WAREHOUSING EDUCATION AND RESEARCH COUNCIL ( WERC )
by reducing operating costs . Director of supply chain logistics , Gordon Slade , set out to bring the supply chain up from hospital basements , which they did in 2012 with the opening of the Kem C . Gardner Supply Chain Center . Dedicated to logistics , distribution and almost all related functions , the company created a central standardized foundation — not to mention , many efficiencies .
What ’ s on the inside is what counts , though . With facility construction underway , the Intermountain team still had a lot of work to do in ensuring the operations were the best they could be to support better patient care .
Enter WERC Attending his first WERC Annual Conference and Solutions Center , Slade realized how valuable the organization could be in helping them achieve their goals .
“ This was the group we needed to work with ,” said Slade . “ WERC ’ s resources enabled us to benchmark our performance against others outside the health sector . Our thinking was no longer boxed in .
We had industry-wide knowledge from across the country pointing us to the best methodologies for warehousing and logistics .”
Two years after opening its central facility , Intermountain elected to participate in WERC ’ s Warehouse Certification Program . Through independent , third-party audits , WERC certification assesses a warehouse facility ’ s capabilities and performance against industry standard grading methodology . But as Slade will attest , it gives participants something much more than an unbiased review .
“ The evaluation process tells us where we are today and what we need to work on tomorrow to continuously improve ,” said Slade . “ And in our world , improvements mean better health outcomes for patients .”
WERC certification audits are completed by Steve Murray , principal consultant and chief researcher at Supply Chain Visions and WERC ’ s senior research associate and lead warehouse process auditor . In addition to a deep understanding of supply chain processes , technology and
110 October 2017