Warehouse management is an essential piece of the supply chain process and creates a clearly defined breakpoint between the supply and demand aspects of any business. Warehousing consists of two prime elements of cost and administration through: - 1. Minimize total operational cost 2. Giving the ideal degree of service A warehouse can work in different forms from a single territory as a base receiving, storing and preparing for delivery to the complete commercial center to a mind-boggling organization central, regional and local facilities. Chosen Organization is Wal-Mart since it is the largest retail corporation and has extraordinary supply chain management.

1. Study of Warehousing
Practices of Wal-Mart
Submitted By:
Group 6 Section 2
UM19106-Manas Agarwal
UM19148- Biswadeep Ghosh Hazra
UM19170-Prajakta Jagannatha Raikar
UM19114- Pooja Rath
UM19122- Sankalpa Purohit

2. Introduction
•Warehouse management is an essential piece of the supply chain process and creates a
clearly defined breakpoint between the supply and demand aspects of any business.
•Warehousing consists of two prime elements of cost and administration through: -
1. Minimize total operational cost
2. Giving the ideal degree of service
•A warehouse can work in different forms from a single territory as a base receiving,
storing and preparing for delivery to the complete commercial center to a mind-
boggling organization central, regional and local facilities.
•Chosen Organization is Wal-Mart, since it is the largest retail corporation and
has extraordinary supply chain management.

3. Warehousing Practices at Wal - Mart
•Using electronic data interchange (EDI) with suppliers - This cuts the transaction costs associated with the
ordering of products. The other benefit is that these electronic links with suppliers allows Walmart a high degree
of control and synchronization in the scheduling and receiving of product deliveries.
•Strategy of Expanding Around Distribution Centers (DCs) - Expanding is central to the way Walmart
enters a new terrestrial market. It then builds a new warehouse at a central location in the zone and opens its first
store at the similar time.
•The “big box” store format - It allows Walmart to combine a store and a warehouse in a single facility and get
countless operating efficiencies from that. The big box is large enough to hold large amounts of inventory like a
warehouse.
•“Everyday low prices” - EDLP is a way of doing two things. The first thing is to tell its price conscious
customers that they will always get the best price. The second thing is to accurately forecast product sales.

4. Logistics Management at Wal-Mart
• Wal-Mart design their own private fleet to deliver the goods to different stores
• They have their own 5800 trucks and 6900 drivers .
• Wal-Mart distribution centre can have an average of 19 kilometers of conveyor belt.
• In a radius of 322 km from the distribution centre around 90 to 100 stores present
• Each distribution system more than 1 million sq feet. Distribution centre keep the
goods flow to different stores 24 hours per day
• The logistics hubs of Wal-Mart map their drivers' most effective routes and
work to reduce the amount of "empty kilometers" they drive and track the
entire shipping process. This way, thus minimizing their carbon foot print,
Wal-Mart will use less gasoline, travel less kilometers and optimize the
product being sold.

5. Supercube Wal-Mart
• A 60-foot 6 inch trailer combined with a snub-nosed truck and drome box
• Allows the store to ship up to 40 percent more products compared to a typical
combination of 53-foot tractor-trailer
• Economies of scale & lower transportation cost per product

6. Cross-docking
• Wal-Mart's plan for effective product replenishment
• Direct movement of goods from inbound or outbound truck trailers without the need for
additional storage
How this can be achieved ?
Unloading items from an incoming semi-trailer or railway vehicle, then directly loading them onto
outbound trucks, trailers or rail vehicles (and vice versa) without storage in between
• Suppliers supply distribution centres of Wal-Mart where the product is cross-docked and then
distributed to stores of Wal-Mart
• Wal-Mart's truck fleet of drivers constantly transports items to distribution centers , where
they are processed, repackaged and distributed without sitting in storage (located an average of
130 miles from the store)
• Goods, typically in 24 hours or less, can cross from one loading dock to another and company
trucks that would otherwise return empty "backhaul" unsold merchandis
• Cross-docking keeps inventory and shipping costs down, reduces transport time and
avoids inefficiencies

7. Upcoming Trends inWarehousing
i)Internet of Things
(IoT)
i)Artificial
Intelligence (AI)
i)Robotic Process
Automation (RPA)
i)Last Mile Delivery
i)Blockchain i)Autonomous
Vehicles and Drones
i)Elastic
Warehousing
i)Warehouse
Automation
i)Data Analytics i)Cloud Computing

8. Technology Adoption
Internet of Things (IoT)- Internet of Things is simply means the provision of and the ability to connect and control a wide variety of physical
objects (which are meant for normal day-to-day usage) with the help of internet, sensors and software.
a. Proposal- Since IoT devices need an underlying internet connection all the time, a strong Wi-Fi in the surrounding environment is
preferred.
b. Usage- Sensors built onto containers or RFID tags that help monitor the product throughout the entire chain of the journey thereby
helping achieve Supply Chain Visibility (SCV).
c. Start-up in the field- Fleetroot is an UAE based start-up which offers companies an IoT platform for effective fleet management. It provides
fuel management solutions by generating detailed reports about fuel wastage and consumption
Artificial Intelligence (AI)- AI has made huge leaps in recent years and companies have leveraged it well to their advantage. Artificial
Intelligence is one of the buzzwords of the present times that is thrown around a lot.
a. Proposal- Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning is being used wherever possible by companies.
b. Usage- Demand Forecasting, optimized routes with the help of Google Maps, Process Automation are some of the ways AI and ML can be
used
c. Start-up in the field- Adiona is an Australian based start-up that helps other companies improve their logistic processes and reduce overall
costs. It also optimizes delivery routes and supports complex decision making

9. Technology Adoption
Blockchain- Satoshi Nakamoto’s creation is finding new uses and can be used ingeniously in logistics and warehousing management as well. In
spite of the fact that the workings of Blockchain is largely unknown by the general public, it is still in industries used all around the globe
a. Proposal- No third-party software or companies would be needed to interface at multiple points, instead a network of seamlessly updating
ledgers would take the place
b. Usage- From enabling card-less B2B payments to tracking of perishable items, to tackling the influence of counterfeits in pharmaceuticals,
blockchain is definitely a boon for the logistics industry
c. Start-up in the field- The USA based start-up, ShipChain manages end to end shipping process by leveraging the power of blockchain. The
platform provided by the start-up allows its customers to track shipment locations at every step of the logistical journey
Robotic Process Automation (RPA)- RPA helps in eliminating the need for humans to do repetitive tasks completely thereby saving precious
resources thus enabling increased productivity, efficiency and reduced overhead costs and errors
a. Proposal- There is a lot of manual, repetitive tasks in logistics and that can easily be tackled by implementing RPA
b. Usage- There are many examples-
a. Using RFID tags within the logistical process to locate a product instantly
b. Automatic invoicing, automated inputs of purchased orders
c. Prevent the counterfeiting or smuggling of important assets using appropriate sensors
c. Start-up in the field- Actimai combines big data, AI along with RPA to provide customized solutions that are optimizable, manageable and
deployable to its customers

10. Recommendations
 Recommendations for Wal-Mart’s supply chain in the immediate future will be to further
analyse the current inventory level and it’s cost.
 We will also recommend to upgrade the Retail Link Software and analyse the current
forecasting methods and communication to the distribution centres.
 Also to establish cross-functional teams implementing lean initiatives with the main
objective of minimizing inventory levels. One example of excess inventory exists at the
store level when employees spend time sorting through truckload to find fast selling
items. Information for the cross-functional team would include benchmarking other retail
chains inventory restocking systems. The competition is threatening to Wal-Mart with
competing information systems, through a broad range of products and services and
other low cost large retailers

11. Thank You!
Group 6 | Section 2