…to get the low hanging fruits? After having rambled on about the risks with big bang automation projects, I found a soul mate in Cliff Holste at Supply Chain Digest. He builds a solid case for automating pieces of your warehouse processes rather than the entire operation.  Why?

Cliff reiterates what I tried to express in my recent posts (“Automation and Flexibility – a contradiction and term?” and “Does your warehouse need a conductor?”).  

He effectively argues that (1) a large material handling system project is high risk and easily limits flexibility, and (2) that full blown automation is a difficult business case as the implementation costs and investments are HUGE and the payback time LONG. So instead it is better to automate selectively in a phased approach, and focus on the parts that are underperforming.

Read the full Expert Insights article here:
“Selective Automation Reduces System Overhead and Opens Door to Increased Productivity“

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