In August 1981, IBM introduced its Personal Computer. It was by no means the first PC in the market, but it certainly brought about a change in competition in the microcomputer industry.

ComputerLand is a manufacturing / service dealer and intends to set the industry standard for the 1990s by offering a new level of service. The new standard of service begins with the distribution goal of "getting the right product to the right place at the right time" according to Robert Kuntzendorf, ComputerLand's senior vice president of operations. This sounds easy enough, but how do you go about actually achieving such a goal?

ComputerLand decided three elements were needed. The first ingredient is accuracy; you must do your best to achieve an error-free order. Next you need speed; to be the best you have to save time in both assembling and shipping the order. Finally, you must ensure you have the proper supply of goods on hand.

All these ingredients have come together in a new 200,000 square foot distribution center in Indianapolis. The muscle of the facility is a sophisticated set of material movement equipment, and the brain is a local area network of PCs fed by auto ID equipment. By using a PC network instead of traditional mainframe computers, ComputerLand not only saved development time but produced a showcase for its products.

Concurrent Distributed Processing

The software, or the "brain," according to Jerry Keslensky, vice president of research and development for ComputerLand, is what makes this system work. The software was designed, written, and implemented by Mr. Keslensky and Jim Moring in just 12 months. This was possible because of ComputerLand's use of 386 PCs and a local area network. By using PCs instead of a mini or mainframe system, the company saved time, 24 man-months versus estimated thousands of hours, and money, $200,000 versus an estimated $500,000 to $750,000 for an AS/400-based system. It also provides ease of expansion through additional workstations, or even greater expansion by adding more file servers with gateways to connect the LANs.

The beauty of the system is the use of concurrent distributive processing rather than sequential processing. This comes as a natural byproduct of the LAN architecture. Instead of an expensive single processor (mainframe), ComputerLand uses a lot of little processors (386 PCs) spread over the network. Novell Netware 386 on an IBM Token-Ring network provides the multitasking environment necessary for such a large operation and control system. Novell Netware 386 on an IBM Token-Ring network provides the communications.

In simple language, this means several things get done at once by different machines in the network without waiting for one to finish its task first. For example, as soon as a shipment is booked into inventory, a workstation designated as a put-away server looks at the product's 21-day run rate, storage availability, and demand. Then, through rule-based intelligence, the workstation determines where to place the product and creates bar code labels to track it. All of this can be done for 500 units in about 3 seconds.

While the put-away process is going on, another machine is checking the processed data for quality of communications; and ensuring proper uploading and downloading of information throughout the system. All of this can be done without human intervention. Most of the time, the only input required from operators is to log their names into the system through PCs attached to the network. Tasks like directing bar code printing, finding space for inventory to be stored, and equalizing labor involved in picking, can be done without human intervention.

Paperless Picking

The accuracy required by ComputerLand is accomplished largely through the extensive use of bar codes. In fact, three different codes are used. One is an Interleaved 2 of 5 stock-keeping unit (SKU) for inventory, which provides each package in a unit load with a unique "finger print." Since the cost of each package in a shipment averages $550, tracking every item is critical. The second is a Code 128 put-away tracking code that directs inventory movements and inventory by location tracking, and the third is a Codabar package tracking code on the shipping label. The package tracking code serves three purposes in the process: request to pick, quality control, and sorting. By following these labels through the facility, you get a better idea of how the whole system works.

Most shipments arrive in Indianapolis in the morning or early afternoon where receiving operators check and log them in. SKU labels are printed, using an Intermec 8636 direct thermal printer, and applied to a specific location on the cartons. The operator is then directed by a put-away tracking code label to put the shipment in a warehouse location chosen by the computer. Once the operator arrives at the selected location, he scans a location bar code using a Micro-Wand by Hand Held Products. If the location, SKU, and quantity match the put-away action, the computer confirms the operation and the information is stored in the unit for later transferal to the stock location system.

For a split case pick, an operator puts the wand in one of the docking units in the pick area. Here a picking assignment is downloaded from the computer into the unit. Once the information is transferred, the operator can read the pick information from the LC display.

The operator begins by scanning a picking and shipping label on the side of a tote box. This associates the particular tote to the order being picked. The operator is then led through a picking operation by reading instructions on the MicroWand display. For each item displayed, the operator goes to the location, scans a location bar code, scans a SKU label on the item, and places the item in the tote. This process is repeated until the operator is finished with the list and receives a message on the display.

The Micro-Wand is then replaced in the docking port to upload the picking and inventory information into the computer. The computer then loads another pick fist into the unit. This arrangement immediately catches any errors and keeps inventory up to date. Currently each operator picks 400 units in an hour with 100 percent accuracy.

The work assignment software system has an interesting work distribution feature. It takes into account the amount of effort each operator is expending in order to fill the pick list. If an operator has to climb ladders and move several items to pick the items for one list, the computer will next assign the operator a less strenuous pick list. This helps to eliminate hard feelings created by an uneven workload.

A Self-Checking System

Once the order has been filled, the containers are loaded onto a conveyor belt. Here the package tracking codes are read by an Accu-Sort Model 2455 scanning array. This array, consisting of four Model 55B scan heads and a Model 2000 decoder, currently scans 35 cartons per minute, but it can easily double that rate. (See accompanying sidebar.) Once the labels are scanned, a high-speed wheel diverter directs the packages into one of 18 sorting lanes.

Some of the sorting lanes feed packing / auditing stations, where all split case picks go for a boxing and a quality control check. Here the operator scans the label on the tote to identify the order being packaged. As each item is removed from the tote, the item's SKU is scanned, and it is placed in a shipping box. An Intermec 9510 wand reader assures all items are indeed included in the order, and nothing extra is shipped. If something does happen to be misplaced, an on-screen message informs the operator what is missing or if an item does not belong with the order.

When the packing / auditing is complete, an Intermec 8636 printer at the station automatically prints another bar code label with a unique package tracking/ shipping label. At the same time, an IBM Proprinter III prints a list of all the items in the package. The list is placed in the package, the package is sealed, and the package tracking / shipping label is affixed.

Completed split case packages return to the sortation system to again go through the scanning array with the full case picks. Usually split cases are picked first, then full cases are pulled while the split cases are packaged. Both types of packages are held in the scanning array until an order is complete. The order is then diverted into a shipping lane.

At the end of the shipping lane, an operator scans the labels as a final audit. At this time, the operator can also scan the manufacturers' serial number if such information needs to be tracked.

According to Mr. Keslensky, "This is a quality control operation as well as a picking process. In every phase of the operation, there are checks made to assure accuracy. This high level of quality and the ease with which it is accomplished gives the facility a shipping error rate of .02 percent compared to the previous rate of .25 percent. " In other words, ComputerLand cut its error rate by 90 percent, achieving 99.98 percent accuracy rate on orders shipped.

Such accuracy is not achieved at the expense of speed. Before ComputerLand built its Indianapolis facility, it used four different warehouses to support the same region. Under the previous system, the average time lag between order placement and order receipt was 96 hours. Now average turnaround time is 60 hours. This allows the facility to move about $130 million of product in a 20-day work month. Depending on the time of day and where the order originated, it will arrive 48 to 72 hours after it is approved. Twenty-four hour shipping is also available through ComputerLand's shipping partner,Skyway Freight Systems.

The arrangement with Skyways illustrates another feature of the distribution center. EDI is used to exchange information quickly and efficiently with suppliers, customers, and branches. For example, ComputerLand used to process 30,000 freight bills per month, all by hand. This required four full-time employees. Consolidating its shipping into the single partner relationship has cut the number of freight bills in half, and 95 percent of those are processed electronically. ComputerLand branches use their computers to learn exactly were an order is, and soon customers will have access to this information as well.

The use of EDI with suppliers should also minimize a problem seen in the industry in the past. The problem simply was that demand outstripped supply, resulting in long delivery times for certain products. ComputerLand hopes to minimize the problem by allowing suppliers to use its order information to possibly identify trends and compensate by increasing production before demand becomes critical.

Jerry Keslensky offers this advice for achieving a successful system implementation: "Spend the time and money necessary to train the people who are going to use the system. It makes a difference in how smoothly the transition can be made." Mr. Keslensky tells about meeting people in the halls of the corporate office and being asked when one of the old warehouses would close and the new facility take over. He said he explained that the changeover had occurred about three weeks earlier.

The success of the new operation can best be summed up by a demonstration often used by Mr. Keslensky when giving tours of the distribution center. He asks someone on the tour how he or she deals with a part found lying on the floor that has either been dropped or is obviously misplaced. After some often embarrassed discussion, he or she admits that they have no way of tracking the item. Mr. Keslensky promptly takes an item from one of the totes on the conveyor and asks someone to hold it. By the time the tour makes its way to the auditing station at the end, someone is already looking for the item. They know what item is missing, where it was last traced, and the proper ID number for the item. Once it is handed to the operator and scanned, the all clear is given for the order. Pretty convincing.

L. Elaine West is a free-lance writer living in Tucson, Arizona.