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 Case
Study 1 of 2  
The Challenge
A company based in Seattle, WA with 27 branch locations
across the United States manufactures, sells and rents construction
equipment. Each branch orders marketing material, operating
documents and manuals individually on an as needed basis.
All materials had previously been purchased from different
sources and delivered to the corporate office. The marketing
department at the corporate office would then pick, pack,
and ship small orders to the various branches.
The Solution
Advent proposed the following program
components:
Single
source purchasing, utilizing Advent's
network of top quality suppliers
By consolidating purchasing, our
client was able to not only reduce
time spent sourcing products, but
increase quality and consistency
among products. With Advent's ability
to supply any printed product, our
client could concentrate on their
core business.
Offsite
warehousing of products in Advent's
distribution center
Eliminating wasted space at the
corporate office, our client put
the products in our secure, managed
environment. The inventory is monitored
on a daily basis for reorder, minimizing
obsolescence and spoilage.
On-line
ordering direct to Advent
Advent manages the day to day influx
of order requests, shipping from
inventory at pre-determined pricing.
With the ability to order 24 hours
a day, 7 days a week, branch locations
can order at their convenience.
By ordering on-line, branches are
able to view the products being
ordered, which eliminates errors
and mis-shipments.
Comprehensive
batching and fulfillment of orders
Advent consolidates orders from
branches, batching orders weekly
to minimize shipping costs to the
branch.
Monthly
usage reporting by cost center
Our client maintains total control
of the program. In addition to real
time inventory status information,
Advent provides monthly usage and
budget information which enables
our client's corporate office to
monitor expenses at the various
branches.
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The Result
We began by transferring all the inventory at the client's
warehouse to the Advent Distribution Center. All products
were shrink wrapped and catalogued, and a confirmed beginning
inventory reported to the client. The products were entered
into Advent's on-line ordering system, and branches were
able to immediately begin ordering from stock on hand.
Advent fulfills and ships orders weekly to the branch locations.
Orders from the various departments at individual branches
are compiled throughout the week, and a single shipment
sent on a particular day for each branch. By managing communications,
executing releases and fulfilling, shipping and tracking
orders, Advent saves the client an estimated 200 hours annually
in administrative time and labor.
The client receives monthly reporting of shipments by product
and by location to help identify over or under use of products,
as well as to pinpoint potentially obsolete products. With
more comprehensive information regarding usage and seasonal
fluctuation in products, our client is able to better predict
the most economic order quantities to purchase upon reorder.
Further, tracking of inventory usage enables Advent to synchronize
reorder points of products that can be ordered in combination
for additional quantity discount.
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