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Fast React
Fast React
If the world before seemed difficult, the latest economic downturn hasn't helped, with buyers placing even
greater demands on their suppliers, both in terms of price and lead times. Various significant retailers
have recently faced criticism in the press for placing unreasonable demands on their vendors.
The response is not surprisingly 'Our customers expect us to seek best value from the supply chain on
their behalf'. Certainly with the fierce competition on the high street the situation is unlikely to improve
dramatically.
With sales volumes down, not only are suppliers facing price reductions, but also a fear of unfilled order
books.
Buyers themselves are only too aware of the risks of placing too much pressure on the supply chain.
Some suppliers will simply not survive. Others will place the buyer at significant risk by regularly breaking
compliance rules. If identified by the media, such compliance violations can cause real and significant
damage to a retailers reputation and trading volumes.
QUESTION: So when the pressure comes on, who are the buyers most likely to place business
with??
ANSWER: Suppliers who can demonstrate a high degree of flexibility and control and who,
through efficiency gains, are able to be competitive on both price and lead times.
In a difficult business environment, many fashion companies hold back, uncertain of investment decisions
and some of this caution is justified.
Yet, it is important also to be able to identify those specific investments that enable you to leap forward
and stand out against the competition. For most businesses, achieving improvements in VISIBILITY,
COORDINATION AND CONTROL is essential to competing in the current climate.
Get the right tools for the job.... Fast React is the ONLY fully proven planning solution for the fashion
industry.
YES... Your people can use Fast React, easily!
YES... It can be interfaced to your existing systems/ERP.
YES... It is affordable, including structured payment options.
YES... Achievable benefits are proven with a return on investment in typically 6 months or less.
No... You don't have a good reason to delay... Standing still is not a recipe for survival!
The fashion industry is under tremendous price pressure from both the highly competitive retail
marketplace and from Global currency fluctuations. The effects of these are:
in many cases, a significant shift in Global supply base to achieve better prices e.g. Bangladesh
as a result, potentially weak suppliers (financially), where those suppliers are not efficient and
'geared up' to cope
a higher risk of failed orders as vendors try to achieve more than they are capable of
social compliance issues, again as risks are taken to meet price points and delivery
Whilst some significant 'promiscuity' in the supply base will exist as companies search for best prices,
major buying offices also have to consider stability in the supply chain. They will look to work with
proactive suppliers who can consistently respond and perform, in all areas of lead time, quality and price.
The good news is that huge opportunities exist to improve supply chain efficiency, for those companies
prepared to change the excessively manual, typically spreadsheet based systems that are still used by
90% of all companies, both vendors and buying offices alike.
Existing working practices are a key factor in the creation of excess costs (excessive style change,
overtime, air freight, delivery penalties etc), many of which could be avoided through better coordination
and visibility of priorities.
Excessively manual systems severely hinder visibility and the ability to respond and manage priorities.
To maintain an effective supply chain in this environment, excellent visibility and coordination are
essential.
The real risk for many companies is carrying on with the inefficient methods they have now but some how
expecting a different result.
Get the right tools for the Job... TOTAL VISIBILITY, COORDINATION, CONTROL... with Fast React.
clearly where they are and remain in control so that all processes up until delivery may be
performed accurately and on time."
Andrew Lever, Chief Executive Officer
- Excessive risks are being taken as many vendors accept orders without all the necessary information to
do so and then fail to perform.
- Many vendors are currently struggling to hit prices, but at the same time haemorrhaging expense due to
excess costs.
To maintain an effective supply chain in this environment, excellent visibility and coordination are
essential, not just 'nice to have' options.
Excessively manual systems severely hinder the ability to respond and manage priorities equalling
increased risk of non performance and errors, resulting in even more fire-fighting and excess costs.
Increasingly, companies are concluding that they cannot continue with their existing methods. There has
to be a better way.
Get the right tools for the Job... TOTAL VISIBILITY, COORDINATION, CONTROL... with Fast React.
have to rely on spreadsheets, manual based systems and emails. This can only get worse as your lead
times reduce and your product range/business grows.
Fast React provides a solution that can harness this process from new style development through to the
delivery of your finished goods.
"We welcome the new Fast React system, with its user friendly set up which is uniquely tailored to meet
the needs of the Panache business model. Used by other well established businesses akin to our trade,
we welcome what it can do for us.
To have a system which both supports the existing processes that work and brings new ideas along with a
more focused way of working is a refreshing approach. The true barometer for us is the high user buy in
and positive feedback we have already received."
Audrey Harris, Head of Technical - Panache Lingerie (UK)
help apparel manufacturers to rise to the lead time challenge and to respond much more effectively. As
specialist providers only to the garment industry and related sectors, our ongoing, industry specific
investment in Fast React ensures that our solutions evolve continuously to meet the ever changing needs
of the industry. We are delighted to work with Crystal Group and look forward to identifying real business
benefits through this exciting project.
increased options and delayed commitment by Buyers = more styles, smaller orders
The above conditions combine with huge pressure to hit 'price points'. This typically leads to:
huge work pressures on merchandising and sourcing teams, working with excessively manual
systems (an estimated 90% of companies still use spreadsheets)
a total lack of any coordinated, business level visibility and 'early warning' system
increased risk of failure, additional expense e.g. poor coordination = delayed production start and
ultimately cancelled orders, excessive air freight costs, lack of product on shelf.
To maintain an effective supply chain in this environment, excellent visibility and coordination are
essential, not just 'nice to have' options.
Excessively manual systems severely hinder the ability to respond and manage priorities equalling
an increased risk of non performance and errors which results in even more fire-fighting and excess
costs. Increasingly, companies are concluding that they cannot continue with their existing methods.
There has to be a better way.
"This is immediately apparent when first visiting the manufacturing facility. Working practices are
impressive, including fantastic control of materials inventory, with a stock accuracy level close to 99.9%.
This says a lot about how focused Textured Jersey is as a business. As expected, the project was not
straightforward, but thats where specialist expertise is important. As specialists in areas of planning,
sourcing and critical path management, our clients can rest assured that with our experience and
commitment to success they will always get a solution that works for them".
"We chose Fast React after numerous conversations with their competitors.
We believe Fast React is the most knowledgeable in understanding our industry,
business model and our problems..."
Chris Cantasano, COO - Madison88 Ltd (USA)
Fabric Stores: The Right Fit For PCBased POS & Bar Codes
House of Fabrics chain adopts technology to increase worker productivity and provide better inventory
control during company downsizing.
Business Solutions, February 1998
Written by: Nancy Senger
Automating the point of sale was not a casual decision for House of Fabrics. The retail chain of craft and
fabric stores was hit hard when its 1980's growth-by-acquisition strategy encountered the slow economy
of the 1990's. With over 700 outlets across the country ten years ago, tough times have forced it to trim
back to 265 stores. Point of sale (POS) automation was a necessary part of the company's 'lean and mean'
recovery. For guidance and support, it turned to long-time POS system integrator, DMF Data
Management Facility Company Inc.
Re-Stocking Process Is Inefficient
Inventory management and price control are key elements of the new House of Fabrics. With thousands
of craft items and fabric spools in each store, fast response to changing seasons and fashions is crucial to
financial success. Store managers were used to tabulating their monthly purchase requirements based on
a "gut-feel" of what products were moving. Centralized purchase decisions were made based on managers'
requests and market trends. Regional differences in consumer tastes or preferences were difficult to
accommodate.
The electronic cash register simply recorded purchases at the till. All transactions were performed
manually; product bar codes were not used. The tracking of its core product - custom cuts of fabric - was
done on paper. Information about the fabric type and length was written at the cutting station and
reinterpreted at the check-out counter. The customer was given a simple receipt which did not provide
any information about the item purchased.
New POS System Tracks Bar-Coded Items
DMF designed an automation solution using bar-code and computer technology. All items sold required
bar codes. For many craft items, UPC bar codes were already in place. The cutting stations were set up
with bar-code printers, bar code scanners, programmable keyboards and Pentium PCs. Fabric cutting was
done as it always had been, but paper tracking was replaced by bar-code scanning and programmable
keyboard data entry. Each spool of fabric was assigned a unique bar code which was scanned before
cutting.
Keyboard layouts were customized to match the requirements of the cutting process, making data entry
easy for House of Fabrics sales personnel. After the custom cutting of the fabric, new bar code tags were
printed on-the-spot and each fabric cut was tagged for quick processing at the check-out counter.
Components In The New System
The POS check-out stations were outfitted with Pentium PCs, Metrologic scanners, Jarltech
programmable keyboards, Star Micronics receipt printers and cash drawers from M-S Cash Drawer. Bar
code scanning and simplified keyboard entry improved the speed and accuracy of each transaction. DMF
put systems in place so that the sales information from each POS station within each store would
automatically be polled by corporate headquarters at the end of each working day. In addition, systems
were installed so that each station in each store would be updated overnight with new item pricing as
required. To prevent information loss during breakdown or power failure, DMF's system offered the
redundancy of a fully powered PC at each station.
Benefits Of The New System
The automatic polling of sales information from each store has provided corporate office with the
capability to restock or redistribute craft and fabric items as required. This has provided a new ability for
fast response to regional differences and changes in consumer preference.
needs). "The consumables for small desktop printers are more expensive because the cost to manufacture
the media is higher," he explains. "Even if a customer can save money by purchasing a cheaper printer,
over time it might be spending more money." In general, Edwards says if a customer is printing fewer
than 20,000 labels a month, he'll recommend a low-tier printer. At 1,000 labels or more a day, he
recommends mid- to high-range printers. With mobile computers, the VAR is sure to factor in the cost of
replacement batteries over time. By looking at a five-year life span, the consumables savings might pay for
an upgrade to the next piece of hardware.
Use The Economy To Sell Bar Coding Services
While external requirements are dictating new technology adoption, internal requirements are also
creating a need Texas Barcode looks to fulfill. Indeed, while Texas Barcode's hardware sales slipped a bit
in 2009 due to the economy, Edwards says revenue from his professional services has risen 15% during
the same time. Specifically, Edwards says that due to the economy, many companies downsized
especially in the IT department putting additional burden on the existing IT staff. Therefore, during the
VAR's more recent installs, customers were willing to pay for Texas Barcode's professional services to
lighten the burden on internal resources. "We have customers with multiple locations, but IT staff only at
headquarters," explains Edwards. "Therefore, we act as the remote IT staff, performing site surveys, doing
configuration work, and training the end users. Some customers give us a list of settings for printers; then
we set them up and ship them out." In the past, many of the VAR's customers would shoulder this burden.
As another way to lighten the IT burden on customers, Texas Barcode also provides free technical
support. Rather than pass customer problems on to the device manufacturer, the VAR handles problems
with its own support team. Edwards says this accomplishes a couple of things. First, it ensures his
customers receive prompt service. Second, it keeps his employees educated and in tune with customer
issues. The VAR also says the manufacturers of the products he resells appreciate the VAR's efforts to
solve problems. "When we eventually call a manufacturer, they know it's a real problem," he says. As you
might know, so many support calls are for trivial problems, which is why Edwards feels he's doing the
right thing by giving away tech support for free. "We can solve about 90% of printer trouble calls without
sending someone on-site. It's usually a calibration issue or a media error." Regardless, the free tech
support saves his customers money, which, in turn, leads to happier customers.
Finally, Edwards helps educate his customers. This goes beyond the training involved in an initial rollout.
The VAR says another problem its customers face is uneducated users. "A lot of manufacturers have high
turnover in the positions that use the technology we install," he says. "For our larger customers, we'll
provide a quarterly training session to acclimate new users to the printers. It's sort of a course on barcoding basics." The benefits are that this helps customers be more productive because users know what
they're doing, and the printers work more reliably because users aren't mishandling them. Like technical
support, this is a free service Texas Barcode provides.
As the economy continues to improve, Edwards believes the needs of his core market will remain
unchanged, creating great opportunity for the VAR in 2010. He concludes, "I think we've seen the
economy bottom out. All indications from our customers are that everyone is running really lean. The only
direction is up."
Responsive service - Hsu says VARs should give their customers a call-back
within 24 hours when they have printer problems.
Multi-technology printing - Many users print shipping manifests and pick lists
in addition to labels. Therefore, VARs shouldn't limit their focus to just
"dedicated" bar-code printers. "VARs should consider offering laser printers for
users that need more than a label printer," Kleist adds.
A demand for portable printers - Hsu says portable printers have become
increasingly popular in applications like vehicle rental. Some rental agencies
allow customers to park the vehicle and report to a worker in the lot. Using a
portable printer, the worker prints the customer a receipt on the spot, saving the
customer time.