From the outside looking in, the wholesale distribution business appears to be a pretty simple and straightforward business. 

Distributors purchase or consign goods from manufacturers, store them in inventory and then pick pack and ship.  Simple right?

Traditionally, the wholesale distribution industry has been slow to adopt new and changing technology when compared to direct-to-consumer, retail and third party logistics companies. 

Typically, within the four walls of a wholesale distribution warehouse, we’d see lots of old “green screen” technology in use.

It is said, “What gets measured, gets managed.” The opposite is also true.

If you have recently toured your manufacturing and warehousing facilities, you have probably seen Excess & Obsolete (E&O) inventory. It is the material in the corner of the plant awaiting rework that is never prioritized. It is the box with an extra layer of dust on top mixed in with the regular production inventory.

Why Doesn't Forecasting Work?

Many departments and activities in a company are influenced by sales and inventory forecasts. Yet, everyone knows that sales forecasts are at best, not very reliable indicators of what will happen in the future.

With that, how can you manage your supply chain operations when you’re starting with known unreliability? Look, we all know forecasts are seldom accurate!

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