Issue link: http://www.insightdigital.biz/i/80745
GOING HIGH-TECH FOR GAME-CHANGING LOGISTICS I n 1903, two horses and a wagon were all that T.M. Leicht needed to serve the paper mills in northeast Wisconsin. Today, the company has taken transportation and warehousing to a new level of domestic and international transportation, warehousing, order fulfillment and more, thanks to its highly customizable and sophisticated technology. "We are industry leaders when it comes to embracing state-of-the-art tools to manage our business, " Evans says Steve Evans, the chief technology officer for RGL Specialty Services and Leicht Transfer & Storage Co. in Green Bay, as well as Checker Logistics in Neenah. The companies are all under the umbrella of parent company RGL Holdings, Inc. Real-time radio frequency and an integrated system of the latest logistics software allow RGL to up its game and serve customers like Georgia-Pacific, Bemis, Exxon Mobil and others, each with multiple transportation and Collaborative logistics For Neenah-based Kimberly-Clark logistics planners, the opportunity to explore innovative solutions came together through advanced technology tracking needs and warehousing requirements. Each pallet or unit is bar code scanned for identification. Even RGL's ergonomic and exhaust-free "green" electronic forklifts are equipped with the latest technology to communicate immediately and in real time via antennas and access points wired into the warehouses. It's a very fast and accurate way to answer questions, produce reports and manage inventory. "For example, if a customer alerts us to a quality issue with a specific pallet or roll of product, we can go into our Warehouse Management System (WMS), locate the bar code, and give them a snapshot of when the product was received, its exact location in our warehouse, or if it was shipped we can identify when it was shipped and the order and truck it was shipped on," says Evans. The system also caters to customers with a wide variety of products that have different shelf life requirements, such as products containing alcohols like commercial hand sanitizers and lotions which have tighter requirements in terms of inventory rotation and age management. On the transportation end, the company invested and opportunities to improve its green sustainability. Additionally, retailers have been asking K-C to help them find solutions for congestion and inventory challenges, especially as fuel We Make Software Work Are you frustrated by a lack of good information, extra data entry and Steve Engmann software that just doesn't do what needs to be done? Scott Loker Tina Beck Sage ERP MAS 90 Sage ACT! & SageCRM Access & SQL Custom Programs Barcode Solutions Jackie Lingg in "tier one" McLeod Freight Management Systems software to help adapt to customer needs through sophisticated data sharing with its own trucks as well as loads shipped via other carrier companies. The program sends electronic-shared information from the customer straight to RGL. Ten years ago, if customers transferred data electronically, they typically used a Value Added Network (VAN) provider. But now software programs like McLeod transfer data through the Internet, making it cheaper and more available to customers. Additionally, each truck is equipped with PeopleNet on-board computers that confirm location and delivery time. It even alerts customer service staff when the delivery is within a mile of arrival at the receiving area. Because disaster recovery protection is critical, RGL's system and network has data server rooms in both its Green Bay and Neenah locations. "Every 15 minutes we send a snapshot of all of our data to the other server location to ensure it is backed up, " Evans says. costs have skyrocketed. Two years ago K-C had an –Amy Spreeman opportunity to collaborate with and connect two customers: CVS and Colgate-Palmolive, which [continued] » Evolutionary Company to enhance your people Christina Theobald Kim Engmann Contact us for new ideas, improved efficiency, integration, training and support. Revolutionary Products to enhance your business 920-993-1077 ✦ Appleton WI www.WeMakeSoftwareWork.com 800-362-4333 • www.rhymebiz.com GREEN BAY . JANESVILLE . MADISON . MILWAUKEE . OSHKOSH . PORTAGE . RICHLAND CENTER . WAUSAU www. insightonbusiness.com September 2012 • INSIGHT | 37