#66: Top 3 Applications of Data Science for Transforming Warehouse Operations🛠️
Hello,
A *lot* happened in AI just in the past 1 week. Yes, there's ample frothy AI coverage these days. But, the past week was momentous. From ChatGPT evolving to see, speak, and hear, to Alexa embracing Generative AI - this list is long.
I'm super excited about the business potential and look forward to tackle the challenges to help organizations realize value.
This newsletter will take you about 4 minutes to read.
I. Spotlight: Top 3 Applications of Data Science for Transforming Warehouse Operations🛠️
In traditional warehouses, mechanical issues, fluctuating weather, pick-up delays, and traffic can make accurate scheduling and staff planning a complex guessing game, causing long turn times and increased costs for facilities due to overstaffing and fines.
Covid-19 exposed the inefficiency of supply chains and the importance of building their resilience for the future. The demand driven by e-commerce retailers means that traditional warehouses are being replaced by next-generation warehouses that can deliver predictive, cost-effective, and innovative data-driven services.
Tracking transportation metrics and data patterns has not been exploited to its full potential, for example, to better predict incoming truck arrivals. But truck turnaround times can be improved and supply chains streamlined by predicting carrier appointments using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML).
Shippers, logistics, and supply chain leaders looking at data-driven applications to help modernize and automate warehouse operations while improving customer satisfaction should consider these three powerful data science applications.
Demand and Supply Optimization
To effectively plan the staffing capacity on any given day, warehouses must forecast the demand of pickups to assign enough warehouse pickers to carry out the operational activities.
As staffing capacity is based on the number of hours per picker and the number of pickers, supervisors traditionally tweak these levers manually based on prior experience. Often, pickups are impacted due to fluctuations in warehouse demand and variability in staffing capacity. This disrupts customer operations
A data-driven solution forecasts the demand ahead of time, plans staffing capacity with a high degree of accuracy, and optimally tweaks the levers to achieve operational feasibility.
II. Industry Roundup:
1. Article: Fast, Cheap, And In Control: Generative AI In Morningstar’s Mo
06 minutes | Forbes | Tom Davenport
Morningstar has impressively launched "Mo", a generative AI-driven investment research assistant. Developed swiftly in just a month, it's cost-effective, with an average answer cost of $0.002. Its affordability comes from tailoring existing models to Morningstar’s content. The innovative system hints at a future where businesses can economically integrate generative AI models.
2. Report: The economic potential of generative AI: The next productivity frontier
50 minutes | McKinsey Digital | Michael Chui, Roger Roberts, Lareina Yee, et al.
Generative AI (Gen AI) could boost the global economy by $2.6 to $4.4 trillion annually. The majority of this value is focused on customer operations, marketing, software engineering, and R&D. Gen AI could automate up to 70% of current work activities, and this could shift the workforce landscape significantly by 2045. The transition will require thoughtful management, skills development, and addressing inherent risks though.
III. From my Desk:
1. Update: Started teaching Fall semester at NJIT’s B-School
02 min | LinkedIn
Happy to share that I've begun teaching the Fall semester of 'Decision Support Tools & Technology for Managers' at NJIT’s Business School. This is my 3rd time imparting knowledge on this subject. I'm elated to share that my course feedback rating for the first semester has been overwhelmingly positive at 85%. Here are my top 3 takeaways from this experience.
2. Spotlight: Panelist at NANBEN's Business & Entrepreneurship Conference
01 min
I'm honored to be a panelist at the NANBEN Entrepreneurship conference, this weekend. The topic of discussion is 'Prosper! Start and Finance Your Business'. We'll be covering aspects like Product Development, Market Confirmation, Crafting the Perfect Pitch, Team Building, and Raising Capital. I'm eagerly looking forward to not only sharing my thoughts but also learning from fellow panelists - VCs and Serial Entrepreneurs.
Thank you for subscribing and reading the newsletter. I appreciate your attention,
Ganes.
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I’m Ganes Kesari. I publish ‘Data-Driven Future’ to help understand how data shapes our world, explore key trends, and explain what they mean for you today. I speak and write to demystify data science for decision-makers and organizations.
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