top of page
Product Experience | Service Design
Building a system for rapid expansion of backend fulfilment centres and optimise internal flows for operational efficiency
Design Ops | User-motion study | Information Architecture | Project Management
12 months
Team of 4 | Team Lead (Service Design, Architect, Project Manager)
Monu Kumar | Pooja Gupta | Sunakshi Jain
Graphic Design for Annual Magazine, TATA 1mg
Turning the wheels together, synchronizing work of different teams
PROJECT OVERVIEW
Post Covid-19, with the increase in the need of affordable and accessible healthcare...
TATA 1mg, a leading healthcare service provider, aimed at increasing its footprint across the Indian landscape, delivering healthcare products and other services at customer's doorsteps quickly.
THE BRIEF
Setting up the infrastructure to expand TATA1mg's online presence for providing accessible, affordable Healthcare to people
Create a scalable framework for rapid expansion of Fulfilment Centres in different cities at the same time
Devising state-of-art infrastructure to support the growing operational requirements
Absence of an industry defined standard for Pharma-Fulfillment Centres
Building team needed for expansion and orchestrating collaboration amongst design, operations, business, & other teams
MY CONTRIBUTION
Led team for designing and supporting execution of 40+ Fulfilment Centres in 12+ cities
for both B2B & B2C Operations.
Creating user-centric + operationally-guided design solutions for FCs and designing assets to improve efficiency for faster order delivery
Bridging the gap between supply chain, operations, execution, and central procurement team by organising design thinking collaborative workshops
Researching other companies FCs process and creating guidelines for Pharma + Non-Pharma processing centres, focusing on Quality and Safety in Healthcare
THE VISION
REFRAMING
Locations for expansion with the number of fulfilment centres (FC), in Feb'21 and Feb'22
Prior to March 2021, we launched 2 FC/year avg. By March 2022, we launched 2 FC/month avg.
So, how did we get here?
PROJECT INITIATION
The roadmap to expansion
To quickly expand our presence in different cities at the same time, we needed a plan of action, and identify the tools and resources for building:
Designing
Centres
-
Define operational flow
-
User-motion study to
design asset -
Create floor plans
-
Oversee Execution
Creating guidelines &
1% Improvements
-
Design Documentation
-
User-testing and analysing
areas of improvement -
Prototyping & Implementing
new solutions
Resource
Building
-
Project tracking
-
Technical skills
-
Team building
Project
Planning
-
Team's scope of work
-
Roles and responsibility
-
Deliverables & timelines
DESIGNING CENTRES
Understanding the operational flow
With the focus to create state-of-the-art centers, we started visiting older facilities to understand how the current operations were being conducted. Engaging with the on-ground operations team, we documented the existing processes of 3 centres.
What we observed:
-
Assets used across the sites varied based on local availability, leading to inconsistencies in procurement.
-
While they appeared similar at a higher level, the processes were implemented differently depending on the operational conditions.
-
Additionally, the product handling systems showed significant variations across locations.
Areas of opportunities:
-
Develop a centralized operational flow that outlines individual processes and functions, enabling the promotion and easy adoption of best practices across all facilities.
-
Create a comprehensive asset specification system to streamline central procurement, reducing costs and time, and eliminating the approval process in every cycle, thereby ensuring uniformity across centers.
CENTRALISED OPERATIONAL FLOW
Creating an over-arching information flow for easy adoption, communication between operational teams, and uniform rapid expansion for the execution team.
Streamlined Flow for both B2B & B2C Operations, Backend Fulfilment Centres, Tata 1mg
DIVING DEEPER INTO INDIVIDUAL PROCESSES
Conducting User Motion Study
Next, we started studying in-depth processes like inventory replenishment, product picking journey, and order packaging to understand how humans are using different assets to carry out their task. Our goal was to design user-centric assets following ergonomics, that support operational tasks effectively and improve overall work efficiency.
By conducting user motion study, we calculated the most optimum area required to conduct any task, volume required for storage, and circulation space required for smoother operations.
For example, in the larger warehouses focused on B2B operations, order sizes involved full cartons rather than individual items. This meant that the team used Hand Pallet Trucks (HPTs) instead of smaller trolleys for picking orders. We studied optimal aisle width, turning radius, and other specifications to ensure efficient circulation paths. These insights were gathered through on-site observation, iterative adjustments in the existing assets, and were ultimately incorporated into the standard design guidebook.
CASE EXAMPLE: DESIGNING ORDER QUALITY CHECK AND PACKAGING STATION
Here is how we converted data collected from the user-study around the 'Order Quality Check &
Packaging' process, into a user friendly product following ergonomics.
Observing step-by-step process, documenting how all the assets are used, when and where?
Creating a blueprint of the process along with understanding how much area each of the function needs.
Converting process flow into a user-oriented, ergonomically defined product | Quality check & Packaging Table Design, TATA 1mg
Operational Floor Plan of the Backend Fulfilment Centre
Schematic 3D diagram to show different zones.
OUTCOME
Successfully launched 17 fulfilment centres in 6 months expanding our presence in 5 cities
CREATING FLOOR PLANS
Stitching the parts together
After creating all the assets following user study and a centralized operational flow, we developed floor plans to support the order fulfillment business.
The focus was to not only create an efficient floor plan but also a healthy workspace for the on-ground operations team.
Focusing on:
-
Adequate Illumination and lighting (lux levels on workstations)
-
Materials for assets with smooth edging to ensure safety
-
Easy way-finding and navigational signages
CURRENT STATE
Lack of cross-functional team collaboration
-
Exceeded Project Deadlines
-
Excessive Rework
Absence of a cohesive
project brief
-
Changing project scope/operational requirement
-
Absence of a Project Spock
Absence of a central project tracking system
-
Miscommunication in delivery timelines across teams
-
Accountability and ownership
ACTION PLAN
Promote regular communication
Discuss progress, address issues, & make informed decisions collaboratively
Streamline project sign-off processes
Assign Project Spock, define clear responsibilities and sign-off timelines, using tools like GANTT charts
Standardise assets and vendor
Using centrally vetted assets to avoid constant approvals
Establish standard guidelines
Documenting decisions, and tracking any new changes to refer to across teams
DESIRED STATE
Centralize communication system
Periodic meetings and documenting minutes
Proactively discuss trade-offs
Identify and address potential trade-offs early in the project to make informed decisions
Develop a project guidebook
Create a detailed guidebook outlining best practices, dos and don’ts, and key project considerations.
WHAT CAN BE IMPROVED?
Gap Analysis
After phase 1 of expansion, we had 3 weeks of reflection to learn what went wrong and right in the last phase and prepare for the next phase.
BEHIND-THE-SCENES
This process documentation captures the design journey but doesn’t fully reflect the behind-the-scenes work that went in aligning various teams to reach consensus—an effort that deserves its own in-depth discussion. As the design lead for the fulfilment center vertical during the period of rapid expansion, I gained valuable insights into project dynamics & team management. Setting project timelines, managing team bandwidth, project tracking, prioritising work tasks coming from different teams, and communicating with other cross-functional teams like operations, legal, business, procurement, and site engineers for smoother project delivery were key areas that expanded my learning.
Swim-lane diagram to map the current process flow and identify gaps
SYSTEM PLANNING
Swim-lane diagram to map the current process flow and identify gaps
WHY MISCOMMUNICATION WAS HAPPENING?
Understanding the existing system
During the first three pilot projects, it became evident that teams were working independently on their respective scopes causing several challenges. We observed a significant amount of work duplication, as well as errors arising from miscommunication and unclear collaboration between teams. This lack of cohesion in the overall workflow contributed to delays, causing everyone to work extra hours to meet the deadlines.
SELF-DRIVEN INITIATIVES TO
ENHANCE INCREASE EFFICIENCY
REFRAMING
BRIDGING GAPS
Deploying the new system
By identifying that the design team was constantly communicating across different teams to provide clarity and understanding on requirements, we collaborated with project management team to bridge the gap by creating a 'Project Delivery Process Flow' and setting up a system that helps team in feeding into each other's work.
DOCUMENTATION
Creating Guidelines
Parallely, we worked on the project documentation process, creating guidelines to be followed across different cities for easy communication. This helped us in creating a central repository of work, agreed-upon decisions, documentation of best practises for the industry.
Pain points:
-
It is difficult to reach the products kept on the higher shelves (above 5.5ft) and is time taking to pick products from shelves under 2.6ft due to bending.
-
The SKU replenishment was a longer process as the bulk products were kept on the far side of the inventory, sometimes leading to manual misplacement of products.
-
Not all SKUs are of the same height, and fixed shelves lead to wastage of volumetric space.
Steps taken:
-
Designed storage based on the human's optimum picking height leading to reduction in picking time and increasing picker's efficiency.
-
Customised shelf-spacing based on the type of storage bins we were using, resulting in adding extra storage in the same area.
-
Business Impact: Increase in revenue generated per sqft in the existing space. (More SKUs can be stored and provided to the customer)
OUTCOME
Increased storage capacity of the existing centre by 20% adding ~1000SKUs to the inventory
NEEDLE MOVING PROJECTS
1% Improvements
1. OPTIMISING THE INVENTORY STORAGE
The current volume of space is not being utilised to its full potential, leading to loss of opportunity for more diverse SKU storage.
2. OPTIMISING THE PICKPATH
Picking is the most time-consuming process in order delivery. So, with the goal of providing faster deliveries to our customers, operations and design team collaborated to find ways to reduce the picking time.
Pain points:
Current Inventory nomenclature followed an alphanumeric system with every rack having a unique name like A, B...
And the picklist generation system created the order of picking where all the items from Rack A are picked first, and then Rack B follows.
This essentially translated into traveling twice along the same path to pick the products.
Steps taken:
We experimented with the idea of naming the aisles instead of the racks. So it the aisle is named A, then the racks on either side will be considered under A category.
And by alternating in the Rack number (A1, A3, A5 on one side and A2, A4, A6) on the other...
the picker's pick path and picking time is reduced as he can pick more products without travelling.
This process was experimented in one facility and timed over several days, and we reduced picking time by approximately 4 minutes in every cycle.
OUTCOME
Reducing avg. picking time from 13 minutes to 9 minutes impacting overall order processing time
WAY FORWARD
REFRAMING
MY EXPERIENCE
REFRAMING
DATA DRIVEN DECISIONS
Tracking operational efficiency
As pioneers in online healthcare service delivery, we had the opportunity to experiment and define standards for online medicine and healthcare product delivery, a space with no established industry norms in the Indian context. By benchmarking against facilities in other sectors (Blinkit, Amazon, and Flipkart), we began developing best practices for handling medicines, including drug inspection, and managing high-value drugs. We also followed manufacturing plants and hospital processes for handling hazardous materials.
Key focus areas moving forward include:
-
Analysing current operational flows and integrating new systems in backend fulfilment centres to enhance customer satisfaction
-
Aligning infrastructure needs with targeted order processing capacity and SKU storage
-
Determining the optimal inventory storage space for various SKUs
-
Identifying the sufficient processing area for inwarding and outwarding operations based on the data collected.
Wearing Multiple
Caps
This was a huge learning curve for me.
From being an Architect & Process Designer, I switched to being a Project Manager and a UX Designer. I started developing my communication skills to work with
cross-functional teams, using my knowledge of system thinking and problem-solving to bridge gaps through collaborative discussions.
Solving Conflict through Collaboration
I collaborated with other designers to meet urgent deadlines and orient around changing scopes and deliverables of certain projects. (part and parcel of start-ups)
Team collaboration is essential for any project's success. Taking inputs from people on their areas of expertise and working with them to create the rules helps in smoother translation of business goal to reality.
Shifting Focus & Task Prioritisation
Learned how to shift focus to emerging problems, prioritizing tasks using the Urgent-Important matrix. Understanding how to deliver certain 'Urgent Requests' along with the current ongoing projects. This also helped in making a business case for team expansion considering the multiple projects load and scope of expansion we were planning for.
Done is better than Perfect
Realised that sometimes not everything goes as per the plan. The research-design initiatives for continuous improvements took back seat sometimes, to deliver an operational fulfilment centre to start business in new city perhaps. The improvements can follow but sometimes the product needs to go out because of business need.
.jpg)
Making healthcare understandable,
accessible,
affordable.
Back cover for Annual Magazine, TATA 1mg
Cover shoot on Women's Day inspired by
'Rosie the Riveter: We can do it!'
bottom of page