Alpine Supply Chain Solutions is a boutique supply chain consulting that leverages data and decades of experience to maximize space, equipment, labor, and control within the warehouse.
Interview with Michael Wohlwend, Managing Principal at Alpine Supply Chain Solutions.
Easy Engineering: What are the main areas of activity of the company?
Michael Wohlwend: Alpine’s services include:
- Warehouse Consulting: Maximize your space, equipment, labor, and systems to increase productivity, reduce costs, and increase quality.
- Supply Chain Systems: Implement the right solution for your unique operation. Alpine can support customers with developing system requirements and cost justifications, system selection, implementation, upgrades, and expansion of services.
- Strategic Planning: Align technology with your future business needs.
- Human Resource Solutions: Assess your current metrics and develop best practices to support improved recruiting, training, and performance management.
- Manufacturing: Balance cost, quality, flexibility, customization, and product delivery time with improved planning, processes, and facility design.
E.E: What’s the news about new products?
M.W: Alpine offers consulting services. We have recently completed several new projects.
- Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative Tackles Warehouse Complexity
- Ecentria Partners with Alpine Supply Chain Solutions Modernizing Fulfillment Operations to Meet Growing eCommerce Demand
E.E: At what stage is the market where you are currently active?
M.W: Alpine primary focuses within the four walls of a warehouse. And anyone with a warehouse s concerned with difficulty in finding and keeping labor. This isn’t new, manufacturers, distributors, and supply chain leaders have been struggling with labor challenges for years, but things got tougher with the pandemic. As trouble with labor continues to impact every corner of the market, it comes as no surprise that software solutions, including Warehouse Management Systems, and automation, including robotics, are becoming more sought after.
E.E: What can you tell us about market trends?
M.W: As supply chain disruptions related to geopolitical conflicts, inflationary pressures, a possible recession, extreme weather, and other issues continue to impact daily operations, it’s important to take stock of the actions one can take today to combat the ever-lingering uncertainty of tomorrow. Areas to focus on include: labor, automation, planning, and supply chain integration.
E.E: What are the most innovative products marketed?
M.W: Robots were certainly the belle of the ball at this year’s ProMat show. There was a definite focus on automation with a laser eye on autonomous mobile robots.
E.E: What estimations do you have for 2023?
M.W: Companies will continue to focus on building resilient supply chains. Labor challenges will continue to force companies to evaluate automation, and the need for additional software to coordinate all these resources will continue to increase – specifically warehouse execution systems.