Case study · 2-minute read
Case study · 2-minute read
Replacing paper with a tracking system that generated estimated savings of over $1.2M a year
Replacing paper with a tracking system that generated estimated savings of over $1.2M a year
Replacing paper with a tracking system that generated estimated savings of over $1.2M a year
Industry
Industry
Consumer Goods
Consumer Goods
Logistics
Logistics
Year
Year
2019
2019
Platform
Platform
Web
Web
Mobile
Mobile
Overview
Overview
Overview
Unilever Argentina bought around 15,000 new pallets a month to ship products from 27 brands. Shipments were tracked, but the pallets carrying them weren’t, so pallets regularly went missing or were stolen. I designed an internal platform, integrated with SAP, that tracks each pallet from dispatch to return.
The UI shown in this case study is translated from Spanish, the app’s original language.
My role
UX/UI designer at IT Resources, a software consultancy, with Unilever Argentina as the client. I ran the design thinking workshops, worked with stakeholders to gather and analyze requirements, and designed the interface. Day to day I worked with a business analyst and the development team.
Timeline
Seven months from discovery to launch in early 2020.
- Month 1: Workshops and interviews
- Month 2: UX and UI design
- Months 3–7: Development and QA
What the platform does
- Operations: tracks each pallet's movements and status, monitors stock held by partners, and generates alerts and key indicators
- Admin staff: review and approve the changes suppliers submit for each trip
- Truck drivers: register pallets and vouchers with a QR scan
Integrated with SAP, it brought processes that lived in separate places into one and replaced paper tracking.
Impact
Estimated savings of over $100,000 a month, or more than $1.2M a year.
Unilever Argentina bought around 15,000 new pallets a month to ship products from 27 brands. Shipments were tracked, but the pallets carrying them weren’t, so pallets regularly went missing or were stolen. I designed an internal platform, integrated with SAP, that tracks each pallet from dispatch to return.
The UI shown in this case study is translated from Spanish, the app’s original language.
My role
UX/UI designer at IT Resources, a software consultancy, with Unilever Argentina as the client. I ran the design thinking workshops, worked with stakeholders to gather and analyze requirements, and designed the interface. Day to day I worked with a business analyst and the development team.
Timeline
Seven months from discovery to launch in early 2020.
- Month 1: Workshops and interviews
- Month 2: UX and UI design
- Months 3–7: Development and QA
What the platform does
- Operations: tracks each pallet's movements and status, monitors stock held by partners, and generates alerts and key indicators
- Admin staff: review and approve the changes suppliers submit for each trip
- Truck drivers: register pallets and vouchers with a QR scan
Integrated with SAP, it brought processes that lived in separate places into one and replaced paper tracking.
Impact
Estimated savings of over $100,000 a month, or more than $1.2M a year.
Unilever Argentina bought around 15,000 new pallets a month to ship products from 27 brands. Shipments were tracked, but the pallets carrying them weren’t, so pallets regularly went missing or were stolen. I designed an internal platform, integrated with SAP, that tracks each pallet from dispatch to return.
The UI shown in this case study is translated from Spanish, the app’s original language.
My role
UX/UI designer at IT Resources, a software consultancy, with Unilever Argentina as the client. I ran the design thinking workshops, worked with stakeholders to gather and analyze requirements, and designed the interface. Day to day I worked with a business analyst and the development team.
Timeline
Seven months from discovery to launch in early 2020.
- Month 1: Workshops and interviews
- Month 2: UX and UI design
- Months 3–7: Development and QA
What the platform does
- Operations: tracks each pallet's movements and status, monitors stock held by partners, and generates alerts and key indicators
- Admin staff: review and approve the changes suppliers submit for each trip
- Truck drivers: register pallets and vouchers with a QR scan
Integrated with SAP, it brought processes that lived in separate places into one and replaced paper tracking.
Impact
Estimated savings of over $100,000 a month, or more than $1.2M a year.
Before: how pallets were managed
Insights from workshops and interviews with distribution-center staff, admin teams, pallet builders, and truck drivers.
Mostly wooden, plus plastic pallets in distribution centers, single-use disposables, and recovered pallets.
Over 100,000 pallets handled each month, about 15% of them new: customer-owned, single-use, transport-specific, or for companies that only accept new pallets.
Pallets had no IDs and only volume was tracked. Each exchange was written on a handwritten voucher, easy to lose and easy to falsify.
Vouchers often didn't come back, so exchanges stayed open and pallet debts between partners couldn't be verified.
HOVER TO INSPECTTAP TO INSPECT
Before: how pallets were managed
Insights from workshops and interviews with distribution-center staff, admin teams, pallet builders, and truck drivers.
Mostly wooden, plus plastic pallets in distribution centers, single-use disposables, and recovered pallets.
Over 100,000 pallets handled each month, about 15% of them new: customer-owned, single-use, transport-specific, or for companies that only accept new pallets.
Pallets had no IDs and only volume was tracked. Each exchange was written on a handwritten voucher, easy to lose and easy to falsify.
Vouchers often didn't come back, so exchanges stayed open and pallet debts between partners couldn't be verified.
HOVER TO INSPECTTAP TO INSPECT
A UI kit for data-dense tables
A UI kit for data-dense tables
A UI kit for data-dense tables
Reviewing and approving changes for each trip
Reviewing and approving changes for each trip
Reviewing and approving changes for each trip
Admin staff review the changes external suppliers submit for each trip, edit them if needed, and approve or reject them. That way, outstanding debts are based on verified data.
Admin staff review the changes external suppliers submit for each trip, edit them if needed, and approve or reject them. That way, outstanding debts are based on verified data.
Admin staff review the changes external suppliers submit for each trip, edit them if needed, and approve or reject them. That way, outstanding debts are based on verified data.
Truck drivers log pallets with a QR scan
Truck drivers log pallets with a QR scan
Truck drivers log pallets with a QR scan
Drivers scan a QR code to register pallets and vouchers from their phone. The data goes straight into the system, with no handwritten vouchers to falsify or lose.
Drivers scan a QR code to register pallets and vouchers from their phone. The data goes straight into the system, with no handwritten vouchers to falsify or lose.
Drivers scan a QR code to register pallets and vouchers from their phone. The data goes straight into the system, with no handwritten vouchers to falsify or lose.
