DC Velocity - June 2017

46 DC VELOCITY JUNE 2017 www.dcvelocity.com applications

A look at how DCs are using equipment and services to rev up their operations

FOR COMPANIES WITH COMPLEX GLOBAL supply chains, keeping track of supply, manufacturing, orders, inventory, and logistics— simultaneously and in real or near-real time—is a monumental challenge. One company that has made impressive advances in this regard is Flex (formerly Flextronics), a U.S.-based contract manufacturer and provider of supply chain services to clients such as Nike, Apple Inc., Ford Motor Co., and Microsoft Corp.

With some 14,000 suppliers in 30 countries, Flex was looking for a better way to track those suppliers’ activities and monitor and manage supply chain risk, such as materials shortages, natural disasters, and transportation disruptions. It also wanted to make collaboration easier for its employees, regardless of their location. Toward that end, the company developed software called Flex Pulse that gathers real-time supply chain data from multiple sources and makes it available to users on any device, including computers, tablets, and smartphones.

To support Flex Pulse, the company needed a hardware/ software platform that would make it easy for multiple users to view, share, and manipulate data, and would support video conferencing. Supply chain leadership also wanted to get away from the traditional collaboration and decision-making experience, with individuals viewing different information on their own computers and flipping through screens to access various applications and reports.

To provide the needed platform, Flex chose Multi Taction,
a developer of interactive touchscreen display systems and
software. MultiTaction installed a 22-screen floor-to-ceil-
ing touchscreen display called an i Wall at the Flex Pulse
Center, Flex’s supply chain “nerve center” in Milpitas,
Calif. The screens don’t simply display information; they
incorporate software applications that visualize, aggregate,
and interpret live streaming data from multiple sources,
such as real-time video feeds of production facilities. The
“customer supply chain” view, for example, includes data
on demand, inventory monitoring, manufacturing, quality,
outbound transportation, and delivery.
The iWall allows users to view relevant applications
and information simultaneously. Because the screens are
curved, viewers can see everything on the wall at the same
time. Users can touch the display to drill down to more
information. For example, they can tap on interactive maps
to open up more detail about a location, inventory, and the
supplier. They can also move windows around, bringing
relevant information closer together; one user at Flex com-
pared it with a newspaper, “with all the pages open in front
of you, [so] you can read all the news in one glance and
then tie it all together.” This approach facilitates creativity
and decision-making, the supply chain manager said. “The
thought process changes because the data is staring you in
the face; you don’t have to go looking for it.”
Work being done on the screen in Milpitas can be
broadcast live to other sites. Furthermore, thanks to
MultiTaction’s MT Canvus software working behind the
scenes, users anywhere in the world can access, share, and
manipulate Flex Pulse information, either on smaller dis-
play screens at their own facilities or on their computer,
tablet, or smartphone.
The live data helps users identify and respond to devel-