Distribution is a council money saver
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tween Trowbridge and Westbury where there is another holding storage facility. Stores for Cornwall are trunked to Bideford by means of another artic unit hauling a boxvan trailer.
Order schedule
Loads are consolidated by computer. Each ordering point is supplied with an order schedule setting out the items -held in stock and each is allocated three ordering periods throughout the 12 months. Orders are scheduled to be received at Trowbridge at least 28 days before delivery is required, though there is provision for out-of-course orders to cover emergencies and overlooked items.
When the orders are received, they are processed through a computer which produces a 'print-out for order picking and load consolidation according to pre-arranged vehicle schedules.
Loading bridge
Order picking is done largely by casual female labour working in two shifts throughout the day. The selected items are loaded into trollies which are assembled at the loading deck at the end of the warehouse for loading on to the vehicle. Vehicles are equipped with tail-lifts which serve as a loading bridge at the warehouse and enable the driver to load and unload quickly. The difficulty of access at some of the schools within the consortium's delivery area makes the equipment well worth while.
The four-ton vehicles average a round trip of 100 miles each day and the Bideford trunk operates over 150 miles averaging three round trips a week with an overnight stay between outward and return journeys.
Competitive
Though this is a storage and distribution exercise undertaken by a consortium of local authorities there is no suggestion that it is not competitiVe. Costs are closely watched and the monitoring system includes comparison with general haulage rates to establish that costs incurred compare favourably with those obtainable from independent hauliers.
The price of the stores supplied by the consortium is also under constant scrutiny by the user so that this too must remain competitive. The storage and distribution cost is instrumental in maintaining the prices so that they remain so far as possible below those at which similar items can be bought by users from other sources.