reverse supply-chain. This is more of an is-sue in India since India is not an e-money country.

There is a need to analyze the costs of serving the customers. In the present situation, often the cost of delivering the SIM cards is more than the cost of materials go-ing into the kit. This is a pointer to optimize costs with dynamic deci-sion planning models. Balasubra-

manium adds, “We should be able to gauge the number of SIM cards created, sold and other such aspects over a fixed time period, maybe on a monthly basis.” Measuring these as-pects will serve as an effective solu-tion to help optimize costs, quantity and responsiveness.

As for mobile number portability implemented recently, participants agreed that it would make little dif-ference to individual operators. The three to four percent gain for the op-erators is only an initial boost, which will gradually decrease or equalize with time.

a few SolutionsA consensus that most participants reached during the seminar was that much of the way the supply-chain functions today needs to be recon-figured to work in the current com-petitive and demanding environ-ment. Companies need to bring in innovations in the supply-chain on a priority basis, not just in the area of technology, but also in terms of the business models.

Mr. Khanna feels that the reach of the supply-chain too needs to be improved by increasing deeper pen-

etration in rural areas. The Tier II and Tier III cities across the country need to be catered to with high qual-ity services at low costs. In order to make the supply-chain more agile, telecom companies need to collabo-

rate with one another in carrying out the logistics functions. Outsourc-ing many of the functions can bring about a stark difference in the costs and lead to an effective flow of the supply-chain.

The reverse supply-chain of tele-com is equally complex and massive. Supply-chain managers need to have a fool-proof plan in place to manage it successfully. All the relevant infor-mation needs to be synchronized so that customer responses can be made in the least possible time. There is also a need to develop appropriate performance measures so that im-provements can be made depend-ing on the existing state of things. A skill-set that takes into account both the demand and supply-chain is the need of the hour.

While the event was an enlighten-ing one, it has hopefully succeeded in leaving the telecom logistics industry charged up with inspiration to take on the challenges posed by industry with vigor and sincerity. We will have to wait and watch how much actually gets done.

There's a need to analyze the costs of serving the customers. Often, the cost of delivering is more than the materials in a kit.

The audience listen as various speakers elaborate on the telecom logistics scenario.

SelectingYourWarehouse’s

Location

With costs exploding in the market, the location of a warehouse is crucial for an organization’s profitability. With the sophisticated tools available today, a distribution network can be optimized, says Nithin Rajagopal

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cast numbers (high vs. medium vs. low growth), freight costs and other macro economic factors.

With the sophisticated tools available at our disposal today, a given distribution network can be optimized to determine the lowest cost (or most profitable) design, even while considering the impact of taxes and duties in addition to all the other supply chain costs, (manu-facturing, handling, inbound and outbound freight and warehouse handling costs). Moreover, this can be done over multiple time periods and the network net present value (NPV) for one design can be com-pared with the other.

the Current NetworkBefore one chooses a distribution network solution one should assess the current network or ‘Baseline’, as it is often termed. This assessment should be a part of the costs that are significant to a supply chain distri-bution network, with the Baseline network costs presented with the various cost break-ups. Typically, the costs that are taken into account are the manufacturing, warehouse facility costs (warehouse storage,

In a well-designed supply-chain network location is of supreme importance. Selection of location

impacts not only supply chain efficiency, but also have a significant impact on future cash flows.

So how organizations can make warehouse selection decisions, giv-en a set of locations to choose from? Even though this is fast becoming a typical distribution network de-sign problem which consultants are hired to solve using mathematical models, the selection of the right locations to stock and/or to serve demand from is hugely atypical. The management taking such decisions needs to consider their company’s present and future business strategy and the practicability of proposed implementations.

Optimization enablersIn a typical supply-chain network de-sign exercise focused on distribution, organizations try to determine how many and which of these ‘potential’ warehouse sites they should use in order to meet the demand at specified service levels. Organizations are also concerned about the stability of such networks with varying demand fore-

handling, processing) inbound, outbound and transportation costs. Costs such as import/export duties and taxes can be included as well, if required, (for instance, interna-tional sourcing may make the net-work incur significant import duties which one might want to include in the network model).

Though not the first step in a network optimization exercise, the assessment of the ‘as-is’ network serves as the pivot against which all the optimized scenarios revolve and are compared against. The Baseline is a mathematical model of the ‘as-is’ distribution network and in addition to all the above, is the key in validat-ing the data as well as the costs the business has incurred. This model is built as a representation of the or-ganization’s supply chain network over the last N years/months/weeks as desired.

Defining Strategic Objectives Get the data required by the tool, give it a few locations you want to choose from, model these in, click the lowest cost or highest profit op-timization button and there you go!

Supply Chain Network Optimization: Opportunity AssessmentSegment Category # of Periods Value (S) Annual-

ized (S)Sub-total (S)

% of costs

% ‘In Play’ Amount ‘In play’ (S)

Raw Material Procurement

Main Recipe 12 45.0 45.0 80.0 46% 8% 6.4

Packaging 12 15.0 15.0

Others 12 20.0 20.0

Manufacturing Fixed 10 10.5 12.6 53.1 30% 90% 47.8

Variable 12 40.5 40.5

Transportation Inbound 12 2.0 2.0 26.0 15% 100% 26.0

Interplant 12 5.5 5.5

Outbound 12 18.5 18.5

Distribution Regional Warehouses 12 9.5 9.5 12.0 7% 100% 12.0

Central Warehouses 12 2.5 2.5

Inventory Carrying RM 10 0.5 0.6 3.9 2% 2% 0.1

Packaging 12 0.8 0.8

FG 12 2.5 2.5Sour

ce: C

hain

alyt

ics P

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rors. However, data gaps can be effi-ciently plugged by experienced pro-fessionals by interviewing people in charge of the overall supply chain network, distribution centers, and transportation and ERP systems.

Hence, analyzing and validating data is the next step and should not be confused with accuracy and com-pleteness. Of all the data that is gath-ered, only a small portion might be statistically significant for remode-ling the network. Pareto charts often come to the rescue here, indicating how major expenditures are incurred in a corporate.

Instead of using all the SKUs that the company offers, focus should be on SKUs that matter and/or are logis-tically significant.

As mentioned earlier, the ‘Base-line’ serves as the datum for validating various costs. Important questions such as the amount of money spent in manufacturing, the quantity of prod-uct moved from foreign sources, rent-al costs at warehouses, and the costs of outbound transportation need to be asked and answered to the satisfac-tion of all the stakeholders involved in the redesign effort. These numbers should match up (it may be a ballpark

But despite the above complex so-lutions, the results for accurate pre-dictions of network optimization may not be so simple. The reason is that the process of network optimization starts not just with tool selection or data gathering, but with a firm understand-ing of the strategic objectives of the ex-ercise with respect to the business.

In order to get an understand-ing of how the exercise aims to im-prove the profit model, top executive level involvement is essential. For instance, people at the helm of af-fairs in an organization might see demand rocketing in the next few years and might be concerned if the current design and facilities (terms used interchangeably with the word ‘location’ in this article) are enough to meet the demand.

Data, Data, DataAfter defining the objectives of the exercise, which is an answer to the question ‘Why do we need to rede-sign the network?’ we need to get hold of supply chain network data. This is where many arrive at the real-ization that not only is valuable data missing in their systems, but there is also a generous sprinkling of er-

figure) to the actual costs incurred by the supply chain.

Be realisticThe opportunity assessment is pri-marily an analysis of the supply chain costs under various segments. Manu-facturing, transportation, raw mate-rial procurement, distribution and inventory carrying costs are exam-ples of such segments that are typi-cally included in every analysis. How-ever, these ‘costs in play’ need not be the costs available for optimization.

Creating a bulky, intricate model with detailed supply chain costs worked in may appear very exhaustive. Such a model without considerations to size may, to begin with, take a long time to create and more importantly, take an even longer time to solve.

Optimizing the NetworkDepending on the nature of costs modeled and the supply chain net-work itself, a vast number of possibili-ties exist to optimize the model with various constraints. Usually, optimiz-ing the network with the existing fa-cilities itself yields a cost lower than the Baseline, and quite eponymously, this is called the ‘Baseline-optimized’ or ‘best use of current’ model.

Every organization’s network is unique and has to be dealt with uniquely in the model. Therefore, selecting warehouse locations from a given set is also subjective to the organization’s chain. However, a few examples for correct selection can be provided.n If you are sourcing internation-

ally and some of your major markets are outside India, you might want to look at setting up a warehouse there, since that could drastically reduce or eliminate your freight spends. An-other option would be to ship directly to domestic customers from the in-ternational warehouse. nUsually for products that are

tiny in volume, weight and value, in-creasing the number of warehouse

SC response line Total cost

Inventory cost

Facility cost

Transportation cost

Number of Facilities

Cost

Source: Supply Chain Management: A Logistics Perspective by South Western Educational Publishing (Feb 2008)

Managing More With Less


locations might provide transporta-tion savings, but again, increasing the number of locations beyond a specific number might increase the inventory costs enough to offset the trans-savings.nChoosing certain locations

might help you improve your serv-ice levels, but could increase service costs.nYour model might favor one

warehouse location over others purely for reasons of low space rental costs. However, should one have a warehouse with the capacity of a mil-lion square feet? nOften, the result of the optimi-

zation exercise might be very differ-ent from the current network, with only a few or possibly, none of the current warehouses being a part of the solution in the model. The opti-mal solution would be the one which uses additional warehouses to aug-ment the current network, and not replace it. This might increase the so-lution cost, but also takes care of the investment already made.nAs markets expand and de-

mand grows, the network might change. This is primarily because distribution optimization exercises resemble the selection of weighted centroids (with demand being the weight) from which to serve the de-mand. In other words, the search is for a stable network that can cater to future demand projections as well.

The above figure is a representa-tion of how various costs associated with the supply chain move as the number of facilities in the network increases. The key in distribution optimization is the tradeoff between inventory and transportation costs.

the India effectBeing realistic and using judgment carefully are qualities much needed. But perhaps nowhere is it more im-portant than it is in India. What is discussed below is something all or-ganizations must take into account

(and they do) while designing a dis-tribution network.

Let’s start with the warehouses in India, called ‘godowns’.

Warehouses in India are more like covered structures with dirt floors, and are usually fairly small. The ware-house management system is usu-ally a notebook in which warehouse personnel keep track of what comes in and what goes out. Things may be changing, but few warehouses in India can boast of the sophisticated automation and behemoth sizes of American and European warehouses (up to one million sq. ft).

Organizations are increasingly becoming aware of the benefits of de-veloping their own warehouses, but regional network models with part-nerships with 3PL companies, who already own warehouses or land, are easier and faster to implement.

One primary reason why ware-house automation and technology is usually neglected is the availability of inexpensive labor in India. How-ever, with automation comes quality. Warehouse management software can impose discipline and provide data for improving productivity. An-other critical reason for the abysmal neglect of automation is high import duty on material handling equipment (fork-lifts, conveyor belts, etc.).

Cities are the biggest markets in India and most warehouses are locat-ed close to cities. Scheduling trucks becomes an issue, since most city mu-nicipalities prohibit movement dur-ing daytime. In such cases, docking outside the city and using smaller ve-hicles to run the last leg is an option.

Organizations might want to stage goods at multiple locations within a geographical area to negate some of the issues mentioned above. Having smaller warehouses in each state (where they have markets, of course) might be better than having one big warehouse at one place to serve dealers/wholesalers/distribu-tors across the country.

a Cost Saving Guide An optimized solution is not the last word, but more of a guide to achieving a stable and cost saving distribution network. Operational inefficiencies, demand-supply im-balances, freight issues, political turmoil, are realities that might change the transition path to imple-ment the solution. The optimization tools are decision-support tools, not decision making ones.

Several questions need to be asked like (a) the availability of labor in proposed locations, (b) will tax in-

centives make one location more lu-crative than the other, (c) the impact on service levels of a low cost net-work, (d) would the network change if sourcing locations change? If it’s so obvious, why isn’t the competi-tor doing the same? (e) is expensive technology worth it? (f ) how does the customer benefit from redesign?

A supply chain manager knows that his company’s business model, long term objectives, supplier and customer relationships and profita-bility of supply chain operations is af-fected by his decision, and he should know that this decision should not be left just to optimization models.

Choosing certain locations might help you improve your service levels, but could increase service costs.

Nithin Rajagopal is Manager in the Strategy Practice of

Chainalytics.

He can be contacted at [email protected].

(This is an abridged version of the article published in The

Warehouse Handbook 2011, brought out by Hamburg Media.)


< BOOK EXTRACT

Into The Even DeeperThe petroleum industry has invested considerable effort in developing sophisticated mathematical programming models to help planners provide strategies and directions for refi nery operations, crude oil evaluation and other tasks. But the models need to work in tandem.

In most non-integrated situations, strategic planning is performed by one entity close to the marketing and supply functions, but nor part of them. Plan-

ning activities serve to consolidate feedstock purchases, commitments, and sales opportunities by attempting to set achievable targets for the plant. Scheduling is under-taken by another entity that stands between planning and operations. It attempts to produce a schedule that is feasible, if not optimal, to meet commitments. Proc-ess operations are handled by yet another entity, usu-ally compartmentalized by processes, that operates the processes to the best capability, given the information available from planning and scheduling activities. The three entities have different objectives and possibly have different reward motivations and reward structures, which lead to different philosophies of what constitutes a job well done (Bodington, 1995).

The petroleum industry has invested considerable effort in developing sophisticated mathematical pro-gramming models to help planners provide strategies and directions for refi nery operations, crude oil evalu-ation, and other related tasks. Likewise, there has been substantial development and implementation of tools for scheduling, as well as considerable efforts towards advanced process control for process plants to achieve optimal operations. Unfortunately, a gap will always ex-ist between the three activities when working in isola-tion from each other. Typically, the refi nery scheduler attempts to use the monthly linear programming (LP) model plan to develop a detailed day-to-day schedule based on scheduled crude and feedstock arrivals, prod-uct lifting, and process plant availabilities and con-straints. The schedule usually includes details of the operation of each process unit, the transfer of interme-diates to and from the tank farm, and product blending schedules. However, the scheduling is performed for

PLANNING AND INTEGRATION OF REFINERY AND PETROCHEMICALOPERATIONSBy Khalid Y. Al-Qahtani and Ali Elkamel

Copyright 2010 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Boschstr. 12, 69469 Weinheim, Germany

ISBN: 978-3-527-32694-5195 pages


each tank instead of for a pool. Moreover, most refin-ery schedulers have few extensive computing tools to accomplish this task. Many use spreadsheets that con-tain individual operating modes for the primary proc-esses and for the main feedstocks, based on the same data employs in the LP model. The scheduler utilizes the spreadsheet to generate manufacturing plans on a daily or weekly basis. Compounding the problem is the fact that deficiencies in planning or operations often create problems that appear in the scheduling process. Oper-ating deficiencies or inferior data on the status of the production process could potentially lead to customer service problems. These problems may also occur due to either a planning activity with an overly optimistic esti-mate of available capacity or a poor understanding of the production capabilities.

Types of Planning ModelsMathematical models can be classified in different ways depending on the type of analysis involved. For exam-ple, one can classify them according to their composing variables into linear and nonlinear models, or accord-ing to the nature of their variables and parameters into deterministic and stochastic models, or according to their component state into static and dynamic models. However, from a process engineering perspective, we are interested in the inherent representation of the mathe-matical model of the actual physical system. Based on this, there are two general model classes: (i) mechanistic models, and (ii) empirical models. Mechanistic models are those based on a theoretical understanding of the system and the interactions between its process vari-ables. They are often based on the application of conser-vation principles (i.e. material and energy balances) and equilibrium relationships. The main advantage of such fundamental models is the ability to construct them prior to putting the system into operation. Empirical models, on the other hand, also known as black box and data driven models, are useful when mechanistic models are difficult to implement due to complexity or resource limitation. In empirical models, the system is viewed in terms of its inputs, outputs, and the relation between them, without any knowledge of the internal mechanism of the system.

In the next sections, we will present a series of em-pirical model based case studies that illustrate differ-ent planning techniques commonly used in practice by many refineries.

Regression-based Planning: Example of the Fluid Catalytic ConverterIn large-scale plants, such as refinery processing plants, even a small increase in yield can lead to a

significant impact on profitability. This, and the in-creasing feed heaviness, as well as the more stringent demand in product qualities and environmental regu-lations (Anabtawi et al., 1996) make it necessary to de-velop models for refinery operations that can be used to optimize the various processes and also to predict product yields and properties.

The purpose of this case study is to illustrate how to develop such models. Since the FCC process is the most important and widely used process in a petroleum refin-ery, the present work is concerned with predicting yields and properties for this process. The consideration of other processes can be undertaken in a similar manner.

Fluid Catalytic Cracking ProcessThe cracking reactions are carried out in a vertical reactor vessel in which vaporized oil rises and carries along with it, in intimate contact, small-fluidized catalyst particles.

The reactions are very rapid, and only a few seconds of contact time are necessary for most applications. Simul-taneously with the desired reactions, a carbonaceous material of low hydrogen-to-carbon (H/C) ratio, “coke” deposits on the catalyst and renders it inactive for all practical purposes. The spent catalyst and the converted oils are then separated, and the catalyst is passed down-flow to a separate chamber, the regenerator, where the coke is combusted, rejuvenating the catalyst. The regen-erated catalyst is then conveyed down-flow to the bottom of the reactor riser, where the cycle begins again.

A number of mechanistic modeling studies to ex-plain the fluid catalytic cracking process and to predict the yields of valuable products of the FCC unit have been performed in the past. Weekman and Nace (1970) presented a reaction network model based on the as-sumption that the catalytic cracking kinetics are sec-ond order with respect to the feed concentration and on a three-lump scheme. The first lump corresponds to the entire charge stock above the gasoline boiling range, the second lump represents the gasoline range hydrocarbon products, and the third lump corresponds to the coke and C1 – C4 products.

In large-scale plants, such as refinery processing plants, even a small increase in yield can lead to a significant impact on profitability.


< pAnoRAMA

Processes In MotionIn their research based book, Dynamics in

Logistics, based on the second International Conference on Dynamics in Logistics LDIC 2009, the authors describe the identifi cation, analysis, and description of the dynamics of lo-gistic processes and networks.

The book explains the spectrum reached from the planning and modeling of processes over innovative methods like autonomous con-trol and knowledge management to the new technologies provided by RFID, mobile com-munications, and networking.

The book shows the challenges confronted by growing dynamics in logistics with com-pletely new challenges and how it must become

Patrik Jonsson explains the fundamentals of the subject to help students understand the

game rules, goals and objectives when design-ing, planning and controlling effi cient and ef-fective logistics systems in supply-chains.

The author also speaks of the impact of in-formation technology, the impact of manufac-turing and product structures on logistics and supply chain systems, and the environment.

supply chain Management in the Drug Industry: Delivering patient Value for pharmaceuticals and BiologicsBy Hedley ReesPublisher: WileyPrice: 4̀,650

Dynamics in LogisticsKreowski, Hans-Jörg; Scholz-Reiter, Bernd; Thoben, Klaus-Dieter Publisher: SpringerPrice: `12,500

Logistics And supply chain ManagementBy Patrik JonssonPublisher: Tata McGraw Hill Price: 4̀,095

OFF THE SHELF

possible to fl exibly adapt logistic processes and networks to changing conditions.

The volume consists of one invited and 47 contributed papers divided into various sub-jects including mathematical modeling in transport and production, collaboration and supply chain control policies, adaption and cognition in logistics, and logistics solutions for ports, container terminals, and regions.

Rees suggests that CMC (chemistry manu-facturing controls) drug development must reset the line of sight – from supply of drug to the clinic and gaining a registration, to the building of a patient value stream. Capable processes and suppliers, streamlined logis-tics, fl exible plant and equipment, shorter cycle times, and reduced waste. All these fac-tors can and should be addressed at the CMC development stage.

With the help of mini cases to illustrate cur-rent practice and discussion tasks that have been included in the book, the author aims to facilitate effective learning.

Healing The Pharma Supply-Chain

Learnings In Logistics

Rees tries to bridge the gap between prac-titioners of SCM and the pharmaceutical

industry experts. The book can be a pointer to both these groups to understand the dif-ferent worlds they live in and how they can jointly contribute to provide improvements in supply-chains within the pharma sector.

The author stresses why scientifi c and technical staff must work closely with supply-chain practitioners and other relevant parties to help secure responsive, cost-effective and risk mitigated supply chains to compete on a world stage. In the pharma supply-chain, this process should not wait until a drug has been registered, but should start as early as pos-sible in the development process and before registration or clinical trials.


Processes In Motion

ResouRce centeR Journals, Case Studies, Research Reports

The Transparent Supply ChainBy Steve New

Steve New, a program director at the Cent-er for Corporate Reputation, Saïd Busi-ness School, in his journal entry, “The Transparent Supply Chain”, writes on ever evolving functions of the supply chain.

Today consumers and companies are demanding details about the systems and sources that deliver the goods. Consider the trouble an opaque supply chain can cause.

Most iPhone owners probably don’t think about the origin of their devices, but worker suicides at Foxconn, one of Ap-ple’s major Chinese suppliers, forced the company to pull the curtain back on part of its supply chain in 2009. It had to quell claims that it relied on sweatshop labor.

Until recently, customers had a limited view of supply chains. Even companies themselves have often been content not to ask questions about the origins and path-

ways of the goods they source.Driven by growing calls for transpar-

ency, firms such as Wal-Mart, Tesco, and Kroger are beginning to use new tech-nologies to provide provenance data to the marketplace. Revealing origins will become an essential part of establishing trust and securing reputation.

The key technologies are not funda-mentally new, but they are evolving to unleash new opportunities and iden-tify threats. Product labeling has been transformed by microscopic electronic devices, genetic markers for agricultural products, and a new generation of bar codes that can be read with standard mo-bile phones. Search Tags: steve new, transparent

What Every CFO Should Know About Inventory OptimizationBy Logility

In this white paper, Logility explains sup-ply chain from the CFO perspective. CFOs strongly believe that a good supply chain performance is crucial to financial success. Inventory strategy is crucial to good sup-ply chain performance and availability of working capital. As the guardian of mar-ket value, no one is better positioned to transform supply chain management than the CFO.

Given that CFOs play an important role in determining inventory optimization (IO) for the supply-chain, this paper throws up some facts that every CFO should know. It is important for CFOs to realize that ERP and Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) systems do not optimize inventory across the supply chain. Also, inventory optimiza-tion can move organizations to an entirely new trade-off curve between inventory cost and service level goals. Search Tags: logility, cfo, inventory, optimization

natural Disasters Highlight need for supply chain Risk ManagementBlogger: Dan GoodwillGoodwill speaks of some of the recent natural disasters that have disrupted the global supply chain. We’ve had the earthquakes and tsunamis in New Zealand and Japan, and harsh winter storms throughout North America. Of course, disruptions to supply chains can come from factors other than weather or natural disasters. Quality control problems, piracy and export restrictions are just some of the factors that can come into play.

According to Patthira Siriwan, senior project manager for supply chain development in North America for Damco, supply chain risks can be categorized into five groups: operational, social, natural, economy and political/legal.

Each company needs to assess the potential risks to their company for each of the five elements outlined above. Shippers should evaluate alternate modes and carriers to make sure they have options in place. In addition, each of these options should be tested under “real world” circumstances with actual freight to see if they are viable. search tags: disasters, risk, management, dan, goodwill

Dc-Lite strategies In today's stores?Blogger: Arun KumarKumar is a blogger on the Infosys blog. In his latest blog entry, he considers a scenario where warehousing concepts are spilling beyond distribution centers in today's buy-online-pick-

anywhere-deliver-anywhere world.With passing time, the fulfillment strategy for online orders

has evolved to include a blend of regional DCs, central DCs and local stores. Hence it is pertinent to ask whether the underlying mechanisms of fulfillment have changed. Not much, it turns out. After all, once items are received and stocked in shelves, the store (just like a DC) must assimilate orders, pick items and perform deliveries. Assuming a very conservative 100 online orders per day, it must plan for the efficient picking of 4,000 lines. Picking activity must occur when footfalls are less so that the work schedules of store associates are optimized.search tags: DC strategies, Infosysblog, arun kumar

cross Industry Knowledge transferBlogger: Martin BuckleyIn his blog, Buckley discusses a general pain point of obsolescence in the high-tech electronics industry. Despite rapid advances in technology, it is becoming difficult to avoid the effects of product obsolescence and its effects on margins, scrap, and inventory levels.

Buckley’s experience gave rise to the question from another consultant, “Could any methodologies be applied to planning for obsolescence thus minimizing negative results?”

Both scenarios deal with supply that is degraded for use after a period of time. They also deal with material that must be scrapped and disposed of, and both can have severe impacts on inventory and the bottom line.search tags: cross industry, pharma, electronics, martin

— Compiled by Frewin Francis

BLoGospHeRe


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Ricochet is a Norwegian company that specializes in soft-ware-based digital recording and replaying systems.

The Ricochet solution supports all audio formats — including analogue, digital and VoIP — without a limita-tion on the number of channels. The solution supports numerous compression algorithms.

Also, the fully expandable, modular Air Traffic Control (ATC) recording and replay systems have the option to be easily expanded to cope with the growth of opera-tions and controllers' tasks, making them the system of choice for over 250 airports. Customers include Glasgow Airport, Orly Airport, Sin-gapore Changi Airport and Abu Dhabi ACC and EACC.

Recording and perfectly

synchronized replay of multiple data-source types has been implemented as a core functionality of the Ricochet recording and replay system. When CCTV recording is used with audio and radar, Ricochet can synchronously replay a complete scenario.

Ricochet can interface with a GPS receiver mounted externally and continuously update the computer's inter-nal clock. The Ricochet time service monitors the signals received from the GPS and the alarm manager can be con-figured to issue alarms related to signal quality and the number of satellites picked up by the receiver.

Key Features: Supports audio formats -- analogue, digital and VoIP GPS support Invokes Windows' built-in Network Time Protocol (NTP) and act as an NTP server on the networkManufacturer: RicochetSelling Point: Can cope with the growth in operations

Vectron is Siemens solution, designed to the transport roles and challenges prevailing in the freight market.

Vectron’s development was based on a large number of interviews with operators and on the experience of many Siemens’ Eurosprinters and Eurorunners in service. The decisive criteria for design of the Vectron were customer focus, economy of space, serviceability, transparency, safety, flexibility, and conversion capability.

Technologies in the Vectron include the pinion hollow-shaft drive, known from the Siemens’ Eurorunner, which has been further developed for the electric Vectron loco-motives for the high-performance class. With this drive, the whole speed range up to 200 km/h can be covered without bogie exchange.

Vectron electric locomotive bogies are designed with wheel brake disks and a standard pivot solution, which has proved its viability in the Siemens Eurosprinter ES64F4. Thus Vectron follows perfectly tailored solutions for layout and bogie for both the applications “electric lo-comotive” and “diesel locomotive”.

Siemens, with the Vectron has shown its commitment to the environment by the use of regenerative braking and utilization for secondary operations and train power sup-ply, thereby increasing fuel efficiency and by using envi-ronmentally friendly materials

Key Features: Pure traction in four possible variants: AC, DC, MS (multisystem) and DE (diesel-electric)Modular country kitsBasic certified preferred variants with attractively short delivery timesManufacturer: SiemensSelling Point: Offers solutions for electric and diesel locomotive

New Products, Technologies, Solutions LAuncHpAD

Atc Recording solution

Solution

Solution

cargo transport solution – siemens


scissorlift

AccuVision from Accu-sort Systems is an industrial high-speed camera-based automatic bar code

scanner. It f inds application with one-dimensional and 2D bar codes, OCR as well video coding applica-tions. The multi-side scanning feature enables labels to be placed on any side.

The range of Bolzoni Auramo lift tables is one of the latest lifting solutions from Gandhi Automations.

During development, the company offered top priority to the safety of the operator using the lift tables. The tables comply with the European safety of machinery standards EN 292. All models in the range include alu-minum safety bar and stop descent of the platform on contact with obstructions. Safety clearance is also pro-vided between scissors to prevent trapping during op-eration. Safety check valves are present to stop the lift table from lowering itself in the unlikely event of the hose break and protection against overloading.

The Type 1-E Ergo-lift single scissor has been designed as a “work station” to provide improved ergonomic con-ditions to ensure the health, safety and comfort of the op-erator together with improved productivity. The hydraulic power pack inside the table has been provided with a relief valve that protects against overloading and compensates flow valve for controlled lowering speed. A wide range of accessories are also available to achieve even higher safe-ty functions where conditions require.Key Features: Single acting hydraulic cylinders with drainage

Max. 20 cycles per hour. One shift a day Self lubricating bearings on pivot pointsManufacturer: Gandhi Automations Pvt. Ltd.Selling Point: Safety check valves during operations.

New Products, Technologies, Solutions

AccuVision Product

Product

AV6010 camera bar code scanner is compatible with Accu-Sort’s FAST Monitor and VisionCapture systems. FAST Monitor provides advanced ‘at-a-glance’ diagnos-tics. VisionCapture’s real-time image capturing ena-bles quick resolution of poor quality or damaged bar code issues.

From the networking side, the system poses no single point of failure. It has a simplified cabling layout. A sin-gle RJ45 cable connects multiple devices. A mean repair time ranging between 10 to 15 minutes is another attrac-tive feature.

The code scanner has reliability time greater than 75,000 hours at an operating temperature of 50 degrees Celcius, making it highly reliable and reducing total cost of ownership.

Key Features: Read rate 99.9 percent for Grade A labels. Reliability > 75,000 hours at 50°CManufacturer: Accu-sort SystemsSelling Point: Multi-side scanning feature

Non-compliant to new OHS regulations

Inefficient warehouse planning

Outdated storage systems

Labour intensive operation

Unable to meet KPI

Lack of local support

Poor use of available headroom

Too many error in piece picking operations

Non-compliant to FEM safety standards

Infinite Logistics Solutions

Schaefer Provides You With The Logistics Success Formula.

Schaefer Systems International Pvt. Ltd. Unit No. 504 “Powai Plaza” Hiranandani Business Park, Powai, Mumbai : 400 076Phone +91 / 22 / 6111 4700/710Fax +91 / 22 / 6111 4777eMail [email protected]

Schaefer has the formula to add up all your logistics woes and convert them into successful solutions. Our Integrated Storage Solutions is the answer. It improves your warehouse operations with high-performance order picking, greater picking accuracy, faster movement of picked orders and many other customisable possibilities. Plus all these add up to cost savings for you.

Learn how Schaefer can help you at www.ssi-schaefer.in

Schaefer_Formula 5_LOG_216x270mm.indd 1 12/8/2010 12:35:09 PM


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Analysts say Indian air cargo is expected to be on a growth trajectory. How has the Indian market stepped up to this growth? The Indian air cargo segment has shown positive signs in the last year going by the growth shown by import and export freight. This is a refl ection on the trade and industry mood in the country. The automotive, pharma, apparel, engineering and tourism are all showing positive signs of growth. The internal trouble in various Arab countries cas-

cades into escalating oil prices and is one the biggest worries we face.

The government has raised the bar for FDI in cargo airlines and for-eign players are entering into strategic agreements with Indian LSP's. How about the air cargo industry?Air cargo companies, largely freight forwarding companies, have been the pioneers in bringing some of the global players to India. Since 1991, several foreign global companies have set shop in India, of which many are 100 percent subsidies.

With regard to airlines, this market is governed by many factors of which FDI is a small aspect. During the fi nancial meltdown and the

post ash-cloud episode, many carriers incurred huge losses and now, most of them are cautious.

Increasing capacity will impact yield (more space would mean pressure to fi ll the fl ights and might compel them to drop price) and less capacity would mean not growing fast enough.

What technologies are likely to gain a strong foothold in India con-sidering the demographics, labor issues and the common attitude of replacing technology with man-power?Technology is making headway in the logistics business and many In-dian companies are adopting technology platforms provided by many global companies.

Serious players have web-enabled tools, track and trace, and seamless interface. Although technology is widely available, the only determining factor is the know-how on how to use it and the willingness to pay for it.

Mindsets are also changing. The younger generation understands the need for technology and its criticality.

What does the new budget spell for the air cargo industry?The fact that the Government has made signifi cant provisions for in-frastructure is a good sign for the Indian logistics industry.

universal freight Management (ufM) is a startup in the supply chain and logistics domain. promoted by shesh Kulkarni, president, ufM India pvt Ltd, he explains why he is gung-ho about air cargo.

“Mindsets are changing”

InteRfAceInterview

shesh KulkarniPresident, UFM India

What are the challenges you face in the cold storage industry?The cold storage industry may be male dominat-ed, but that is of no consequence. The challenges were that as an entrepreneur.

Like most entrepreneurs, the challenges lie in overcoming the infrastructure bot-tlenecks. Getting vendors to set up the cold storage, ensuring uninterrupted power sup-ply, preventing voltage fl uctuations, getting

vendors to deliver in time are some of the challenges I faced.

Could you provide some insights into your Stage 2 expansion?We have maintained a similar format. The warehouses are leased. However our cooling equipment, which can maintain temperatures anywhere from - 25 degree Celsius to an ambient 18 degrees, is our own. While this equipment are expensive and require high maintenance, we can at least claim depreciation.

What, in your opinion, would be game changers that the next budget will bring about?The Union Budget 2011-12 has two signifi cant developments for the cold storage industry. The fi rst is the extension of the exemp-tion of excise duty to air conditioning equipment and refrigerat-ing panels for cold chain infrastructure. This is likely to prompt more cold storage units to come up.

The second game changer is the granting of infrastructure status. It means is that cold storage units will now be eligible for Viability Gap Funding (VGF). VGF provides fi nancial support in the form of grants, one time or deferred, to infrastructure projects undertaken through public private partnerships to make them commercially viable. The government will now be able to encourage the private sector to set up cold storage units in close proximity with the farmers’ production areas. This in turn, will accelerate the growth of cold storage warehouses in urban areas. What however, remains to be seen is how rapidly the government invites PPP models for cold chain and warehousing industries.

Robinsons Global Logistics is a new initiative started by 4th generation of Robinsons Group comprising young professionals. Headed by Rhea Vazirani, founder Managing Director, RGL strives to be a total solution provider in dry & cool logistics.

“The challenges lie in negotiating and overcoming the infrastructure bottlenecks”

Rhea Vazirani Founder MD,RGL

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ECL-IWS Magazine Partner 1.pdf 1 1/24/2011 1:47:59 PM

The Benefits of Automation in the Distribution Centre By Brad Welsman, Executive General Manager of the Automated Systems Division, Asia Pacific Region, SSI Schaefer

Experience has shown that automated storage and order picking systems can deliver substantial operating savings

in the DC while at the same time improving the quality of order fulfilment.

What benefits exactly can be expected from automated systems within the Distribution Centre and how are such systems justified?

Summary of Major Benefits of Automated Storage and Order Picking Systems1. Reduced labour costs2. Reduced dependency on labour availability3. Improved space efficiency4. Improved ergonomics and safety5. More resilient to changing order profiles6. Extended facility Life7. Higher quality fulfilment

Reduced Labour CostsAutomated storage and order picking systems reduce the need for labour and wheeled machinery in the DC. In automated Goods-to-Person order picking systems for example, the right goods are brought automatically to the person at the right time, walking is virtually eliminated and productivity when picking slower moving SKUs in particular can be ten times higher than with traditional zone picking or walk pick-to-pallet approaches.

High productivity ergonomic Goods-to-Person pick stations minimise twisting and bending

Automated storage reduces space requirements and increases safety

Improved Ergonomics and SafetyWith an increasing focus on OH&S and an ageing workforce, operations are coming under more pressure to provide a safe and ergonomic environment for operators. Safety and ergonomics are becoming increasingly important drivers for automation. Automated storage systems reduce the need for forklift trucks and eliminate the need to have pallet movements interleaved with other tasks such as order picking. Automated Goods to Person palletising stations provide for sliding rather than lifting of cases and eliminate walking. Additionally, ergonomic pick from tote stations for small and split case items minimise bending and twisting, reducing injuries, complaints and lost time.

More resilient to changing order profilesA general trend towards more SKUs, combined with increasing pressure to reduce store stock and optimise store shelf space, has dictated the need for more frequent smaller deliveries. In manual picking systems, more SKUs and smaller orders mean greater walking distances which reduce productivity. In contrast, automated Goods-to-Person pick stations are equally

Reduced Dependency on Labour AvailabilityAn increasing problem in distribution today is finding enough people to carry out the often laborious task of picking and packing. Moreover, where labour resources are scarce, operations often have to contend with a high turnover of staff which in turn leads to soaring training and administration costs and undermines quality. Higher productivity automated systems reduce the number of operators required for storage, picking and packing and provide a much higher degree of ergonomics which helps retain staff and maintain quality.

Improved Space efficiencyBy making maximum use of headroom and minimising aisle widths, automated storage systems for pallets, tote bins and cartons reduce footprint requirements for stock storage and with it land and building costs. Additionally, automated Goods-to-Person picking systems do not have a traditional pick face but rather draw SKUs directly from an automated buffer system which is significantly more space efficient.

Automation Article_India_log India_revised.indd 1 2/24/2011 11:30:16 AM

For more information, please visit our website at www.ssi-schaefer.in or email us at [email protected]

the comparison may be between building a new manual site versus building a new automated site.

An automated system will require significantly more initial investment than a manual system however potential associated savings in building and land costs need to be taken into account. Automated systems also require much higher maintenance costs including preventative maintenance, spare parts and breakdown support which together can run to 5 10% of the initial investment per annum.

Where do the savings come from?1. Reduced labour costs, including recruitment and training

costs2. Savings in land and building costs3. Improved capacity to meet future demands4. Fewer Lost Time Injuries5. Higher staff retention6. Improved customer service

The higher productivity associated with automated system leads to lower labour costs and this is a key driver in determining the feasibility of the higher investment. The savings in labour costs are very much dependent on the labour rate and the throughput of the system. The case for automation is much stronger for operations that run 3 shifts in a high labour cost area. In considering a labour rate for the business case evaluation, all associated costs including overtime payments and management, recruitment and training costs should be included. These can be substantial for large manual sites, especially where there is a scarcity of labour and/or a high turnover of staff.

In most cases, automated systems require a much smaller footprint than manual systems. This may translate into direct cost savings from an immediate reduction in space usage or alternatively, it may allow a building expansion or a transfer to a new facility to be deferred. These savings should also be calculated and factored into the business case.

Finally, the business case for an automated system should consider not only the “hard” numbers such as labour and building cost savings but also the “second order” benefits of a safer, more ergonomic environment with improved delivery flexibility and response times. Although sometimes difficult to quantify, these benefits include less lost time through injury, increased staff retention rates and higher customer satisfaction which leads to increased sales.

Extended Facility LifeAutomated systems deliver increased productivity and therefore a higher capacity for meeting future throughput requirements. Automated storage allows for better use of existing space and automated picking systems do not have a pick face whose length increases with the number of SKUs. These things, combined with an increased resilience to changing order profiles, all contribute to extending the life of a facility. The opportunity to “sweat the existing assets” and delay a move to a new or different facility can often translate into significant savings.

Higher Quality FulfilmentIn automated picking systems, there is a greater degree of flexibility with respect to how and when an order is assembled. So for example the ability of Goods-to-Person picking systems to build pallets in accordance with differing store requirements with equal productivity can translate into significant savings. Moreover, automated Goods-to-Person picking systems typically allow for any order to be picked at any time, improving response times and increasing fulfilment consistency and quality, all of which leads to higher customer satisfaction and ultimately increased sales.

Goods to Person pick station productivity is independent of the number of SKUs

productive for small orders as they are for large orders and the productivity is independent of the number of SKUs.

Is Automation right for your business? Can it be justified?In general, the justification or business case for an automated system will be based on comparing the automated option to one or more alternatives.

The alternative may be to just continue as is, however, where an operation has outgrown its current facility, the comparison may be between moving now to a new manual site versus automating the existing site to prolong its life. Where an operation has to move to a new site in any case,

Automation Article_India_log India_revised.indd 2 2/24/2011 11:30:17 AM


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What are the solutions you provide in the logistics domain? Cognizant offers business-aligned technology solutions for organizations that want to lever-age best practices in Transportation &Logistics (T&L). We help in a broad spectrum of areas, ranging from conceptualization to implemen-tation and future enhancements of enterprise solutions, focused on helping our clients build stronger businesses.

We also deliver solutions that integrate our consulting, infrastructure and business process outsourcing services to identify the processes that are not core to the clients’ businesses and

help our clients move those processes either offshore/offsite or to a cloud-based Business Process-as-a-Service (BPaaS) platform. These services are offered on a man-aged services model or an SLA-based model, depending on client needs. We also offer testing services for chang-es in IT systems and architecture resulting from changes in business processes.

We constantly work in synergy with our partners, such as SAP, in developing solutions and then help im-plement them for other customers as well. We are also working with Oracle on product testing of the latest re-lease of OTM for a specific client and creating use cases for it.

Our solutions are a combination of consulting, prod-uct fitment, process gaps and implementation for:n Human/vehicle management for railroad companiesn Track signaling and management of assets n Fleet management and assets in a yardn Dynamic route planning and scheduling of assets for optimization and RoIn Performance management and analytics-based in-sights for logistics companiesn Proof of Delivery (POD) for mobile pickup and delivery solution.

Our solutions have been implemented by large 3PL, dedicated cold storage companies and logistics companies.

What makes solutions from Cognizant stand out from its competitors?Cognizant’s solutions are developed to solve specific business problems with inputs from customers and leading academic institutes. These solutions are further enhanced by our partnerships with SAP. Our solutions are focused on providing innovation and come with a framework for maximizing RoI.

Our solutions help railroad companies transport people and produce safely, quickly and in the cheap-est manner. We ensure rail stocks are well maintained, signaling is accurate and trains run on time using data from signals and monitors to trigger applications.

In which sectors have your applications found most adoption? What have been the key client benefits?Our solutions in the T&L space target both service pro-viders (LSPs) and service-seekers (shippers), which in-cludes manufacturers, distributors, warehouses, sup-pliers, life sciences, health care, pharma, FMCG, retail companies, etc.

Our solutions are focused on delivering the following benefits:n Global visibility of orders at all stages of fulfillmentn Optimization of transportation costsn Improved asset utilizationn Collaboration with business partners providing ability to react quickly to change in situationsn Warehouse analytics to reduce costn Reduction in expedited freight costs and non planned costs

Who are some of your clients in India?Cognizant has worked with life sciences, health care, in-dustrial automation, oil & gas and FMCG companies in In-dia, providing help in optimizing logistics costs, reducing transportation costs, improving warehouse utilization, in-ventory optimization across nodes, and visibility solutions, and providing solutions from “viewing to solving” using best of breed IT solutions.

With its reputation for technical excellence and proven transportation & logistics practice, cognizant technology solutions builds world-class logistics solutions, be it in eRp, supply chain Management and eDI solutions. R Rajesh Balaji, Vice-president (Manufacturing and Logistics practice), cognizant, explains how.

Applications Across The Board

R Rajesh BalajiVice-President (Manufacturing and Logistics Practice), Cognizant

Interviews, Company and Executive Profiles

Interview

InteRfAce


Could you explain the products and area of operations of your company? Gandhi Automations is India’s No.1 en-trance automations and loading bay equip-ment company. We supply, install and main-tain highly sophisticated industrial doors and loading bay equipment. The doors meet various objectives like temperature control, dust ingress, noise control, hygienic condi-tions, etc. While allowing for seamless traf-fic of forklifts, pallet trucks, etc. Our Dock

Levelers also adhere to the most advanced concept of having the whole drive unit contained in a wall box which is installed on the wall inside the warehouse as against traditional ones which are installed under the platform. Our other points of strength are the prefabricated solutions for the quick construction of loading bays free of the frequent risks of fractures of the pavement, allowing re-duction of construction time of pits by 60 percent and dramatically reducing the need of local man labor.

Our product range includes aircraft hangar doors, high speed flexible doors, sectional overhead doors, fire doors, PVC strip doors, flap doors, garage doors, revolving doors, sliding doors, swing doors, dock leveler, dock shelter, scissor lift, etc.

With a specially trained labor force, how and where do you man-age the training?Gandhi Automations has the most technically qualif ied person-nel in the industry for installations and servicing our products. We have a huge team of committed and diligent technicians; many of whom are trained at principal companies in Europe. Besides, the products supplied by us are user-friendly and our customers are trained by our personnel in handling the equip-ment eff iciently.

How do you handle the after-sales call for faulty products?We strive to import products that are quality tested and certified to the highest available safety standards in the industry. Gandhi Automations has a dedicated team for after-sales service. We have a commitment to our clients to ensure that every complaint is at-tended to within six hours in all the major cities and 24 hours in small cities and rural areas anywhere in India.

How do face competition in the market?In imported Dock Levelers and Industrial Doors segment, Gandhi

Automations commands more than 75 percent market share in In-dia i.e. three out of every four Dock Levelers/Industrial doors have been sold and installed by us in the past five years. Over the years, our company has earned a reputation of offering world-class qual-ity products along with best of after-sales support. This is our USP and Gandhi Automations has today become synonymous with quality and service excellence.

What does the future hold for the warehousing and MHE industry in India?Globally, the use of material handling equipment (MHE) is com-mon. There is an increase in multinational companies setting their base in India and these MNCs bring in their ways of moving

materials. Thus the industry is seeing a change in the way materi-als are moved.

The Indian warehouse and MHE industry is expected to grow steadily. The improvement in the Indian economy will result in ac-celerated demand for goods movement and create opportunities for suppliers of goods-handling products and services of all types.

Detail your future plans.GAPL is continuously adding products to offer to customers -- a complete package in entrance automations, loading bay and ware-house equipment. The products offered by us are imported from companies that are global leaders in their respective fields. We have added aircraft hangar doors, tail-lifts, fire shutters and fire doors to our existing range of products.

Gandhi Automations has been at the forefront of automations and loading bay equipment in India. excerpts from an interview with samir Gandhi, executive Director, Gandhi Automations.

Offering Service With QualityInterview

samir GandhiExecutive Director Gandhi Automations

Inflatable Dock Shelter.

Interviews, Company and Executive Profiles


< EVENTS

A pr i l 2011

April 14 - 15, 2011ChemproTeCh indiABombay exhibition Centre (BeC), mumbaiChemProTech India 2011 focuses on chemical proc-ess technology, equipments and supplies. The exhi-bition is organized by DMG World, Koelnmesse YA Tradefair and Chemical Weekly and is supported by the industry and other important associations. The exhibition provides a platform to all the exhibitors and visitors to create the business networking.

The exhibitors for the event include chemical plant equipment, process instrumentation, process control & automation engineering, project management & construction services, process licensors, environ-mental services, technology & products, consultants, consulting services, packaging equipment, quality & safety management, etc.organized by: Quartz Business Media LimitedTel: +44 1737 855000

April 19 - 21, 2011pV + SolAr indiA expoBombay exhibition Centre (BeC), mumbaiPV + Solar India Expo 2011 will provide an opportu-nity to global players in photo-voltaic, solar thermal, solar architecture, equipment materials and systems. The event will offer a common platform to all central and state governments, manufactures, solution pro-viders, R&D and academic institutions.

Profile for exhibit includes conventional, non-conventional, renewable and clean and green energy, power transmission, distribution and conservation systems, process automation and instrumentation, boilers and steam systems, material handling sys-tems, waste management systems, environment monitoring, petrochemical and electrical engineer-ing, etc.organized by: Electronics TodayTel: +91 22 26730869/26730870

April 21 - 23, 2011AuTomATion expoChennai Trade & Convention Centre, ChennaiAutomation Expo will showcase all the latest products and services for industrial automation industry under a single roof.

The profile of exhibitors include machine tools & accessories, hydraulics & pneumatics, material handling, instrumentation & automation, industrial electrical & electronics, pollution control equip-ment, machinery for process industries, metal-lurgical plant & equipment, textile equipment, and fabrication machinery.organized by: Intel Trade Fairs & ExpositionsTel: +91 22 28803977

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Features editor: Jayashree [email protected]

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HAMBURG MEDIA GROUP www.logisticsweek.com

Printed by Jacob Joseph Puthenparambil, published by Jacob Joseph Puthenparambil on behalf of Hamburg Media Private Limited. Printed at Savai Printer Private Limited, A661, TTC Industrial Area, MIDC, Mahape, Navi Mumbai - 400 705, India and published at Bldg.4/6, Sona Udyog, Parshi Panchayat Rd., Andheri (E), Mumbai - 400069.No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means including photocopying or scanning without the prior permission of the publishers. Such written permission must also be obtained from the publisher before any part of the publication is stored in a retrieval system of any nature. No liabilities can be accepted for inaccuracies of any description, although the publishers would be pleased to receive amendments for possible inclusion in future editions. Opinions reflected in the publication are those of the writers. The publisher assumes no responsibilities for return of unsolicited material or material lost or damaged in transit. All correspondence should be addressed to Hamburg Media Private Limited. All disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of competent courts and forums in Mumbai only.

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INDIA

66

April 21 - 23, 2011indiA WArehouSing ShoWindia exposition Centre & mart ltd, greater noidaIndia Warehousing Show is a venture for the entire warehousing industry in India. In the light of the economic boom in the country, high quality storage solutions are in great demand. The tremendous rise in turnover of warehousing in India since 2007-08 is the driving reason behind this comprehensively dedicated three-day event.

The show will focus on three primary concerns of the industry which are storage space, efficient han-dling and timely delivery of goods. The event will also serve as a catalyst in the construction of new state-of-the-art logistics parks in the country which are highly needed in today’s age of cut-throat competition.

Companies manufacturing or dealing in scissor lifts, continuous mechanical handling equipment, con-veyors, conveyor belts, lifts, moving pavements, MHE, automated guided vehicles, industrial trucks, fork lift trucks, cranes, stackers & accessories, hoist able man platforms, cable cars, warehousing technol-ogy and facilities, warehouse management systems, automated storage and retrieval, systems, racking and shelving systems, pallets, bins and containers, are expected to be present at the event.organized by: Progressive Media GroupTel: +91 11 46520733

April 21 - 23, 2011World reneWABle energy TeChnology CongreSS & expohotel le meridien, new delhiWorld Renewable Energy Technology Congress & Expo has been organized by World Re-Energy Tech to promote the development of renewable energy within the country.

This show will comprise a congress and an exposi-tion aimed at showcasing India’s growing potential in the field of renewable energy.

The renewable sector attracted investments worth $3.7 billion in 2008, which shows the massive scope in this industry. This year’s event is expected to bring in industry corporate leaders, technology providers and R&D scientists at the venue.

Exhibitors expected at the event are from areas like green power providers, solar, wind, bio fuels & bio mass, NGOs and non-profit organizations, policy mak-ers and regulatory bodies, hydro, cogeneration and geothermal energy, renewable energy associations, insurance companies, architects, building owners, energy management and technology companies, and equipment suppliers and services companies. organized by: World Re-EnergytechTel: +91 11 24538318

RNI No. MAHENG/2007/23777 l Registration No.MH/MR/South-279/2011-13Allowed to post at Patrika Channel Sorting Office G.P.O. Mumbai - 400001 Date of mailing: 5th of every month issue

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log.india april 2011 issue

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