It makes sense to evaluate your company’s efforts over the past year to determine whether you did your best to make improvements and take your business to the next level. You’ll need to review your logistics warehousing plan to set new goals for 2023. How can you summarize your last year? Meeting with a core group of key personnel can help you critique positive and negative experiences. You’ll probably end up with a list that provides the blueprint for your productivity and efficiency goals for the coming months. 

Here are a few questions to help you get started:

• Where did we spend most of our time and money? 
• Which goals weren’t realistic? (Too easy or too hard.) 
• Are your key employees wasting time and money on unimportant tasks?
• How can you refocus your efforts?

At Van Brunt Logistics & Warehousing, we offer valuable insight into how you can streamline and optimize your warehouse operations. To get started, follow the steps below.

Six Steps to Prepare a New Logistics Plan 

Start by evaluating your current operations. Brainstorm ways to improve your inventory and cut costs without sacrificing quality or customer service. 

1. Evaluate Your Current Operations

Take a hard look at your facility’s processes, as follows:

• Start with an accurate floor plan showing everything in the warehouse from storage facilities to loading docks. 
• Next, inventory your entire fleet, including vans, trucks, and other vehicles. 
• Finally, document warehouse processes and staff responsibilities. Include individual names with each role.

Ideally, you’ll end up with two documents, a graphic depicting workflow and responsibilities and a written document explaining each process in detail. In the written document, create a comprehensive overview of your resources and capacities. This is the baseline on which you’ll build your logistics plan for the new year.

2. Determine your Inventory Requirements

Now, it’s time to assess how you’re conducting your stock and inventory management. Include the following details: 

• Current stock volumes
• Location of each item
• Stock turnover 

Look at the ordering, handling, and storage practices in depth. This is easier to do with a warehouse management system implemented by a trusted partner. 

3. Identify Gaps in Capacity

As you work through each phase of the logistics and warehouse plan for 2023, identify strengths and weaknesses. Where did you fail to have sufficient resources available last year? What were the biggest operational wins for the warehouse team? 

Without pointing fingers, you can use this as an opportunity to highlight any necessary personnel changes. Don’t let the weaknesses discourage you. Van Brunt Logistics & Warehousing can provide the expertise you need to shore up essential processes. Our recommendations may include investing in a new warehouse management system so the information you need is available at the touch of a button. 

4. Identify Opportunities for Change

There are many benefits of outsourcing your warehouse services. Our team of seasoned professionals can analyze your existing processes and procedures, along with the documentation completed in the first step above. 

After getting to know your challenges and strengths, our consultants can help you fill in any knowledge gaps standing between you and your business goals. From saving costs to improving productivity, we have your warehouse KPIs covered!

5. Determine Where You Can Improve Costs

Answer these questions to build an outline for your Logistics Warehousing Plan:

• How much does a potential enhancement cost?
• How much time will it take to deploy?
• What’s the return on investment? (Find a way to quantify this.)
• How can you make positive changes without disrupting productivity?
• Will productivity be impacted while improvements take place?

6. Review Your Plan

Prioritize the improvements so you make the biggest impact early on. Achieving all your goals may require more time but you have a shot at hitting most of them with a phased approach.

Contact Van Brunt Logistics & Warehousing with any questions pertaining to our logistics management services. Call 908-282-7080 to speak with our team about your logistics and warehousing plan.