Mieruka
How to see problems
About Vinnies
Vinnies is a charity organisation which provides support to people living in poverty or seeking assistance through more than 200 programs and services across the country. Vinnies relies on donations from donors that come through their retail stores. The donations are then processed to move it into the retail network across the state to fund their services and programs.
Business Need
Household donation volumes follow a cyclical pattern, often peaking and placing pressure on the distribution centre. High volumes of unsorted stock can overwhelm the distribution centre, negatively impacting staff and volunteer morale. DC stock must be kept under 12 months old to ensure a fresh and appealing supply for retail.
Improvement Strategy
TSSC Australia partnered with Vinnies Rockhampton through a 4-month project, and introduced TPS tools to: Optimise process flow to decrease stagnation – better control over unsorted stock Shop floor visual management to improve work prioritisation Reduce member handling – minimal time and effort to process stock Secure improvements through updated work standards Establish visual management of labour
Results
Through the project, the volume of unsorted stock at the end of the shift was reduced from 10.4 cages to 6.5 cages and the lead time of stock from donation to retail ready was reduced from 21.8 hours to 12.4 hours. Management plans to share the successful application of Toyota Production System (TPS) tools and philosophy across other areas of the organisation to drive continuous improvement.
