Data-driven fleet management lowers the on-site damage rate with about 10% at Dagrofa Logistik
Dagrofa Logistik, Denmark's largest logistics and sales company, introduced I_Site Explorer to their fleet with great results. Besides a safer work environment, the damage rate on their forklifts has dropped from 14% in 2018 to 3.18% in 2021.
About Dagrofa Logistik
Dagrofa Logistik is Denmark's largest logistics and sales company, owned by Dagrofa. Dagrofa Logistik serves both Dagrofa's own chains (MENY, SPAR, Min Købmand and Let-Køb) and a number of Danish supermarket chains such as ABC Lavpris, LIVA, Superland and nemlig.com. Dagrofa Logistik is a total supplier to kiosk and convenience stores throughout the country and is also a major exporter of Danish/Nordic food products to customers outside Denmark, including Greenland, Iceland, Faroe Islands and other export markets. With more than 40 years of expertise in customised solutions, Dagrofa Logistik is a value-adding partner in the delivery of groceries. The company employs approximately 500 dedicated staff at Vejle, Herning and Ringsted terminals.
Facts & figures
- Company: Dagrofa Logistik
- Location: Vejle, Danmark
- Industry: Wholesale
- Solutions: I_Site fleet management with Explorer Package
Sceptic at first, convinced once seeing the results
Dagrofa Logistik has introduced the I_Site fleet management system from Toyota Material Handling in all their trucks. More specifically the Explorer package that has resulted in better driving behaviour, higher employee safety, and less damage to trucks, racking, and gates.
I_Site is a powerful tool that allows for continuous improvement and drives change in culture and behaviour.
The damage rate on trucks has dropped from 14% in 2018 to 3.18% in 2021 at Dagrofa Logistik's fresh produce warehouse in Vejle, and both Henrik Madsen, the logistics manager for Dagrofa Logistik, and Martin Jensen, team leader with 20 years of experience at the Vejle warehouse, expect the trend to continue.
"I have to admit that my scepticism was unfounded. We are reaping great benefits from fleet management today. I expect we will witness even more advantages in the future as we get better at extracting data, build smarter data science, and start introducing small continuous improvements."
Henrik Madsen confirms that introducing I_Site was a big and challenging transition. He highlights that the employees were particularly nervous about charging correctly, no longer driving their dedicated truck, and standing still during the day if a 'shock lockout' occurs. 'Shock lockout' means that the truck logs out due to a severe collision and requires a new login by authorised personnel.
"However, all nervousness was gone after less than two months of operation with Toyota’s fleet management system. Employees found that the login is quick and easy, charging is trouble-free, and shock lockout consumes so little time and happens so rarely that it doesn't affect efficiency," Henrik Madsen acknowledges.
How does the daily login work at Dagrofa Logistik?
When employees log into the trucks, they do so by using their personalised login and by answering two simple questions:
- Is the truck clean?
- Is the truck free from visible scratches or damages?
Suppose the employee answers yes to both questions, then the working day can immediately start. If the answer to one or both questions is negative, then the manager photographs the damages and records them in the system. Major damages get repaired immediately by a dedicated Toyota Material Handling technician. If the damages are minor, a sticker is attached to the truck, clearly marking that the damages have been recorded. Once a week, management follows up on damages and runs through them with the relevant employees.
Preventing injuries thanks to fleet data
Henrik Madsen and Martin Jensen emphasise that Dagrofa Logistik highly values the safety of their employees and their working environment.
"I_Site gives us a good structure in the form of database driven insight into how and when our employee injuries occur. This means that we can prevent injuries by introducing appropriate measures and changing behaviour. It's a powerful tool to prevent employees from getting foot and other types of injuries,"
Henrik Madsen states, adding that the warehouse has had only two workplace injuries in 2021. Martin Jensen notes that the work to improve employee safety requires management focus and close and continuous follow-up." I_Site gives us data and structure, but we must follow up on the data ourselves and engage in dialogue with our employees when there is a reason to do so, and in this way, we actively create a safety culture."
Less damage, less cost
The fleet management system has noticeably reduced damage to Dagrofa Logistik's equipment at the warehouse in Vejle. "We have significantly less damage to trucks, racks, and gates, including so-called 'hidden damages' to racking which were not recorded previously. They are now because I_Site registers all impacts. This means that everything gets repaired. As a result, equipment lasts longer. But more importantly, it means that racks are kept in a good and safe condition, so there are no accidents with overturned racks," says Martin Jensen.
Continuous improvement
Martin Jensen and Henrik Madsen both see I_Site as an essential tool for continuously improving culture and behaviour in the warehouse. "We constantly want to achieve higher safety, better capacity utilisation, lower costs and higher efficiency, and data analyses from I_Site are an excellent base for this," Martin Jensen affirms. "We can change many parameters and pull all kinds of good data out of the system, giving us a clear overview on where our challenges lie and where we can improve. We also benefit from good ongoing inspiration and sparring from Toyota Material Handling's specialists."
Dagrofa’s safety goal for 2024
Dagrofa Logistik aspires to win the Working Environment Award as Denmark's safest workplace. "The I_Site fleet management system is an important tool for implementing the behavioural change that is needed in order for us to achieve the status as Denmark's safest workplace in 2024", logistics manager Henrik Madsen declares.