How do you set up an effective warehouse management system for a large, interconnected organisation such as the DoD? Our very own logistics consultant Adam Roach took on the task. And for his work, he became one of the Australia Day Award recipients in 2022.
The lead up to the inventory warehouse management project
In 2016, a new Defence Warehouse Management System (WMS) was introduced and progressively rolled out to 9 sites over approximately 4 years.
During the lead-up and transitioning of the new system, it was identified that a stockholding reconciliation interface between the new system and the Military Integrated Logistics Information System (MILIS) was required.
Adam worked with the systems integrator and his Defence stakeholder to identify the requirements for the reconciliation interface.
During the preparation phase, Adam was involved in the development of User Acceptance Testing (UAT) which was used to test the Warehouse Management System (WMS) functionality before rollout.
In the UAT process, tests were performed by members of the Department of Defence who oversaw warehouse management to identify if the chosen system would be a good fit for their day-to-day work.
Reconciling data between new and legacy warehouse management systems
The reconciling solution Adam developed was a process that pulls in and compares the data from both systems. The output was an exception report detailing the misalignments that enable each issue to be reviewed and remediated.
To future proof the new process, Adam developed a prototype program that automated the stockholding reconciliation and established the program to run overnight and produce a report for each Joint Logistics Unit (JLU) for the next morning. This then formed the basis of the enduring daily reconciliation process.
To refine the stockholding reconciliation process further, Adam established the policy and procedures and supported each JLU to transition to Business As Usual (BAU).
Setting up a warehouse management system for the Department of Defence in Australia
Adam assisted with establishing the WMS and the reconciliation assurance for each JLU. This program was implemented in the following stages:
roll out
hyper care to support the staff in each JLU
preparation for the next JLU rollout
The implementation was completed over weekends and took up to a week per site per JLU.
The go-live at Site 1 highlighted many deficiencies in process and procedures, Adam was an integral part of a small team that worked on iterations — redefining the roles and responsibilities as well as BAU processes to ensure success.
This project was completed in 2020 with Adam continuing to provide support to the JLU teams on an ad hoc basis.
Post-WMS project improvements, staff training and support
The work did not stop after implementing the WMS. Adam continued to collaborate with each JLU. The goal here was to implement significant behavioural changes in how each JLU – and the DoD overall – manage stock level variances.
He accomplished this with weekly reports to review JLU performance against trend indicators he had established. Where there were issues, he would work with the JLU team to ensure that the policy and procedures were being applied appropriately and modified where necessary.
After the Site 1 rollout, Adam was involved in workshops and data analysis to satisfy Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) requirements that the interface between the WMS and Military Integrated Logistics Information System (MILIS) was working and Defence accounts-maintained integrity.
Australia Day Award-winning logistics consultancy
On 24 February 2022, Adam was awarded an Australia Day Achievement Award for his outstanding contribution to the WMS program.
The Award highlights Adam’s extraordinary personal efforts in enhancing the Defence Logistics Compliance and Assurance data analysis capability. It is a testament to his dedication and tireless efforts throughout the rollout and demonstrates his initiative, resilience and innovation.
Lumify People has been providing strategic and advisory services in learning and development, logistics and program and project management for 20 years. We have a long and successful history with the Department of Defence and have broadened our client base to include a range of Government organisations and corporations.
Lumify People is the advisory and consulting business unit of Lumify Group, Australia’s leading provider of corporate IT training, process training and cybersecurity training. Reach out to our team to enquire about getting consultancy or training support for your projects.