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For several years now all of us in the supply chain field have been hearing about voice recognition and the accolades of the technology. Perhaps ahead of its time, voice recognition is now coming into an optimal time period.
Consider the following facts regarding the workforce primarily within distribution centers:
1. much of the workforce is aging and will be retiring over the next couple of years
2. workers which have long been multi-national are less English speaking than in the past
3. employees are also less education and more illiterate than ever before
Now review your own manufacturing and distribution facilities. Do any of these workforce trends hold true? In addition to the above-mentioned issues, consider that customers want orders faster than ever and with great accuracy. Finally is the issue of seasonality and spikes particularly within the retail business sector.
Thus all these factors together clearly point to voice recognition finally getting their day in the sun. Following are some of the attributes of voice recognition:
1. hands free causing fewer errors
2. accuracy
3. multi lingual
4. speed of training new and seasonal employees from weeks to days
According to CBR "A growing number of companies are deploying speech recognition technology in areas of the enterprise, outside the contact center, in environments where costs can be reduced and worker productivity enhanced through the use of speech. One of these growth areas for speech is in enterprise mobility for field services. While enterprises have long focused on the benefits of streamlining internal operations, the deployment of field force automation solutions has lagged. Now, consumer adaptation to speech as an interface is laying the groundwork for even greater expansion of speech's role in the enterprise. This is helping drive investments in speech-enabled field service applications. Research shows that customer service is just one high-growth area for speech recognition technology." [Source: CBR Online, http://cbronline.com
A brief look at one case of voice confirms the value proposition for voice technology. Connect Logistics Services (CLS) was founded in 1994, when the Canadian province of Alberta privatized its liquor distribution and warehouse system. Since then, CLS has served the Gaming and Liquor Commission, supplying spirits, wines and beers to 1,500 retail outlets throughout the province. The company is a subsidiary of internationally acclaimed Tibbett and Britten Group Americas (TBGA), a $2 billion company dedicated to providing physical distribution, logistics and associated services. True to its lineage, CLS upholds the highest performance standards and strives to be a model in the third-party
logistics (3PL) business. That’s why CLS put voice technology to work. According to Rainor Webb, IT Manager of Connect Logistics Services, the objective was to obtain accurate orders without extensive auditing. The results netted 4 - 5 times fewer mis-picks, an accuracy increase to 99.997%, and a 5 - 10% improvement in pick rates. The return on the investment says Webb was quick payback, based on accuracy gains alone. The future areas targeted for voice are replenishment and receiving.
There are a handful of voice vendors so it is critical to determine your company’s requirements. Do you have a WMS and want to integrate voice or do you want voice built into the WMS you purchase? Would you want voice to be inherent within RF equipment? How can voice systems integrate to existing legacy systems or will upgrades be required before voice can be installed? These are all good questions and can be answered differently according to individual corporate strategies and IT resource demands. To best define requirements it is a good idea to put together a cross-functional team consisting of end user operations, IT professionals, as well as the supply chain strategy group. These departments should cover the majority of information required prior to a selection of a voice recognition product. Finally, be sure there is corporate sponsorship to obtain funding and buy in for the project.
Conclusion:
It’s a good time for voice recognition due to an aging workforce, and an increase of multi national employees. Voice can maintain the speed and accuracy of fulfillment as well as shorten the training to of new and seasonal employees. Define how and why voice is needed to determine the best selection strategy before engaging vendors.
Remember that Navesink Logistics is equipped to assist with selection, design and implementation of voice recognition and all your systems and integration needs.
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Introduction
