Supply Chain team meets in Perth

The Asia Pacific Supply Chain team gathered in Perth in March for its quarterly team meeting.

The meeting was led by Sowmya Chaturvedi – Asia Pacific Supply Chain Director. A key objective was to increase engagement with operations staff at the Master Rebuild Centre (MRC).

David Wheatley, Asia Pacific Manufacturing Leader, initiated a tour of the Perth MRC. That gave the extended leadership team the opportunity to understand the MRC’s operations and interact with shop floor employees.

The dedicated time on the shop floor enabled the team to establish a direct connection with MRC employees and thank them for their hard work and dedication. It also provided a glimpse into the focus and coordination required from the entire organisation that culminates in assembling high-quality, finished products to meet customer needs.

The Perth Regional Distribution Centre (RDC), which has now been operational for more than a year, is the key to growth and customer support in the region. It is a new facility next to the existing site and led by Parts Manager Francis Blackburn.

Paul Anscombe, Director of Warehousing and Quality, proposed a team building activity at the RDC, which also helped to clear a backlog of workload. The leadership team performed inbound (receiving, staging and putting away) and outbound (picking and packing) activities. That enabled the leadership team to sample the Project Zebra scanning solution and appreciate the ongoing operational challenges faced by the RDC team.

Engaging with staff on the frontline was a truly humbling moment for the Supply Chain leadership team. It has resulted in a deeper appreciation and understanding of the processes, intricacies and challenges experienced by operations staff and will help to drive future process improvements.