Managing a warehouse is no simple task, especially when you’re a growing company focused on continuous improvement. At EQI, we’re always looking for ways to align our warehousing operations with our growth to efficiently fulfill our customers’ precision machining and casting needs. Read on to discover five warehousing challenges we’ve faced over the years and the strategies we’ve used to overcome them.

 

Space Utilization

Optimizing space usage is critical in any warehouse setting. A Warehouse Management System (WMS) can help you identify the most frequently picked items and arrange storage locations to minimize the distance traveled for picking. New racking and storage technology, such as high-density automated storage and retrieval systems (AS/RS), can also help you utilize your space more efficiently.

 

Inventory

Not surprisingly, the most significant challenges in a warehouse involve inventory. Knowing, storing, and using what you have at the right moment can be complex. At EQI, some of the processes we use to ensure inventory accuracy include:

• Using FIFO (First In, First Out) to rotate material
• Utilizing an A-B-C Cycle Count Process
• Auditing inventory frequently
• Completing yearly inventory counts
• Adhering to revision control standards

 

Product Picking

Inefficient product picking is a significant waste of time and money. To combat this, EQI documents and reviews current processes to highlight sources of inefficiencies and improve warehouse operations. Then, we relocate products to allow for more efficient picking and packing. We’ve also added automation and barcode technology that quickly identifies where a product is stored, reducing the time it takes to locate and move items.

 
Communication

One of the biggest challenges in a logistics chain is improving communications. If everyone involved in supply chain decision-making is aligned, planning and executing shipments can be seamless. You can also empower warehouse staff—many of whom are constantly on the move—to better communicate by integrating smartphones, two-way radios, wearable GPS devices, and Manufacturing Execution Software into your operations.

Although EQI utilizes communication tools and technologies, we believe face-to-face communication is still the best practice. Our teams hold daily warehouse meetings to discuss priorities, share concerns, and solve logistics issues.

 

Customer Experience

Superior customer service is a top priority for EQI. That’s why we have an extensive global network of warehouses to serve more clients in more places. We’ve strategically positioned these locations to provide same-day, customized services that help customers keep their costs low. To streamline efficiencies, we also offer value-added services, such as painting (wet and powder), machining, kitting, assembly, inspections, and rework/repair. We aim to provide a comprehensive warehousing service that takes the complexity out of managing multiple vendors for our customers.

 

Interested in learning more about our warehousing capabilities? Contact us today to get started.

616.850.2630
info@eqiltd.com

 

 

Castings are the right choice for many metal product applications. It’s not unusual to prototype a new product using a fabricated assembly, but once production starts, the inefficiencies of cutting, shaping, and welding individual components together begin to add up. In contrast, castings are efficient because material is only applied where needed, and welding is eliminated. In many instances, casting can save time and money while increasing quality. So, how do you know if casting is right for your product?

 

Determining if Casting is a Good Fit for Your Design

We’ve compiled a list of seven considerations to help you decide if casting is right for your next project. It’s important to explore all these factors before switching from fabrication.

1. Complexity – Casting is great for parts with complex geometry because it allows you to quickly create a repeatable and consistent shape. Cored or hollow sections are also possible, sometimes for little additional cost.
2. Size & Thickness – Allowing for appropriate solidification and metal flow, wall thickness of 4 mm or less can be achieved, with variation depending on material and geometry. Casting is possible for isolated thin or thick sections, but the overall design will require expert analysis to ensure success.
3. Strength Requirements – Fabricated joints can be weak spots. In contrast, castings are produced as one piece and can leverage more organic geometries to integrate ribs, gussets, and other strengthening features. This means they are more structurally sound and durable in the long term.
4. Quantity – Fabrication works if you only need a few pieces. Casting may be a more cost-effective option if you need hundreds of pieces. The break-even point gets even lower as the number of components increases in the fabricated assembly.
5. Quality – Casting can improve quality and longevity by reducing welding stress, improving machinability, and increasing dimensional consistency and strength.
6. Efficiency & Cost – Producing a large quantity of fabricated parts requires considerable welding time and cost. Multiple pieces also mean multiple drawings, more production and shipping coordination, and increased inspection time.
7. Materials – With casting, you have great freedom to specify material options to tailor to the application.

 

Achieving Optimal Performance Through Casting

Our best practice is to align engineering with a casting expert during the design phase for any new component. This ensures that the material and process selection meets the design requirements. We also focus on what best suits your fit, form, and function needs to achieve quality standards at a competitive cost.

Another way we achieve optimal performance is by coordinating the casting process with the desired mechanical properties of the material. Understanding the end use for the casting helps us determine subsequent processing steps, like heat treatment or shot blasting, which can impact the mechanical properties. Our capable design team will help you choose the right material for the application and identify any secondary processes or testing to ensure the material properties meet your needs.

 

Working with EQI on Casting Conversion

EQI offers a streamlined process to help you successfully transition to cast products. We also have fabrication to casting conversion solutions for various components to reduce weights, optimize design, and decrease costs for OEM customers. When you work with us, you can expect the following process:

• Work together to identify opportunities for casting
• Provide design feedback on geometry, materials, and process
• Give preliminary feedback on directional pricing
• Create CAD model of new part
• Validate the design using advanced modeling for flow and solidification
• Provide a firm quote after the drawing/ design is finalized
• Produce samples for PPAP approval
• Launch production

 

Ready to Get Started? Contact us:

616.850.2630
info@eqiltd.com

 

 

When it comes to the baskets your operation uses for heat treating and thermal processing, it may seem easier and more foolproof to choose the same bar frame baskets you’ve used for years. Hundreds of our customers, however, will tell you there’s a better way. Our cast baskets are engineered to withstand heavy-duty loading requirements that outlive and outperform traditional bar frame designs.

 

Are You Still Buying Bar Frame Baskets?

Many of our customers are die-hard bar frame basket buyers. And we do understand the appeal. First, bar frame baskets typically have quick lead times and are affordably priced. There’s no need for tooling to produce them, compared with cast baskets, which can be expensive. That said, there is a tradeoff that comes along with the affordability of bar frame baskets. Bar frame baskets have a lower level of carbon and nickel, which means they lose their integrity and shape in six months to a year. So, while paying less initially, you will purchase bar frame baskets more frequently–ultimately costing you more time and money.
 

Why Make the Switch to Cast Baskets?

The bar frame baskets you’ve been buying may work for your operation, but you might want to consider a more durable, consistent, heat-efficient option that can optimize throughput.

First, cast baskets hold their shape longer than bar frame baskets and have better heat efficiency. With a life span of one and a half to two years, their improved dimensional stability results in a more consistent end product. This reduces the need for post-processing or rework following the thermal cycle.

By leveraging our expertise in specialized fixturing and our cast baskets, you can achieve optimal loading and surface contact, preventing part deformation. In addition, our cast baskets offer a thinner wall cross-section, providing 7-10 percent more loading capacity than frame-welded basket designs.

When you decide to invest in our cast baskets, our team will help identify the best size, shape, and combination of components to optimize your loads. We will leverage our pattern inventory of hundreds of designs and sizes that fit most base trays and furnace hearths. We also offer a wide variety of premium materials to suit your processing temperatures.
 

Why Choose Pro-Tech for Cast Baskets?

Pro-Tech has decades of industry experience, with a strong focus on customer service, product design and performance, and personal sales assistance.

Our US-based experts have created a proprietary cast basket design and superior alloy that increases life expectancy by 50 percent. Without frequent basket replacement, your operations will run smoothly for longer. While the initial investment in the cast basket may be higher, you’ll see significant cost savings over the basket’s life.

With metal component experts Pro-Tech and parent company EQI, you can expect the performance guarantee that comes from an ISO 9001 quality system. Our foundry staff and metallurgical team continuously improve existing alloys and create new ones that increase cast products’ overall life and performance. As a baseline, we offer higher nickel content than our competitors, ensuring stronger, more durable basket walls.

When you’re ready to move forward with a Pro-Tech customized solution, the engineering process is easy. Our experts will create the drawing and collaborate with you on approval. Then, we’ll produce and ship your order. Some standard sizes are already in stock, making ordering even easier.

Once you’re in our system, you can participate in our stocking and replacement program. Our decades of experience in inventory management allow us to efficiently track your tray, basket, fixture, and replacement parts, ensuring zero downtime when you need to place an order.
 

Ready to make the switch? Contact one of our reps today.

630.271.0551
sales@protechcompanyinc.com

 

 

As anyone in the logistics field knows, a confluence of stressors continue to strain a highly congested and extremely delicate network. Ocean freight demand at all origins around the world already far exceeds capacity, with no end in sight to that demand. Congestion in one region, whether caused by demand or low water, can wreak havoc at other ports. Domestic rail congestion combined with container truck chassis shortages conspire to make dray operations a challenge everywhere. And that’s without taking into account the impact wildfires and other natural disasters have on supply chains.

From COVID-19 outbreaks to container shortages, from record demand to domestic rail congestion and truck lease walkouts, the ability to synchronize the network is all but lost. In this unprecedented environment, manufacturers are looking for ways to mitigate risks, keep their supply chain moving, and avoid production stoppages. Here are three strategies that can help.

Strategy #1: Secure Future Capacity Now
Manufacturers can help assure their shipments won’t be impacted by booking freight as far in advance as possible.

• Commit specific weekly volume to transportation partners (then stand behind that commitment).
• Forecast your volume by week through the end of Q1, 2022. Without a forecast, shipping partners are flying blind during the worst transportation crisis in history.
• Create a “fallout pool” of inventory with sourcing partners. Take full advantage of ad-hoc or unplanned capacity from your shipping partners for any finished goods that are ready to ship.

Strategy #2: Evacuate Freight at Origins
With the North American freight situation in disarray, manufacturers need to take creative steps to mitigate risk. Possibilities include:

• Diversify arrival ports to North America.
• Consider ports not normally leveraged in your specific network.
• Leverage any available capacity to historically underutilized ports.
• Rail service from Mexico and Canada can get your container to the US.
• Where LCL is normally slower than FCL, today it can be much faster.

Strategy #3: Gain Control Upon Vessel Arrival
Risks abound in the domestic rail and trucking outlook across the US and Canada, with the overwhelming volume of containerized freight pushing the network to its limits. Assert control as near the ports as possible.

• Evaluate transload opportunities. For example: steamship lines prefer to keep their asset (the empty container) near the port, which can make your freight more attractive than a container going all the way to the US Midwest.
• Consider leveraging existing warehouse facilities to break freight and ship the appropriate cargo on to its final destination via FTL or LTL.

Choosing the Right Partner Can Mitigate Risks
Strain on global logistics is such that any historically minor event can result in a significant negative impact. By securing future capacity, diversifying arrival points, and gaining control of freight upon arrival, US manufacturers can begin to mitigate the risk of production stoppages.

The right logistics partner can bring value-added expertise and management to your supply chain. EQI continues to secure capacity and safeguard the supply chain of some of the world’s leading OEMs. We can help you, too. Contact us to learn more.

Covid variants, extreme weather, and labor will continue to have a negative impact on all logistics operations as we head into 2022. Covid is again restricting air travel, which in turn impedes the air freight network. Much as forest fires did a few months ago, flooding in the Pacific Northwest has severely disrupted rail services. And labor factors are not trending positively. Operational planning in the near term should continue to be conservative in nature.

Here’s what logistics managers can expect in the near, mid, and long term from the containerized freight network.

Near-Term Outlook

Continued service volatility across the network should be expected in the near term. Empty containers are filling North American port complexes and makeshift storage yards along the East, West, and Gulf coasts. Expect empty container availability to deteriorate at origin, trending towards a severe constraint from now through Lunar New Year.

The normally positive impact of the Lunar New Year respite on US domestic operations will not occur this year. Where US port, rail, trucking, and warehouse operations have historically “cleared the deck” of volumes during the holiday, existing backlogs will prevent that benefit in the coming months.

Mid-Term Outlook

The most significant mid-term factor impacting the freight network is the negotiation of the 2022 labor contract between the International Longshore & Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA). The ILWU is keenly aware of the record-breaking earnings among steamship line members of the PMA. During negotiations in 2014 and 2015, rather than conduct strikes and lockouts the ILWU proceeded with systematic “slowdowns” designed to apply pressure to the PMA while decreasing the risk of the government invoke the Taft-Hartley Act (which prohibits certain union practices). Cargo owners today do not have the opportunity to diversify away from the US West Coast in preparation for any contentiousness in the process.

Given these factors, the ILWU walks into these negotiations with strong leverage. The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA), which represents labor on the US East and Gulf Coasts, will be closely watching developments, given that its current contract with the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) expires in 2024. Should a highly favorable agreement be reached by the ILWU, the ILA may consider a reaction well before 2024.

Forwarders are left with little leverage. The new ocean freight contract season will be the first of its kind, with all bargaining power in the hands of steamship lines. What little leverage remains with forwarders, having diminished dearly over the last 18 months, continues to slip away. Regardless of where rates may end up, cargo owners who do not have existing multi-year agreements or tried-and-true partnerships could be completely left out. Leverage held by steamship lines is such that cargo owners may also face a new reality of financial penalties for any unused bookings.

Black Friday sales were down this year for the first time in history. Inflation is no longer “transitory,” according to analysts. Cash-to-cash cycles are already leveraged due to long transit times and global raw material and parts shortages. How will corporate lenders react to a downturn in consumer spending, and how could that reaction impact supply chains?

Long-Term Outlook

The long-term horizon may be the easiest to predict, with the upside of network consistency and capability. And that upside is not related to infrastructure investment by the government. Steamship lines have not demonstrated strong discipline in managing long-term capacity. Fueled by record earnings, new vessel orders are at historic levels. Once those vessels begin to come online in 2024-2025 carriers are more likely to resort to their old habits, where cargo owners benefit from price wars.

Many supply chains diversified origin footprints in response to trade wars with China. Following continued covid shutdowns, diversification continued. In addition, domestic and nearshore solutions have become more popular throughout the last 18 months. Should strong sourcing diversification remain in place, cargo owners can expect better consistency within the containerized freight network. New vessels are likely to be deployed to port pairs where demand is consistent.

A More Resilient Network

As creative solutions have become the new normal for supply chain professionals, North American port diversification is more prevalent than ever. Combined with more diverse sourcing origins, and assuming the combination remains a reality, the overall ability of the containerized freight network to react to one-off events like weather, trade wars, labor agreements, or health pandemics, should be improved greatly.

In the meantime, EQI can help you negotiate the significant challenges currently facing manufacturers as they try to secure parts on time and on budget. Contact us today to find out how EQI can simplify your supply chain.

Virus outbreaks. Natural disasters. Vessel accidents. Geopolitical instability. Exceedingly high demand. Freight rates so high they would have been unimaginable only a short time ago.

The now-normal new normal, for supply chain operations, is not likely to improve anytime soon.

January and February saw US west coast terminals handling an all-time historic low (58.2%) share of total imports from Asia to the United States, while the US east and gulf coast terminals handled average all-time high percentages. In advance of July 1, when the existing longshore labor agreement on the West Coast will expire, beneficial cargo owners (BCOs) have diverted enough volumes away from the US west coast that terminal operations on the other US coasts are now constrained.

As demand for the US east and gulf coasts increases, steamship lines have boosted vessel sizes and added new services in these ports. Queues for terminals along these coasts now well exceed 70 total vessels. Shippers now must attempt to manage the same challenges on the East and Gulf Coasts that they’ve had to manage on the West Coast for the last 12 months.

Covid outbreaks in China (and the government’s response to them) are causing havoc to landside origin operations, with vessel queues climbing daily for China ocean terminals. Whenever this current covid crisis finally untangles, the whiplash effect on North American terminal operations will be significant.

The now normal is an environment where supply chain design, team members, and partners must acknowledge that further disruption—whatever the cause—will continue to unfold. The effects of such disruption in the now normal, including the financial costs of moving freight, are exceedingly painful. Planners should continue to plan conservatively. Any freight arriving ahead of conservatively planned transit times should be considered an upside and not a signal of an improved containerized freight network.

North American port productivity has proven not to be the singular pinch point in the end-to-end network. North American landside operations including domestic rail, domestic trucking, and domestic warehouse operations must become more efficient on their own and in concert to benefit from any singular nodal improvement at origin, on the water, or in domestic terminal operations.

Should demand cease, virus activity disappear, and steamship capacity become fully realized, the end-to-end network is still 12 months from anything resembling the old normal. In the meantime, EQI is helping OEMs navigate the now normal to secure parts on time and on budget. Contact us to see how we can help simplify your supply chain.

Today’s supply chains are more complex than ever and continue to be impacted by the pandemic, natural disasters, geopolitical challenges, trade disputes, and other risks.

Successful management of a casting supply chain requires a defined step-by-step process; metallurgical and casting design expertise; sourcing and logistics experience; on-the-ground management of a global network of foundries; and flexible fulfillment solutions. For many OEMs, that means contracting with a trusted supply chain partner.

EQI takes a proven approach to manage the global casting supply chain for our OEM customers. Contact us to learn more.