Image via Wikipedia
A common complaint I often hear from folks in shipping and receiving is that they are either waiting on trucks or trucks are waiting on them. The immediate next question to ask is, “Do you have a receiving schedule?” – to which many answer “No” or “Well, we used to have one, but it didn’t work.”
For those that do not have one, here’s how to create one:
1. Calculate the takt time for your docks (Takt Time = Available Time / Demand). IE: If one 40 hour week’s demand is 120 trucks, you’d reduce it to 2400 minutes / 120 Trucks = Takt Time of 20 minutes / truck.
2. Determine the process time for loading/unloading a truck. This determination may require some time studies on the docks. Variation is typical; use a time that would accommodate at least 75% of your volume. For our example we’ll use 60 minutes. Note that the variation can be an opportunity to improve upon after a schedule is in place.
3. Calculate the number of resources to allocate to the new dock schedule. Take your Process Time divided by your Takt Time (PT 60 min / TT 20 min = 3 resources). This means you need 3 dock doors, 3 fork trucks, etc.
4. Set rules for carrier pickup/delivery times and communicate to carriers. These should include necessary “what if” scenarios, who to call, and how early/late arrivals will be handled. Typically early routes will need to wait before they can approach the dock, and late routes will need to be rescheduled with no demurrage penalty incurred at the dock.
5. Begin planning inbound or outbound loads within those constraints and communicate it to carriers. Slot incoming/outgoing shipments into the 60 minute time slots on the dock schedule. Communicate those pickup/delivery times with carriers. Enforce the rules and PDCA.
Whether you “used to have one” or are just implementing one, rest assured that failure does and will happen. There will be over-the-road conditions, hot shipments, and carrier compliance or capacity issues that will try to destroy your dock schedule every day. What separates successful dock schedules from those that fail is the discipline in problem solving and exception management. Since there will inevitably be problems, plan for them proactively with containment strategies. As problems occur, solve and learn from them rather than giving up. A dock schedule should evolve over time as idiosyncrasies with carriers, processes, and suppliers or customers are discovered. Let it evolve rather than letting it go extinct!
Written by Derek Browning, Lean Deployment Executive at LeanCor
Related articles
- Turn Your Dock Stacks Into Organized Bins Video How-To (evilrit.com)
- Lean Logistics: Process Creation Is Half The Battle (leanlogisticsblog.leancor.com)
- Driving Down Costs with Just in Time (JIT) Production (manufacturing.hubspot.com)
Many truck carriers deliver their goods in the morning.
The drivers go get a cup of coffee.
Then the drivers may stop to get a bite to eat.
Typically, trucks don’t arrive the the loading docks until early to mid-afternoon.
Someone should be monitoring this as it should be no surprise.
Many of the truckload and LTL carriers pick up in the early, late afternoons.
A company having quite a bit of shipments presents a constraint problem at the docks. Especially companies playing the end-of-the-month games with sales/shipments.
Again, this should be monitored.
If the truck lines cannot comply with receiving loading times, then it is fairly simple for the Companies to set a staggered shift schedule to have the loading docks manned when the truck typically arrives.
Truckload commodities should be loaded directly into the truck and then set in the yard for pickup.
Too many companies sense that they need to have a 7 to 3 or 8 to 4 mentality.
The think that the trucking companies have a flexible schedule to accommodate their wishes without any planning.
Thanks for the really informative and practical tips and ideas.
Gill
Another important aspect of the loading dock operation is choosing the right loading dock for efficient and safe operation. If you choose the right loading dock for your application, along with a implemented loading and unloading schedule, then you will experience efficient operations in your shipping and receiving departments. There is a large number of factors to take into consideration to determine what suits each individual application.
Read our Blog for some more information: http://www.northerndocksystems.com/blog/