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Project Highlights

14K Consulting – Acquisition Target Assessments

Client: Leading WMS software provider exploring entry into the supply chain planning market
Situation: Client sought to acquire a best-in-class supply chain planning software firm but lacked internal supply chain planning expertise to engage in a comprehensive evaluation of acquisition target candidates.
Action:

  • Developed a comprehensive evaluation framework (12 categories, 44 criteria) using a best-in-class benchmark company process

  • Conducted comprehensive interviews and follow-ups with 10 target companies

  • Delivered detailed comparative analyses and final reports

Results:

  • Client initiated acquisition talks with two targets (ultimately not closed)

  • Chose instead to build a solution in-house by acquiring relevant talent and using our evaluation criteria as the functional blueprint

TriVista Business Group (Consulting) – New ERP Deployment

Client: One of the largest U.S. commercial printing companies, operating on legacy proprietary ERP with limited functionality.
Situation: Transitioning to MS Dynamics AX; needed guidance on legitimate customization vs. standard functionality utilization.
Action:

  • Documented end-to-end fulfillment processes across all 3 sites

  • Participated in design sessions, advising the client on minimizing customizations

Results:

  • Delivered first-ever detailed printing workflow documentation via Lucidchart

  • Influenced customization decisions and finalized implementation roadmap aligned with software functionality and business needs

TriVista Business Group (Consulting) – S&OP Reengineering with SW Bolt-on
Client: National dinnerware and catering product supplier using NetSuite ERP.
Situation: Chronic stockouts, late shipments, customer dissatisfaction, siloed functional operations, and use of ad hoc Excel-based planning processes.
Action:

  • Assessed demand, inventory, and supply planning processes and stakeholder communication

  • Recommended and led selection of a NetSuite-compatible bolt-on supply chain planning software

  • Advised conducting comprehensive monthly Executive SIOP Review meetings

  • Implemented software and coached adoption of a monthly Executive SIOP Review process

Results:

  • 15% inventory reduction and 10-point OTIF improvement

  • 30% of buyer capacity freed up to focus on strategic sourcing and supplier management

  • Improved cross-functional alignment and overall planning discipline

TriVista Business Group (Consulting) – Distribution Network Optimization

Client: Wholesale distributor of electrical components with 3 regional DCs resulting from acquisitions.
Situation: Suspected logistics inefficiencies due to overlapping inventory, labor, warehouse space, and overhead
Action:

  • Led network optimization analysis to evaluate consolidation potential and benefits

  • Defined requirements and design for a new, scalable Southeast DC

Results:

  • Identified 20% logistics cost savings through consolidation

  • Recommended 300K sq. ft. single facility and functional layout

  • Advised on cobot integration, with all recommendations accepted and implemented

TriVista Business Group (Consulting) - S&OP Reengineering with SW Bolt-on

Client: Smart parking meter manufacturer facing inventory overflow and WIP delays.
Situation: Poor forecasting and planning led to excessive storage requirements and flowthrough issues.
Action:

  • Assessed end-to-end S&OP processes and inventory health

  • Developed new S&OP processes, implemented bolt-on supply planning tool, and trained S&OP organization

  • Calculated optimized inventory levels and future space requirements

Results:

  • Enabled exit of 80K sq. ft. overflow warehouse within 12 months

  • Reduced excess inventory and improved factory throughput

  • Engagement extended to strategic sourcing project to diversify from China

Aquai Technologies (Employer) – Go-to-Market Business Plan

Company: IoT water monitoring startup launching a smart flow sensor for home and commercial water conservation.
Situation: Needed to define go-to-market strategy and channel economics for commercialization and financing.
Action:

  • Led development of commercial strategy and 3-year channel P&L

  • Designed analytics dashboard and scorecard to demonstrate value for insurers and utilities

  • Created use case model to quantify ROI in multiple scenarios

Results:

  • Drove strategic shift to channel-first go-to-market model

  • Positioned product as a dual-value tool: early leak detection and water efficiency monitoring

  • Approach validated by investor group and used to secure next round of funding

Aquai Technologies (Employer) – Low Cost Country (LCC) Strategic Sourcing

Situation: Aquai Technologies, a GreenTech startup, needed a cost-effective manufacturing strategy for water conservation products to achieve viable retail margins. The BOM included PCBA and injection-molded components.
Action: Sourced a competitive injection molding supplier and a small contract manufacturer in Bangkok, Thailand, capable of assembling PC boards and final products, specializing in startup go-to-market support.
Results: Developed and secured CEO and Board approval for the company’s initial low-cost country supply chain strategy.

Aviat Networks (Employer) – Reengineered Contract Manufacturing and Distribution Processes

Company: Leading provider of microwave communication systems for mobile industry

Situation:

  • The Thailand contract manufacturer (CM) struggled with effectively planning and manufacturing highly configurable microwave radio products

  • CM was also tasked with purchasing accessory products, consolidation, and shipping complete systems to customers throughout the world

  • Both manufacturing and distribution processes were dysfunctional with nearly all customer orders delayed

Action:

  • Led an initiative at the CM to reengineer their S&OP and production scheduling process for configurable products, including more robust master scheduling, configuration postponement, and schedule freeze periods  

  • Transferred a configurable component (diplexer tuning) from the supplier to the CM (with appropriate training) to postpone configuration closer to the final assembly process

  • Established 3PL-run DCs in Singapore and Amsterdam to manage accessory procurement, order consolidation, and global distribution processes using a single global freight forwarder

Results:

  • Improved on-time delivery from 54% to 91%, shipping to an average of 95 countries per quarter

  • Reduced cumulative manufacturing and distribution lead times from 6 to 3 weeks

  • Reduced global logistics costs by 20% and outbound transportation lead time by 1 wk

  • Significantly increased service level to remote Mideast and African customers with increased air lift capacity from the Amsterdam DC

Aviat Networks (Employer) – Post-Merger Supply Chain Integration

Company: Leading provider of microwave communication systems for mobile industry

Situation: 

  • Merger with a larger competitor resulted in significant process and resource overlap

  • 6 contract manufacturers on 3 continents

  • Disparate supply chains with significant overlap in components

  • Redundancy in supply chain organizations  

Action: 

  • Led a global initiative to integrate end-to-end supply chains

  • Consolidated contract manufacturing operations

  • Consolidated supply base to best-in-class suppliers

  • Collapsed organization into one cohesive team

Results: 

  • Reduced direct material cost by 10% ($28M) in first year and achieved contracted 8-10% ongoing annual material cost reduction

  • Cut manufacturing overhead by 15% through leveraged organizations in supply chain and manufacturing engineering  

REMEC (Employer) - European Supply Chain Cost Reduction

Company: Telecom infrastructure product supplier

Situation: REMEC had acquired multiple European companies, resulting in a high-cost supply base concentrated in countries like Finland and Spain.
Action: Led a global initiative to transfer the European supply chain to China covering PCBs and assemblies, die casting, machining, plating processes, and component distributors while maintaining strict global quality standards.

Results: Cut direct material costs by 30% in the first year, meeting all customer delivery and revenue commitments.

REMEC (Employer) – Inventory Optimization and Forecasting Redesign

Situation: REMEC’s offshore factories in Costa Rica, the Philippines, and China suffered from poor forecast accuracy and low inventory turns due to outdated plan-to-procure processes.
Action:

  • Spearheaded a company-wide effort to implement Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) programs for the top 40 suppliers

  • Reengineered the S&OP process to introduce freeze periods, enhance forecast accuracy, and tighten business controls

Results: Reduced inventory by 30% ($30M) and increased forecast accuracy by 40%. 

Ford Motor Company (Employer) – Accelerating Vehicle Delivery and Visibility

Situation: 80% of Ford vehicles are shipped by rail to U.S. dealers, facing excessive lead times (21 days) and lacked in-transit visibility, hindering dealer sales
Action: Formed a joint venture with UPS to utilize their dedicated cross-country trains and integrated UPS tracking for real-time status visibility for dealers

Results: Reduced vehicle delivery times by 45% in Year 1 and 65% by Year 3, enabling dealers to track and sell in-transit vehicles.

Ford Motor Company – Customs Organization and Cost Transformation
Situation: Ford operated a large internal customs team in NA and EU, delivering $2B in annual duty savings but at a high fixed cost of 120 employees.
Action: Led the strategic transfer of Ford’s customs organization to Vastera in exchange for pre-IPO equity and a long-term services contract, leveraging Vastera’s superior technology and scale.
Results: Secured $80M in equity, reduced operating costs by 5%, and converted customs expenses from fixed to variable.

Hewlett-Packard – (Employer) Quickship Program for Configurable Workstations
Situation: HP’s German plant, supplying the EMEA region, offered nearly 2,000 configurable UNIX workstation SKUs, but low-volume US-sourced accessories caused 8-week lead times—unacceptable to customers expecting 2-week deliveries.
Action: Analyzed order history and created a “Quickship” program focused on the top 200 SKUs, pre-stocked for rapid assembly and delivery; boutique options remained on standard lead time.
Results: Reduced lead time to 10 days for 92% of orders, dramatically improving customer satisfaction and reseller sales performance.

Hewlett-Packard (Employer) – Global Distribution and Logistics Reengineering
Situation: HP’s Enterprise Systems Group had a fragmented delivery model with 39 local distribution centers for system consolidation and delivery, and 50 logistics providers, resulting in delivery lead times of up to 24 days.
Action:

  • Led a global logistics redesign, establishing two distribution centers co-located with factories (Germany for EMEA and California for Americas and Asia) and consolidated to three strategic logistics providers by region

  • Orders were consolidated in the 2 global hubs and complete orders shipped directly to customers

Results:

  • Eliminated 37 local country distribution centers and 47 logistics partners

  • Reduced average delivery lead time by 75% (to 4 days), improved on-time delivery to 98%, and enabled global online tracking

  • Reduced global logistics costs by 50% ($150M/year)

Hewlett-Packard (Employer) – ERP Implementation and Training
Situation: HP’s Loveland, CO site was implementing a new net-change ERP system across eight manufacturing divisions.
Action: Directed the end-to-end ERP deployment for the largest division and developed the training program for all site users.
Results: ERP system was implemented on schedule with high reviews from users and management for the user training program.

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