DC Velocity - July 2011

than a maintenance staff. Your maintenance staff may be
darn good, but there may be things they are not aware of.”
As for what an audit entails, Bonham offers this descrip-
tion of his own company’s procedure. “Even before going
out, we review the system,” he says. “Then we go to the site
and basically walk through the system while it’s operating.
We talk to the operators, we talk to the mechanics. We get
feedback on what they are experiencing with the system.
Sometimes, the solution is as simple as fixing a guide rail.
Or it may be bearings—we do spot checks on things like
bearings and drive components. Then we usually go back
when the system is down and take a closer look at things.
Afterward, we compile a report on what things need repairs
and what areas need additional regular maintenance.”
The good news for DC managers is that neither type of
audit need disrupt their operations. In fact, doing the audit
requires the on-site analyst to watch the system in action.
And fixes, too, often can be completed with little or no
interruption of operations. “Sometimes it is just a little
adjustment,” says Ruehrdanz. “Sometimes we can make
tweaks right there.”
Either type of audit can take place relatively quickly. For
example, Klueber says Intelligrated’s specialist in opera-
tional audits will spend one to three days in an operation.
“He’ll just walk around and watch the systems run, watch
people working in the pick modules or loading and
unloading trucks. He’ll make some notes and run calcula-
tions and make recommendations on modifying the work
flow.”
Within days of the visit, the auditor should provide a
written report detailing observations and recommenda-
tions. “If there is really something glaring, that would be
called out and highlighted,” says Ruehrdanz.

The resulting reports will likely provide managers with recommendations ranging from simple repairs to software adjustments to process changes to suggestions for systems upgrades. More often than not, Bonham says, the customer’s in-house maintenance staff can implement the recommendations.

Klueber adds that these days, the recommendations often have to do with energy efficiency. “A lot of things can be done there,” he says. “For instance, we can install software packages so that if a system is not carrying product for a certain amount of time, it shuts down.”

MORE CALLS FOR AUDITS

Bonham reports that companies are seeking audits more fre-
quently than in the past. “They are becoming more popular,”
he says. “Maybe customers do not have the maintenance staff
they once had. Or because equipment is more technical, they
want technical expertise. Or rather than invest in a new sys-
tem, they want to make the existing system last longer.”
The best reason may be that an audit can be cheap, dis-
ruptions expensive. As Bonham says, “The cost of down-
time is going up.”