The following is a Q&A discussion with Dorothy Principe, President of Universal Tool & Manufacturing.
The challenges faced by UTM may be similar to the challenges you are currently facing. Read on to find out how UTM solved her space and efficiency issues.
Q: Dorothy, can you tell me a little bit about Universal Tool & Manufacturing Co. (UTM)?
A: We’re a job shop that is focused on custom metal stamping, tool and die making. We’ve been around since 1945! Over the years we have developed a large customer base giving us a need to keep inventory of finished goods that we ship from our warehouse
right here in New Jersey.
Q: So you have a fulfillment warehouse that you ship from. What types of issues were you experiencing with your fulfillment?
A: Many – we needed space badly! At least I thought that was the main issue. Working in specialty manufacturing, we’ve got a lot of raw materials we need to inventory as well as all our stock of finished goods. We were overcrowded, there were parts in all different areas of the building, skids were all over the place. It took us forever to get items off our racks because we’d have to move all the skids in front of the racks just to get our forklift in there! Product was getting misplaced and fulfillment was taking too long to get out the door. Something had to be done.
Q: And what did you do?
A: This problem was obviously brewing for awhile and we were looking for different solutions for a few years. Many of the storage systems we had looked at before were too complex, too expensive, required ordinances, and would disrupt our business too much. I knew there had to be some other options other than moving so I kept looking.
I found 3 companies who all said they could help so I had them come in, do an analysis of our warehouse, and brainstorm solutions for our space and efficiency issues. One company never showed, another company came and did a walkthrough and never came back with a proposal! I realized that those guys were just product people – they could sell you a product but couldn’t actually help identify and solve the issues. Then came Specialized Storage Solutions.
Q: So are you saying that Specialized Storage Solutions focused on more than just selling a product?
A: Specialized Storage Solutions looked at our problems differently. Bill came in and was responsive right away. He did a detailed walk-through of our company, and then got straight to work. He came back with drawings of what could be done and provided us options that would fit ourneeds. He really listened and addressed our exact needs, and was affordable.
Q: You mentioned previous solutions would disrupt your business too much and required outside ordinances to make work. What was the installation process like?
A: So much easier than what we had looked at before. We didn’t require any ordinances and the team at Specialized Storage handled everything. In planning, we realized that the floor needed to be leveled, but Bill and his team had a plan and worked that in seamlessly. Disruption to the business was minimal due to the total project management approach that they provided in the installation. Any questions, Bill was right there and so accessible the whole way through. It was very professional.
Q: And your warehouse staff – do they like the finished result?
A: They love it! The high density storage systems are so easy to use. Everything is clearly organized and they can see all the items without searching for them. Storage space increased by 60% allowing us to maneuver easily and access all our raw materials and finished goods with ease. It takes less time to get orders out the door and there is no more wasted time looking for product. We’re so much more efficient, which is a must in today’s environment.
Q: Would you recommend Specialized Storage Solutions to other companies?
A: Absolutely. Working with Bill and Specialized Storage Solutions was a great experience. In fact, I have already recommended them to many other companies. I had been searching for a company like Specialized for awhile, I am so glad we found them.
REQUEST YOUR FREE OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY ANALYSIS TODAY