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Optimize your material handling fleet with the latest tips, tools, and insights into your supply chain management.

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Supply Chain

Aug 16, 2023 12:31:27 PM

5 Questions to Ask Automation Suppliers to Avoid Costly Mistakes

 

A recent report showed that companies are ramping up warehouse automation, with just over a quarter of companies expecting to have some kind of automation in place by 2027. This statistic shows that companies are aware that automation can unlock a variety of benefits for material handling operations. However, while automation projects can certainly offer an excellent ROI, picking the wrong supplier can also lay the groundwork for a lot to go awry.

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3 Fleet Management Changes To Supercharge Your Facility’s Productivity

If you're being asked to drive more uptime and operational productivity in your facility—and who isn't feeling this pressure these days? — you'll be happy to learn about some overlooked areas of improvement right under your nose. Just three manageable—but meaningful — changes to your fleet management program can supercharge your warehouse productivity.

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The Status Quo is Your Biggest Enemy When It Comes to Fleet Management

TFS employees visit thousands of facilities each year. That's how we know that even the most respected names in manufacturing and distribution—Fortune 500 companies with huge budgets—are struggling.

While these big companies have more advantages than most of their peers, they still deal with long MHE lead times, labor shortages, and extreme pressure from the C-suite. We often find that material handling execs have no idea how many MHEs they have overall, let alone in different locations. They've usually lost track of the expensive rentals they're using to fill the gaps while they wait for equipment. And forget about getting the data they need…

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What 100s of Clients Say are their Top 4 Material Handling Issues—And How to Solve Them

It's a mixed forecast for material handling stakeholders. On the one hand, prices are improving and equipment wait times are coming down. On the other, economic hardships and labor challenges continue to cloud the future.

How can facilities stay ahead? To find out, we went straight to Jason Laws, who estimates he and his team have spent countless hours talking with 10,000 material handling executives. In the process, Laws, TFS's Market Development Manager, has not only gained deep insights into the issues facing facilities, he has crafted solutions that increased uptime and saved money.

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10 Predictions for Material Handling in 2023

The only thing that’s remained constant in material handling during the past few years is change. That’s already continued in 2023 as economic predictions are already shifting from a definite recession to the economy remaining on a growth trajectory.  The advanced technology and social shifts in terms of workforce and consumer demand volatility make this a difficult management environment for facility leaders.

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7 Questions to Drive Sustainability Gains in Material Handling

Times are tumultuous right now, so it might feel like your company may have to choose between increasing profit and boosting sustainability—but the good news is that the two aren’t mutually exclusive. In fact, when it comes to material handling, just asking the right questions can unlock leaner, cleaner, greener, and more profitable decisions.

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Active fleet management: Are you going the distance?

At TFS, we talk to a lot of companies about material handling. What we’ve found is that most businesses don’t even realize they’re not actively managing their forklift fleets and facilities.

Yes, it’s absolutely true that most are doing some sort of management, but when we crunch the numbers to demonstrate how much money they’re leaving on the table, they’re stunned. 

That’s because active fleet management means more than just dealing with a vendor to choose forklifts and negotiate a monthly payment.

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The Fleet, Facility & Safety Roundup | Why You Should Be Reassessing Your Material Handling Right Now

Welcome to the Fleet & Facility Roundup! We’ve curated the latest, most practical news to help you keep up with material handling developments and insights.

Our takeaway this month? Inflation is up, lead times are still long, and the supply chain remains chaotic, so it’s safe to say that the end isn’t in sight yet. In short, it’s an ideal time to assess what actions you and your company have taken so far and see what efforts are paying off and which need to be redirected.

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