A lot of work has been undertaken by our Supply Chain teams to transform our manufacturing and distribution operations through the increased use of automation and data intelligence. This has supported everything from demand planning to inventory management as well as ergonomic benefits to associates.
Transformation has required the teams to change the way they think about the work and review every process. Supply Chain leadership was empowered to take “intelligent risks” based upon their experience and data, which has led to AI, machine learning and automation upgrades. The following are just a few examples of changes that have been implemented.
Growing Media’s time-saving inventory management
In the past, Growing Media teams took inventory measurements by walking the length of each pile using the “stick and wheel” method. Then, the height of the pile was measured, and the handwritten assessments were used to calculate the volume of each pile.
Today, Growing Media facilities take volumetric measurements with aerial drones. Data is downloaded for calculation and sent to SAPl. Drone flights take less than 30 minutes, compared to the hours required for the old method.
Automated packing in Marysville
In our Marysville plant, individual EZ Seed cases had been packed by hand. Today, case packing is automated, which has eliminated ergonomic risk while increasing packing efficiency by 37% per hour.
Calibration reduced to seconds
Before upgrades at Marysville, associates had to manually remove and reconfigure different sized bags for filling. This was a very labor-intensive process that required an hour each time the bag size changed. Today, an associate simply enters the correct bag size, presses a button and the fill line updates in seconds.
Power of robotics in Temecula
At our Temecula facility, the number one SKU is our Scotts Mini Spreader. Vision systems and robotics perform stacking and assembly, which includes the cam, bushing and agitator assemblies. This has reduced ergonomic risk across three shifts and improved line efficiency.
