Simple Desktop Performance Analysis

When you need to do some quick performance analysis you can use a simple desktop top database application like Microsoft Access, SAS EG, Ninox Database, OpenOffice Base, LibreOffice Base, and Memento Database. With five key data elements you can easily do analysis on KPIs that will show you how effectively your company is achieving its key business objectives.

Five key data elements

• Item Identifier: A unique item identification that is either numeric or alphanumeric that is associated with a single entity.

• Event Date: The date an event (something of significance happens) took place and is captured in a data warehouse. Events like a parcel received at a warehouse or parcels delivered to customer.

• Event Identifier: A unique item identification that is either numeric or alphanumeric that is associated with a single entity. Events like a parcel being received at a warehouse or delivered to a customer.
  

• Event Description: A description of an event (something of significance happens) and is captured in a data warehouse. Events like a parcel received at a warehouse, parcels delivered to customer.

• Event Location: The place where the event took place a warehouse name, location address, etc…

Case Study

An important objective of the packaging and delivery industry is its delivery performance. The highest level of delivery performance must be achieved to maintain customer satisfaction, retention and growth. This can be achieved with the analysis of KPI metrics.

Company XYZ is a large-scale operation with numerous customers shipping bulk volumes throughout the country. The company uses various KPI metrics to ensure they are meeting business objectives.

A division of company XYZ experienced an unexpected decline in their delivery performance which started in September 2018.

This case study looks at the decline with the objective to determine the reason for the decline and suggest action plans.

With the use of KPI data analysis, on-site observations and employee interviews, we were able to determine that customer E shipments required more processing time to prepare for sorting machines. Further investigation concluded that customer E was not preparing shipments in accordance to previously agreed pre-sortation plans, causing delays in the operational process and deliveries for company XYZ.

An action plan to immediately increase human resources to stop the on going decline of delivery performance was implemented. This continued until customer E corrected their sortation process.

Delivery performance improved promptly. Changes were implemented by customer E and performance improved. With continuous monitoring, performance stabilized to pre-September 2018 levels.

What is last-mile logistics?

It’s the final leg of the parcel journey, the transfer of goods from a central warehouse to final delivery to the customer.

Measuring last-mile KPIs provides logistic managers insights into the cost drivers and capabilities of the transportation network. These insights will give logistics managers the resources to fulfill customer orders efficiently and cost effectively in the last-mile journey.

The challenge is knowing what KPIs to track and determining what data to use in the analysis, in order to “letting the data tell the story.” Whether it’s the on-time delivery performance KPI or the number of stop s on a route they all have a story to tell.

The International Parcel Journey – Our Responsibility

Understanding the parcel flow will strengthen your ability to better serve your customers in providing the service they have come to expect and deserve. With the internet firmly entrenched in our day-to-day society, customers have become computer proficient and want to know where their ecommerce purchase is during its journey.

Customers are demanding that they have real-time online tracking of their purchases which they have paid for. Customers want to know where it is and when it will arrive.

The customer’s purchase becomes a personal part of their life and they plan around its arrival whether it is for a birthday, a child’s birth, a thank you, an anniversary or any special occasion. The arrival of their parcel is part of their life and the interaction with friends and family.

We have an obligation to our customers to ensure that their expectations are met. Their purchase has a story and we have a responsibility to see that the story has a happy ending.

Understanding the parcel journey will help ensure the story has a happy ending!

This article looks at Letter Post Sample KPIs that demonstrate how effectively a company is achieving key business objectives.

KPIs can be viewed in several ways to better understand what story the data is telling.

KPIs can be categorized into groups to focus on key aspects of the business.

Performance Measurements:

• On-time delivery by
  • Office of exchange (OE)
  • Destination city
  • Origin country
  • Receiver panellist
  • Format type

Volume Measurements:

• AOT – Allocation On Target
• VOT – Valid On Target
• VMR – Valid Mail Rate
• RR – RFID Read Rate
• Sample in manual sort

Compliance Measurements:

• Format allocation rate
• Sample bundling rate
• Format separation rate
• Critical Tag Time (CTT)

Analysis:

• Sample in manual sort.
• Recency rate.
• Panellist turnover rate.
• Posting to plan rate.

International Letter Post Sample

Measuring delivery performance of letter post requires creating a sample measurement program using letter post test pieces. This sample is used in a variety of manners such as continuous improvement activities, operational diagnostics. The ability to perform diagnostics and understand the sources of poor process performance using the data from this sample measurement, provide the barometer of how businesses are achieving their objectives.

Key components of sample test letter measurement

• Volunteer Sender/Receiver panelists are recruited from around the world.
• The test letter is prepared at a central location where RFID tags are inserted into test envelopes.
• The sender panelist drops the test letter into a local street letter box (SLB).
• The sender then logs onto the internet into a central data warehouse and enters the RFID Id-Tag details along with the date & time the test mail was inducted into the SLB.
• The SLB is emptied and mail is taken to the Origin Post processing center.
• The test letter enters the origin post facility and passes under the RFID gates (if equipped), where the RFID Id-Tag details along with the date and time are transmitted to a central data warehouse.
• The Origin Post, Office of Exchange (OE) prepares the despatch for shipping.
• The air despatches are transported to the airport for forwarding to the destination country.
• The surface despatches are loaded on to trucks for transportation to the destination country.
• The air despatches arrive at the destination country and enters the air cargo handler/airmail unit (ACH/AMU) facility where the test letter passes under the RFID gate. The RFID Id-Tag details along with the date and time are transmitted to a central data warehouse.
• The mail is handed over to the destination Post and are transported to the OE.
• The Air/Surface despatches arrive at the destination Post OE and are presented to customs (where required), the mail is then handed over to the domestic sorting center for processing.
• The test letter passes under the RFID gate (if equipped) on the exit of the facility. RFID Id-Tag details along with the date and time are transmitted to a central data warehouse.
• Processed mail is forwarded to depots for delivery where there are no RFID reads transmitted.
• On receipt of the test letter, the receiver panelist logs onto the internet into a central data warehouse and enters the RFID Id-Tag details along with the date & time the test letter was received.

This article looks at some KPIs that demonstrate how effectively a company is achieving key business objectives.

KPIs can be viewed in several ways to better understand what story the data is telling.

KPIs can be categorized into groups to focus on key aspects of the business.

Performance Measurements:

• On-Time Delivery.
• Operational
  • Induction to delivery / despatch.
  • Arrival to OE.
  • OE to Domestic.
  • Domestic sorting In/Out.
  • Depot to delivery.

Compliance Measurements:

• Delivery scans over the number of inductions /arrivals into the country.
• Origin country sorting requirements.
• Scan event transmission requirements.
• Mail sampling.

Volume Measurements:

• Sorting machine volumes PPH.
• Delivery volumes year over year.

Analysis:

• Impact assessments.
• Predictive analysis.
• Performance forecasting.