Extending Visibility to the ‘Last Yard’ to Bring MRO to the Front

Anyone who has ordered items online is familiar with the “last mile.” In fact, it may be the only segment of the supply chain that matters when consumers track packages from the final distribution point to their doorstep.

With all the focus on the last mile, a major part of the supply chain and industrial economy — the “last yard” — is left out of the discussion.

The last yard is not the distance between a delivery driver and the homeowner who receives the package. This might be an image associated with e-commerce, but industrial facilities have specialized needs for exchanges that take place between people.

Distribution centers, fleet maintenance shops, manufacturing plants, warehouses and other types of industrial facilities need critical assets such as tools and supplies to be transferred seamlessly between managers, employees and other personnel to keep the business moving.

Items transferred inside a facility are most often used for maintenance, repair and operations (MRO). In the United States alone it is estimated that MRO expenditures amount to $115 billion a year.

Where security meets efficiency

Businesses can now gain total visibility of their MRO activities and conduct exchanges in a contactless manner, which is important in the age of COVID-19. With superior technology, the MRO segment of a business can become a strategically powerful asset by using solutions that combine security with operational efficiency.

Atlanta-based BoxLock brings this type of dual solution to the MRO industry. Tailored for industrial use, BoxLock’s secure and rugged smart locks have integrated barcode scanners and real-time connectivity powered by a robust suite of access control, audit log and inventory management tools.

The unique BoxLock technology ensures that deliveries to a facility can be made at any time of the day or night, and that all deliveries are secure. It also assures that product transfers can occur in a contactless manner, if necessary.

BoxLock’s system immediately recognizes when an item is scanned and placed inside a lockbox.

The system notifies the authorized recipient that the transaction has been completed. It also provides the necessary time stamps to authenticate the exchange of the goods.

BoxLock’s devices can only be accessed by vetted and authorized personnel, eliminating any risk of theft and pilferage by bad actors.

A new approach for MRO

Bristol, PA.-based SDI has spent 50 years providing essential MRO and, increasingly, PPE As-a-Service materials for manufacturers and for facilities’ maintenance operations.

SDI serves multiple industries that include education, healthcare and retail. In December 2020, SDI entered into a strategic partnership with BoxLock to add fully integrated digital supply chain solutions to SDI’s end-to-end portfolio.

The New York City Department of Education is the first SDI client that will test the BoxLock system to determine if it can be used to address the complex certification process currently in place for unattended deliveries. The test will determine if the city’s 1,700 schools can receive critical supply deliveries at any hour of the day or night.

With BoxLock’s unique tools, SDI customers like manufacturers, retailers, K-12 school districts, and universities will extend visibility and control of their goods movements to the last yard, securing the materials at the point where they will actually be used.

With BoxLock’s real-time tracking and auditing capabilities, SDI no longer has to chase down misplaced materials that were dropped off at unsecured receiving areas. Any delivery exceptions can be easily tracked and traced for SDI to quickly identify a lost or stolen item.

“Customers need to be able to track their deliveries from product order to receipt and have the confidence that the goods are where they are supposed to be, even if there is no one at the location to physically accept them,” said Ron Fijalkowski, SDI’s senior vice president of Digital Supply Chain Solutions.

To learn more about how BoxLock’s software and hardware solutions can improve security and efficiency in the last yard of industrial applications, visit:  www.getbocklock.com