Managing Bulk Inventory At Multiple Sites: A Case Of Cement

Profiting amidst soaring inflation, heavy competition, and supply chain strain is a tall order. Many industries are looking for technology solutions to get a competitive edge, like those found with Industry 4.0 goals.

According to a study by McKinsey & Company, the cement industry needs digitization, sustainability, and resilience. It’s a challenge.

The World Economic Forum, in 2020, identified 54 manufacturing plants considered leaders in Industry 4.0 and none represent cement.

The study said cement companies must achieve lower operating costs through higher energy efficiency, yield, and throughput. Digitization and sustainability efforts, it says, should boost productivity at a typical cement operation gaining $4 to $9 per ton of cement.

With technology, the study said, “Fewer workers are required to be on-site continuously, and interactive online dashboards allow managers to remotely collaborate, solve problems, and quickly make informed decisions with the rest of the team.”

Binmaster interactive inventory perfect for multiple sites, silos

Concrete, manufacturing, and agricultural industries continue to trend towards a central headquarters facilitating operations in multiple locations. These multi-site locations provide opportunity for synergy in bulk material inventory management.

Recognizing the need, BinMaster created a feature within its CementView platform called SiteView. It allows organizations with multiple sites and storage vessels to manage bulk inventory using one central cloud-based software.

Siteview prompts better decisions with purchasing, forecasting, managing, and moving materials between sites.

In one case, a BinMaster system serves 58 silos, at 10 plants across four states. Central dispatch, drivers, plant operators, and purchasing planners hundreds of miles apart view the same continuously updated bulk inventory data for the entire organization.

BinMaster sensors and software deliver custom inventory reports on all vessels, all locations or just selected materials and locations, depending on the needs of each user. The cloud-based inventory management software, called BinCloud, projects days until empty, run usage reports, and delivers automated text and email alerts to assigned phones and PCs.