supply chain management at glaxo copy

SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

THE INDISPENSABLE DISTRIBUTION WEB

INTRODUCTIONA supply chain is a network of services and distribution options that performs the

functions of procurement of materials, transformation of these materials into

intermediate and finished products, and the distribution of these finished products

to customers. Supply chain management (SCM) is the combination of art and

science that goes into improving the way your company finds the raw

components it needs to make a product or service and deliver it to customers.

Supply chains exist in both manufacturing and service organizations, even if the

complexity of the chain may vary greatly from industry to industry and firm to firm.

Below is an example of a very simple supply chain for a single product, where

raw material is procured from vendors, transformed into finished goods in a

single step, and then transported to distribution centers, and ultimately to the

customers. Realistic supply chains have multiple end products with shared

components, facilities and capacities. The flow of materials is not always along

an arborescent network, various modes of transportation may be considered, and

the bill of materials for the end items may be both deep and large.

Traditionally, marketing, distribution, planning, manufacturing, and the

purchasing organisation along the supply chain operated independently. These

organizations have their own objectives and these are often conflicting.

Marketing's objective of high customer service and maximum sales dollars

conflict with manufacturing and distribution goals. Many manufacturing

operations are designed to maximize throughput and lower costs with little

consideration for the impact on inventory levels and distribution capabilities.

Purchasing contracts are often negotiated with very little information beyond

historical buying patterns. The result of these factors is that there is not a single,

integrated plan for the organization---there were as many plans as businesses.

Clearly, there is a need for a mechanism through which these different functions

can be integrated together. Supply chain management is a strategy through

which such integration can be achieved.

Supply chain management is typically viewed to lie between fully vertically

integrated firms, where the entire material flow is owned by a single firm, and

those where each channel member operates independently. Therefore

coordination between the various players in the chain is key in its effective

management. Cooper and Ellram have compared supply chain management to a

well-balanced and well-practiced relay team. Such a team is more competitive

when each player knows how to be positioned for the hand-off. The relationships

are the strongest between players who directly pass the stick, but the entire team

needs to make a coordinated effort to win the race.

DEFINITION OF SUPPLY CHAIN AND SUPPLY CHAIN

MANAGEMENT.

When a new concept is launched, there is always a great deal of confusion about

the definition, content and field of application.

Handfield and Nichols (2002) define supply chain and supply chain management

as follows:

The supply chain encompasses all organizations and activities associated with

the flow and transformation of goods from the raw material stage, through to the

end user, as well as the associated information flow. Materials and information

flow both up and down the supply chain.

Supply chain management is the integration and management of supply chain

organization and activities through co-operative organizational relationships,

effective business processes, and high levels of information sharing to created

high performance value system that provide member organizations a sustainable

competitive advances.

Christopher (2005) defines supply chain management as “ the management of

upstream and downstream relationships with suppliers and customers to deliver

superior customer value at less cost to the supply chain as a whole.

This definition of supply chain management focus on management of

relationships as a means of achieving better results for all members orf the

supply chain including customer.

“Supply chain management is a set of approaches utilized to efficiently

integrate suppliers, manufactures, warehouse, and stores, so that merchandise

is produced and distributed in the right quantities, to the right locations, and at

the right time, in order to minimize systems aside costs while satisfying service

lend requirement”

DIFFFERENCE BETWEEN DISTRIBUTION, LOGISTICS AND

SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

There has been much discussion in recent years of the differences between the

terms "distribution," "logistics," and "supply chain management." To many

people, those terms are synonymous. Yet they are different, and so it's important

to distinguish between them, not only to ensure clarity of communication, but also

as a way to understand the progressive levels of capabilities that companies

need to develop to successfully compete today.

Here are some definitions which can be find useful:

• Distribution involves the outbound flow of materials from the supplier or

manufacturer to customers. It naturally includes warehousing, transportation, and

inventory management activities.

• Logistics, according to the Council of Logistics Management, is "that part of the

supply chain that plans, implements, and controls the efficient forward and

reverse flow and storage of goods, services, and related information between the

point of origin and the point of consumption in order to meet customer

requirements."

• Supply chain management, in my mind, is broader than logistics and includes

all activities involved in the sourcing, manufacturing or conversion, storage,

distribution, and delivery of goods to customers. It involves integration with

channel partners, including suppliers, distributors, and customers,

Supply chain management is a broader concept whereas Logistics

management is a narrower concept.

The concept of Supply chain management is relatively new whereas the

concept of Logistics management is relatively old.

Supply chain management is an extension of Logistics management.

Logistics management is primarily concerned with optimizing flows within the

organization whilst supply chain management recognizes that internal integration

by itself is not sufficient.

Logistics is essentially a planning orientation and framework that seeks to

create a single plan for the flow of product and information through a business.

Supply chain management builds upon this framework and seeks to achieve

linkage and co-ordination between processes of the other entities in the pipeline,

i.e. suppliers and customers, and the organization itself.

The focus of Supply chain management is upon the management of

relationships in order to achieve a more profitable outcome for all parties in the

chain where as the focus of Logistics management is upon the management of

resources within the organization.

OBJECTIVE OF SCM

 “To reduce or eliminate the buffers of inventory that exists between organization

in a chain through the sharing of information on demand and current stock

levels.”

Supply Chain Management or SCM as it is popularly known is also known as

Value Chain Management. This is nothing but handling through a single system,

all interaction that deals with people external to an organisation. 

Supply Chain Management deals with two distinct areas; the customers and the

vendors. On the customer side it deals with all transactions dealing with the

customers; from inquiry to ordering to order execution to final delivery and

payment. Another part of the system would be there to handle returns from

customers as well as handling grievances. More transparent the system is to the

outside user, less is the interaction required on a personal level and greater is

the confidence that the customer builds on the organisation.

The upstream value chain consisting of suppliers, when integrated in the

company’s internal chain, leads to partnership between the two. With the onset of

this concept, the vendors are no longer considered as suppliers, but viewed as

partners in progress. This leads to the formation of narrow, but dedicated vendor

base, and who get committed to the buyers’ organisation. Similarly, the

downstream value chain encompasses the distributors and dealers, which when

integrated with the company’s internal value chain, results in better marketing

inputs such as product development, distribution, and customers’ services.    

Cost reduction is a perennial concern of every well run organisation, and the only

way this can be achieved, is by re- engineering the supply chain. The supply

chain management concept will result in better control on deliveries, quality,

inventories, and prices, assuring a long term association between the vendor and

the buyer to a mutual benefit. In fact, the company can have a competitive edge

in the market by using its scarce resources on the activities that it can do the

best, i.e. by focusing on the core competency, and leaving the rest to the supply

chain.

 The key to effective Supply Chain Management is supply chain integration –

ensuring that all parts of the supply chain work together, rather than at cross-

purposes. Supply chain integration is a state where timely information transmitted

among trading partners is in manner that lets them readily adjust to changes in

requirements for material, production, or delivery. The progress towards the idea

of supply chain integration as a source of competitive advantage will gain

momentum as the growth of ‘time based competition’ accelerates. In markets that

are increasingly volatile, responsiveness becomes a critical competitive

requirement. The critical decisions to be made are not about minimising costs but

about wherein the chain to position inventory and available production capacity in

order to hedge against uncertain demand. In the business of fashion almost 95%

of the products are completely new designs and the demand forecasts often err

by as much as 200%. This high uncertainty of demand is intrinsic and inherent to

fashion products. Devising a responsive supply chain alone can help cope up

with this phenomenon. Companies like Benetton and The Limited have gained

significant advantage through their ability to respond rapidly to fashion changes

in the markets they serve. Through the use of highly coordinated logistics and

supply chain structures, driven by the real- time capture of sales data, these

companies adapted their product range and their volumes in weeks rather than

months. A central theme of supply chain integration is “to identify the

unnecessary activities, which do not add value to the supply chain or activities

which would be better carried out at a different place or time in the supply chain,

address the inefficiencies caused by them and develop solutions by working

closely with supply chain partners.”

BACKGROUND

The competitiveness of international companies is highly dependent on their

ability to deliver customized product quickly and timely all over the world.

Therefore focus has moved form competition between firms at the same level in

the production process to competition between supply chain, from raw materials

to end customers. A company’s ability to create trust-based and long term

business relationships with customers, suppliers, and other strategic partners

becomes a crucial competitive parameter. The tendency towards increased

integration and co-operation between the enterprises in the supply chain results

in greater complexity in the management and control technology, which requires

increased co-ordination of resources and activities.

Most companies compete in and environment characterized by:

Turbulent and dynamic markets, where the customers requirements change

rapidly and unforeseeably.

Strongly segmented markets, where various customer have varying

requirement for products and services

Market requirements for multiple product varieties and customization of both

product and services.

Increase customer demand for “experiences” and not merely physical

products.

Global competition, which forces companies to become faster, better and

cheaper.

These are the challenges that made supply chain management an important

management tool and competitive parameter for many firms.

FIVE BASIC COMPONENTS OF SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

1. Plan – This is the strategic portion of Supply Chain Management. we need

a strategy for managing all the resources that go toward meeting customer

demand for your product or service. A big piece of planning is developing

a set of metrics to monitor the supply chain so that it is efficient, costs less

and delivers high quality and value to customers.

2. Source – We should choose the suppliers that will deliver the goods and

services you need to create your product. Develop a set of pricing,

delivery and payment processes with suppliers and create metrics for

monitoring and improving the relationships. And put together processes

for managing the inventory of goods and services that we receive from

suppliers, including receiving shipments, verifying them, transferring them

to your manufacturing facilities and authorizing supplier payments.

3. Make – This is the manufacturing step. Schedule the activities necessary

for production, testing, packaging and preparation for delivery. As the

most metric-intensive portion of the supply chain, measure quality levels,

production output and worker productivity.

4. Deliver – This is the part that many insiders refer to as logistics.

Coordinate the receipt of orders from customers, develop a network of

warehouses, pick carriers to get products to customers and set up an

invoicing system to receive payments.

5. Return – The problem part of the supply chain. Create a network for

receiving defective and excess products back from customers and

supporting customers who have problems with delivered products.

SUPPLY CHAIN DECISIONS

The decisions for supply chain management can be classified into two broad

categories -- strategic and operational. As the term implies, strategic decisions

are made typically over a longer time horizon. These are closely linked to the

corporate strategy, and guide supply chain policies from a design perspective.

On the other hand, operational decisions are short term, and focus on activities

over a day-to-day basis. The effort in these types of decisions is to effectively

and efficiently manage the product flow in the "strategically" planned supply

chain.

There are four major decision areas in supply chain management: 1) location, 2)

production, 3) inventory, and 4) transportation (distribution), and there are both

strategic and operational elements in each of these decision areas.

LOCATION DECISIONS

The geographic placement of production facilities, stocking points, and sourcing

points is the natural first step in creating a supply chain. The location of facilities

involves a commitment of resources to a long-term plan. Once the size, number,

and location of these are determined, so are the possible paths by which the

product flows through to the final customer. These decisions are of great

significance to a firm since they represent the basic strategy for accessing

customer markets, and will have a considerable impact on revenue, cost, and

level of service. These decisions should be determined by an optimization routine

that considers production costs, taxes, duties and duty drawback, tariffs, local

content, distribution costs, production limitations, etc. Although location decisions

are primarily strategic, they also have implications on an operational level.

Production Decisions

The strategic decisions include what products to produce, and which plants to

produce them in, allocation of suppliers to plants, plants to DC's, and DC's to

customer markets. As before, these decisions have a big impact on the

revenues, costs and customer service levels of the firm. These decisions assume

the existence of the facilities, but determine the exact path(s) through which a

product flows to and from these facilities. Another critical issue is the capacity of

the manufacturing facilities--and this largely depends the degree of vertical

integration within the firm. Operational decisions focus on detailed production

scheduling. These decisions include the construction of the master production

schedules, scheduling production on machines, and equipment maintenance.

Other considerations include workload balancing, and quality control measures at

a production facility.

Inventory Decisions

These refer to means by which inventories are managed. Inventories exist at

every stage of the supply chain as either raw materials, semi-finished or finished

goods. They can also be in-process between locations. Their primary purpose to

buffer against any uncertainty that might exist in the supply chain. Since holding

of inventories can cost anywhere between 20 to 40 percent of their value, their

efficient management is critical in supply chain operations. It is strategic in the

sense that top management sets goals. However, most researchers have

approached the management of inventory from an operational perspective.

These include deployment strategies (push versus pull), control policies --- the

determination of the optimal levels of order quantities and reorder points, and

setting safety stock levels, at each stocking location. These levels are critical,

since they are primary determinants of customer service levels.

Transportation Decisions

The mode choice aspect of these decisions are the more strategic ones. These

are closely linked to the inventory decisions, since the best choice of mode is

often found by trading-off the cost of using the particular mode of transport with

the indirect cost of inventory associated with that mode. While air shipments may

be fast, reliable, and warrant lesser safety stocks, they are expensive. Meanwhile

shipping by sea or rail may be much cheaper, but they necessitate holding

relatively large amounts of inventory to buffer against the inherent uncertainty

associated with them. Therefore customer service levels, and geographic

location play vital roles in such decisions. Since transportation is more than 30

percent of the logistics costs, operating efficiently makes good economic sense.

Shipment sizes (consolidated bulk shipments versus Lot-for-Lot), routing and

scheduling of equipment are key in effective management of the firm's transport

strategy.

SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT: A STRATEGIC TOOL

The role of customer service is to provide ‘time and place utility’ in the transfer of

goods and services between seller and buyer. There is no value in the product or

service until it is in the hands of the consumer. Availability is one of the most

important factors for success of any company in the merging competitive

scenario. A galaxy of factors, which together constitute customer service,

impacts upon availability. These factors might  include delivery frequency and

reliability, stock levels and order cycle time, etc. ultimately, customer service is

determined by the interaction of all those factors that affect the process of

making products and services available to the buyer. An effective supply chain

management strategy, which addresses all these factors, can improve the

customer service levels of an organisation significantly.

Effective supply chain management requires an in depth understanding of the

structure, economics, and requirements of, as well as the constraints on,

components of the system. But this internal perspective, while necessary, is not

sufficient. To succeed, companies must also have several external perspectives-

views of how supply chain policies being implemented affect the overall

competitiveness of the company in the market place.

Supply Chain Modeling Approaches

Clearly, each of the above two levels of decisions require a different perspective.

The strategic decisions are, for the most part, global or "all encompassing" in that

they try to integrate various aspects of the supply chain. Consequently, the

models that describe these decisions are huge, and require a considerable

amount of data. Often due to the enormity of data requirements, and the broad

scope of decisions, these models provide approximate solutions to the decisions

they describe. The operational decisions, meanwhile, address the day to day

operation of the supply chain. Therefore the models that describe them are often

very specific in nature. Due to their narrow perspective, these models often

consider great detail and provide very good, if not optimal, solutions to the

operational decisions.

To facilitate a concise review of the literature, and at the same time attempting to

accommodate the above polarity in modeling, we divide the modeling

approaches into three areas --- Network Design, ”Rough Cut" methods, and

simulation based methods. The network design methods, for the most part,

provide normative models for the more strategic decisions. These models

typically cover the four major decision areas described earlier, and focus more on

the design aspect of the supply chain; the establishment of the network and the

associated flows on them. "Rough cut" methods, on the other hand, give guiding

policies for the operational decisions. These models typically assume a "single

site" (i.e., ignore the network) and add supply chain characteristics to it, such as

explicitly considering the site's relation to the others in the network. Simulation

methods is a method by which a comprehensive supply chain model can be

analyzed, considering both strategic and operational elements. However, as with

all simulation models, one can only evaluate the effectiveness of a pre-specified

policy rather than develop new ones. It is the traditional question of "What If?"

versus "What's Best?".

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is a world leading research-based pharmaceutical

company with a powerful combination of skills and resources that provides a

platform for delivering strong growth in today's rapidly changing healthcare

environment. GlaxoSmithKline engages in the creation, discovery, development,

manufacture, and marketing of pharmaceutical and consumer health-related

products worldwide. Headquartered in the UK and with operations based in the

US, the new company is one of the industry leaders, with an estimated seven per

cent of the world's pharmaceutical market. GSK has over 100,000 employees

worldwide. Of these, over 40,000 are in sales and marketing, the largest sales

force in the industry. Around 35,000 employees work at 82 manufacturing sites in

37 countries and over 15,000 are in R&D. GSK R&D is based at 24 sites in 11

countries.

MISSSION

GSK's mission is to improve the quality of human life by enabling people to do

more, feel better and live longer.

VISION

GSK’s vision for the future is powered by their business drivers. It finds purpose and direction with their strategic intent.

THE VISION FOR THE FUTURE

GlaxoSmithKline's vision is exciting and will give you the opportunity to make a

difference in the health of billions of people. Their value systems and operating

principles will provide the necessary guide on how they work at GSK. The key to

their success will be powered by the desire and passion to pursue GSK's

priorities, expressed by the business drivers.

GSK has four manufacturing units in India, located at Thane, Nashik, Mysore

Bangalore. GSK has its head office in Mumbai at Worli. Company has a

formidable presence in the domestic pharmaceuticals market with a market share

of above 5.9 per cent. GSK India markets a wide range of ethical formulations

and is the leader in therapeutic areas of respiratory, dermatology and vaccines,

besides having a significant presence in areas of gastroenterology, dietary

supplements, gynecology, neurology, cardiovascular and intensive care. GSK

India is also the undisputed leader in the animal health and fine chemicals

businesses. GSK also has leadership in four major therapeutic areas - anti-

infectives, central nervous system (CNS), respiratory and

gastro-intestinal/metabolic. In addition, it is a leader in the important area of

vaccines and has a growing portfolio of oncology products. The company also

has a Consumer Healthcare portfolio comprising over-the-counter (OTC)

medicines, oral care products and nutritional healthcare drinks, all of which are

among the market leaders.

Glaxo India completed 75 years of its operations in India in the year 1999 and

was named as India's most respected Pharmaceutical Company in a survey

conducted by Businessworld and the Indian Market Research Bureau (IMRB).

GlaxoSmithKline was named as India's most respected Pharmaceutical

Company in a survey conducted by Businessworld and the Indian Market

Research Bureau in the year 2003. GSK India has made a significant

contribution and is growing year by year. It figures among the top five markets

and so it is a cornerstone of the performance in the international markets. If GSK

India doesn’t do well, international division will also have a problem doing well

too.

MANAGING DIRECTOR

6VICE PRESIDENTS 1 EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

SENIOR GENERAL MANAGER

SENIOR MANAGER

MANAGERS

O R G A N I Z AT I O N A L STRUCTURE

ASSISTANT MANAGER

STAFF

OTHER BUSINESS

GlaxoSmithKline is a leading, global, research-based healthcare and

pharmaceutical company. In India, it is the Number One Pharmaceutical

company with a market share of 5.9 per cent. GSK commands the number one

position in six of the 10 therapeutic categories in which it operates. Other than

pharmaceuticals. GSK has other businesses - Qualigens Fine Chemicals (QFC).

ABOUT QFCGENERAL INFORMATION

QUALIGENS FINE CHEMICALS (QFC):-

The Big Picture Qualigens Fine Chemicals (QFC) is a division of

GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals that manufactures and markets a range of

products required in a laboratory, including chemicals, diagnostic kits, glassware,

culture media, instruments, filter papers and more…

The word Qualigens is derived from two words—Quality and Genesis, which

means origin. Thus Qualigens can be translated to mean the Origin of Quality.

Qualigens is committed to manufacture and sell high quality products at

competitive prices. The objective is to provide everything a laboratory needs from

a single, reliable source. And the focus is on delighting the existing customers

and enlarging the customer base in terms of Quality, Service and safety.

QFC has over 750 products in its portfolio of fine chemicals. The nucleus of

QFC’s business is high quality and its products are manufactured and tested at

facilities that have ISO 9002 accreditation and highly skilled manpower and

instrumentation.

The Qualigens Fine Chemicals (QFC) holds #1position in a highly fragmented

market of fine chemicals. It has an estimated market share of 27%. QFC has a

growing presence in Diagnostics, which covers the complete seriodiagnosis and

biochemical tests, and has achieved a sizable growth in diagnostic instruments.

Allied range of products including laboratory glassware has been successfully

launched. Complementing these ranges, QFC also deals in laboratory

requirements such as filter papers, disinfectants, dispowares and distillers. QFC

has also introduced filtration range of products and culture media, which are

seen as high growth products in the future.

QFC has a nation wide presence through 14 stock points, which serve as

regional distribution centers. The Central stock point is located at Bhiwandi,

Thane. QFC has 8 contract sites around Mumbai for manufacturing / packing

purposes. The overall product portfolio in different pack sizes extends to

approximately 2700 products. Quality is of paramount importance in the

laboratory chemicals business, QFC also has a Quality Assurance (QA) lab

which ascertain products comply with stringent quality parameters.

CUSTOMERS

QFC's biggest customers are industrial and institutional laboratories. Besides

this manufacturing units requiring specialty chemicals are also major customers.

Many of the dealings happen through stock points or by means of trading parties.

Hence they form the direct customer interface.

DOCUMENTS USED FOR TRANSACTIONS IN THE CURRENT SYSTEM . PO: - Purchase order is issued from procurement department to the suppliers

to order for RM / PM.

LR: - Lorry receipt or Lorry note is used to ascertain physical flow of good

from sites, CSP etc.

GRN: - Goods receipt note is issued to acknowledge goods from

suppliers or from sites to CSP.

GAN: - Goods Acceptance Note is issued by the QA when the products have

passed required quality parameters. GAN is used to finally accept

goods.

RDC: - Rejected delivery challan is used when goods are rejected and returned

back.

PFI / STN is used to record material transfers between CSP and depots.

When excess goods are detected during physical stock check or goods of

STN/PFI due are not physically dispatched RSAN is issued to acknowledge

receipt and accept goods in stock

When Customer on whose favour the invoice is made returns goods then a RBP is made to accept goods back in stock.

When damaged products are received and they have to be scrapped then an

ISAN is issued to record this loss of goods.

INVOICE is the final billing that is done to the customer.

Stock Factor Reeport is the monthly report containing data about stock levels

at various Stock points. It also contains information about forecasts about

products, this report is primarily used for planning and scheduling purposes.

DAN :- When materials are sent for sub processing from the sites they issue a

DAN containing instructions about the job to be done

MASTER DATABASES

A complete database of QFC products with product codes is maintained.

Products have five digit codes with the first four digits indicating the material

used and the fifth digit the pack type. When a new product is to be added

marketing has to decide a code for it. This updating of the database is done at

various stock points based on instructions from H.O.

Raw materials and Packing materials used for manufacturing or packing are

also coded for easy classification. Whenever any new material is to be added

Procurement at HO updates the database in PPMC systems.

Customers are also identified by codes. Depending upon the region and area

the customer falls under he is allotted a code. Whenever a new customer is to

be added the respective RBM, ABM approvals are needed, then the customer

is added to the database.

A standard bill of materials (BOM) is maintained.

A standard supplier database is also maintained for procurement purposes.

Addition of a new supplier to the database is done by Procurement from HO

only.

All the databases will have to be edited either at the HO or on direct permission

from HO.

THE EXISTING SUPPLY CHAIN AT GLAXOSMITHKLINE (QFC).

THE FIRST SUPPLY CHAIN MODULE IS DEVELOPED FOR THE QFC CHEMICALS BUSINESS

This is a broad overview of how the process of ordering

Packing/Manufacturing and dispatch occurs. This process is carried out at

manufacturing & packing sites namely, Sai Swaroop, Vasuda, Shreyas. Trichem,

Chemiline. The difference between production and packing sites is that for

production sites the Raw material as well as the finished goods is passed by the

QA labs, before final dispatch occurs.

Details regarding the depot functions were obtained from the Bhiwandi

depot as well as the CSP office at Worli. During each and every process

documents are generated to keep a record of the current transaction. Also it

passes information for the next-in-line Operation to be performed.

Billings to customers and collections from them are received either at the

stock points or at the HO. This data is then transferred to the Finance

Department on monthly basis. In case of bounced Cheques both the Zonal Sales

Managers and respective stock points are informed about it. In case of Suppliers

the Bill is received by the procurement department and is verified against the

GAN from QA. This is then sent to the billing department and the QFC Finance

can get updated when data is updated in MFG Pro system.

Determination of requirements at stock points

based current stocks and previous three months

sales data. Based on this a manufacturing schedule

for the plants is generated.

Based on this monthly schedule the sites plan their

Manufacturing/ Packing process. RM and PM

requirements are also generated based on this

schedule and given to Procurement.

Other than the above planned / scheduled method, sometimes due to stock outs

at the stock points many times direct orders are placed by the customer or stock

points. The process for handling of such orders is given below.

Receipt of monthly data regarding stocks in hand from the stock points

Stock Factor Report

Monthly scheduling done for plants

Procurement

Manufacturing/Packing

The customer orders are checked against

current stock by the stock point or Head office is

notified about the requirements. On basis of this

indents are issued or billing is done

Indents and final Product transfer notes are

of two types Normal and Modvat.

In case of manufacturing plants the Raw material has to be processed further. Please see the process on the next page If Raw material/Packing material is not available then Vendors are to be contacted and orders are placed for the

Customer Orders

Raw material & packing material availability is compared with BOM and checked at site. Packing/

Production and dispatch to Parijat

Available

Not

Procurement orders given to Vendors

Quality Assurance lab

At stock points availability is checked and material is billed. If not then following process occurs.

Indents

material.

Vendors/Suppliers

Sites

Sampling for testing

1

GRN

Quality Assurance lab

Manufacturing / Production process

Plant sends back to Vendor and reorders on same invoice

PTN is received from the sites and a commercial invoice as well as lorry order is sent to Worli (Parijat) office

Passed

Rejected

Production sites

QA Lab

Manufacturing process

Finished Goods

QA Lab

After GAN is received Label requisition is issued.

PassedRejected

Customer billing is directly at HO or by DCS is entered and Finance is informed.

1

1

2

2

GAN

Label requisition is issued

SUPPLY CHAIN PROCESS FOR THE DIAGNOSTICS DEPARTMENT

Most of the diagnostic products are traded. Some of them are

manufactured by Vendors in India or imported. Some of the products are

procured in bulk and then repacked in small units at the repackaging site at

Vasai. Since most of the items are imported with procuring the same requiring a

high lead time, hence maintaining a high inventory becomes inevitable. A three-month rolling forecast given by the RBM's is used for planning purposes.

Customer gets invoice and goods

Cheques are deposited at HO or at the Stock point

Customer/Stockiest Stock Point

Procurement at HO

VendorsRepackaging unit

SUPPLY CHAIN PROCESS FOR THE ALLIED RANGE OF PRODUCTS

Allied Ranges of products consist of Laboratory products like Distillation units,

Filtration aids, Chromatographic test kits, Culture media, Laboratory glassware

etc. The selling method differs from other QFC products in that some of the

products are sold through quotations in a formal B2B format. All of these

products are traded items. Most of the products are procured only on demand

from the customer. Some of the fast moving segments have a small amount of

inventory maintained to avoid stock outs.

After order is received it

is verified against current

stocks, if available

products are billed else

indents are generated for

procurement.

DISTRIBUTORORDER IS PLACED WITH HO

BILLING IS DONE AT WORLI (PARIJAT) OFFICE

INDENTS ARE ISSUED FOR PROCUREMENT FROM VENDORS.

AVAILABLE

UNAVAILABLE

SALES ORDER PROCESSING

For Qualisystems orders are accepted on basis of advance payments through

DD only in which case the order is accepted and sales order processing

occurs. Currently this verification is done manually it should be integrated and

order processing instructions should be displayed.

Customer / Stock Point requirements

Worli Sales Processing

Worli CSP office

Packing & Manufacturing

Sites

1 2

Products availableProducts not available

Stock Factor Report

When excess goods are detected during

physical stock check or goods of STN/PFI due are

not physically dispatched RSAN is issued to

acknowledge receipt and accept goods in stock

Based upon RSAN the complaint is checked by HO

(Parag Kharkar) and if reworking etc is possible

then respective action is taken or goods are

scrapped, for this an ISAN is issued.

Until LN is received the invoice is treated as

pending invoice and the order has to be tracked.

When Customer returns goods on whose

favor the invoice is made then a RBP is made to

1

Worli CSP Office

Mother depot, Bhiwandi

Invoice

Invoice copy + Lorry Note

Customer

Invoice/Bill + Lorry Order

Accounts

Cheques

Worli Head office

Orders

Stock Points

Quotation Invoice

STN

Material movement

accept goods back in stock.

Worli Head office

Manufacturing & Packing Units and Procurement dept.

Parijat Worli Head office

Mother Depot, Bhiwandi

Indent

Delivery Challan + Excise Invoice

Delivery Challan

Invoice

Invoice + Lorry note

PFI

Stock Points

STN

Customer

Accounts

Cheques

Invoice/Bill +

Lorry Order

PROCUREMENT PROCESSING

In case of packing material the PO

is generated annually estimating

the monthly demand. After a

shortage is detected as against the

order the components of a packing

material and their availability is

verified against the BOM and the

stock status from plants, to fulfill

the order. Vendors are then asked

to supply the material as against

the annual order.

PRODUCTION / PACKING SITES

PROCUREMENT DEPARTMENT

SALES ORDER PROCESSING

ADDITIONAL INDENTS

RLM051PENDING INDENTS

QA LAB

VENDOR

PRODUCTION / PACKING SITES

QA LAB

1

SAMPLING

STOCK STATUS

UNDER TESTING MATERIAL STATUS

PO # + LR

GRN + TEST ANALYSIS SHEET

Based upon all the requirements and available stocks a requisition is generated and purchase order is issued.

PO

ACCEPTED REJECTED

PRODUCTION / MANUFACTURING

SITE SUPPLIERS

PROCUREMENT

QA LAB

ACCOUNTS

GRN + RDC in case of rejection

GRN

GAN

1

GAN

GRN

BILL is sent in case of acceptance

BILL + GAN after verification

INTRODUCTION

Mumbai is a densely populated city with a huge flow of traffic. Because of this,

lengthy commutes to workplaces are common, with many workers traveling by

train. Instead of going home for lunch or paying for a meal in a café, many office

workers have a cooked meal sent by a caterer who delivers it to them as well,

essentially cooking and delivering the meal in lunch boxes and then having the

lunch boxes collected and re-sent the next day. This is usually done for a

monthly fee. The meal is cooked in the morning and sent in lunch boxes carried

by dabbawalas, who have a complex association and hierarchy across the city. A

collecting dabbawala, usually on bicycle, collects dabbas from homes or, more

often, from the dabba makers (who actually cook the food). The dabbas have

some sort of distinguishing mark on them, such as a color or symbol (most

dabbawalas are illiterate).

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The dabbawala then takes them to a designated sorting place, where he and

other collecting dabbawalas sort (and sometimes bundle) the lunch boxes into

groups. The grouped boxes are put in the coaches of trains, with markings to

identify the destination of the box (usually there is a designated car for the

boxes). The markings include the rail station to unload the boxes and the building

address where the box has to be delivered. At each station, boxes are handed

over to a local dabbawala, who delivers them. The empty boxes, after lunch, are

again collected and sent back to the respective houses.

Everyone who works within this system is treated as an equal. Regardless of

what function a dabbawala, everyone gets paid about 4,000 rupees (which

equals around 50 British pounds), not a lot of money when one considers that

they also return the lunch's packaging to the home.

More than 175,000–200,000 lunches get moved every day by an estimated

4,500–5,000 dabbawalas, all with an extremely small nominal fee and with

utmost punctuality. According to a recent survey, there is only one mistake in

every 6,000 deliveries. In fact, the American business magazine Forbes gave a

Six Sigma performance rating for the precision of dabbawalas. This rating

indicates a 99.999999 accuracy percentage of correctness, meaning one error in

every six million transactions—an astonishing (and perhaps unbelievable) degree

of exactness.

Mumbai’s Dabbawalas operation is confined to Mumbai only, which is the

commercial capital of India. Thousands of Mumbai residents leave for work

empty-handed, without anything to eat for lunch. Mumbai’s In Mumbai, there is a

small army of 'dabbawalas' who picks up 175,000 lunches from the customers

homes and delivers them to harried students, managers and workers on every

working day. They serve hot lunch to this harried person at their desk at 12.30

pm sharp.

In Mumbai there are around 5000 dabbawalas who work as tiffin carriers. Just

like a well-oiled Olympic relay team. They collect, sort and transport the dabbas

to the respective destinations. They do this with absolutely zero documentation

and yet rarely has it happened that a lunch has missed its destined belly.

The service includes collection, transportation and delivery of lunch boxes from

home to office location in the morning. In the evening the (empty) lunch boxes

are moved in the reverse direction. More than four thousand five hundred semi-

literate dabbawalas collect and deliver 175,000 packages within hours. This is a

very unique, simple and highly well-organised logistics system of120-year which

is followed in Amchi Mumbai. The Mumbai dabbawallas operation is widely

recognized as an outstanding example of excellence in logistics.

Though the work sounds simple, it is actually a highly specialized trade that is

over a century old and which has become integral to Mumbai's culture. The

dabbawalas is a 113-year business run by a group of people with practically no

formal education, no investment and no technology. The task of accurately

delivering food to over 2 lakh customers daily in crowded Mumbai is something

that would daunt even the biggest management gurus. But the dabbawallahs,

with almost no formal management training, accomplish the task with such

precision that they have become a worldwide management and logistics

phenomenon.

WHO IS A DABBAWALA?

The word "Dabbawala" means "one who carries a box”. Available literature on

the subject broadly identifies a Dabbawala as a carrier of tiffin boxes. Most of the

Dabbawala hail from a few places in rural Maharashtra, which are located closer

to Pune. These include district and towns such as Audar, Ambegoan, Akola,

Junnar, Mulshi, Mawal, Rajgurunagar, Sangamner and Khed. Most of them

belong to a certain community and so they share certain common beliefs and

values in area like work ethics, living styles, food habits, religious beliefs and so

on. They also speak common dialect. They also share similar customs and

traditions like gathering together for a week every April for a festival in their. They

follow a strict dress code which comprises of the conspicuous white Gandhi-Cap

and Khadi Kurtha Pyjamas – a loose white dhoti shirt or cotton Pyjama.

Economic necessity was the most important factor that drove them to migrate to

Mumbai for employment. Most have left behind their family, visiting them once in

a while, and live a Spartan life in Mumbai. All Dabbawalas share the same belief

that being “Annadattas” their role on the job is of prime importance. So their

single most important objective each day is to ensure that no individual,

subscribing to their services, would go hungry on any day.

The dabbawalas have a distinct local identity and are easily recognized in the

crowded and most busy location in Mumbai. Pedestrians and commuters yield to

the dabbawalas in order not to interfere with their service delivery. They are

always in a hurry they are known for their reliability and work ethics.

All are fueled by the overall objective the “work is worship” and “Atiti Devo

Bhava”.

When we bring to perspective the essential characteristics of Dabbawala we

need to reflect o what are the intrinsic personality variables that distinguishes the

Dabbawalas. The Dabbawalas are called Mard Marathas, the worrier cast in

Maharashtra, and as “Vithoba Chi Fauz” i.e. the army of Lord Vishnu and are

also descendents of Shivaji. They carry in their collective consciousness a spirtit

of struggle and achievement of the highest order. Their work ethics and the belief

that in the sweat and toil of day to day living there is scope for transformation of

the spirit fuels them to work harder and with greater commitment of purpose. It is

these qualities of the spirit that distinguishes them form the others.

HISTORY OF DABBAWALA

The origin of the Dabbawalas' lunch delivery service dates back to the 1890s

during the British Raj. The history of tiffin box carriers run parallel to the history of

Mumbai's development. Saddled with growing population in the late19th century,

new settlements -- further from the original in the old Fort complex, started

cropping up in Mumbai. Ballard Pier and Fort still remained the business centers

though, as they housed most of the banks, government departments, insurance

houses, shipping companies, etc. The tiffin carrier service by Dabbawalas is

believed to have originated in the 19th century and has been evolved over a period

of over 100 years.

At that time, people from various communities migrated to Mumbai for work. As

there were no canteens or fast food centers then, if working people did not bring

their lunch from home, they had to go hungry and invariably, lunch would not be

ready when they left home for work.

As residential colonies kept moving further from the Fort, a lot of office goers

started finding it difficult to go home for their lunch in the afternoons. Carrying

lunch boxes while leaving home in the morning was not exactly fashionable. It

was a Parsi banker finally found a solution. In 1890, a Parsi broker working in a

Ballard pier employed a young man, who had come down from Pune district, to

fetch his lunch every afternoon. The idea caught on and this inspired many

unemployed people to become dabba carriers. The purpose of the service was to

collect the tiffin from the each house and deliver to the consigned persons and

after the lunch the respective tiffins are returned back to their houses

Business picked up through referrals and soon the pioneer tiffin-carrying entrepreneur

had to call for more helping hands from his village. Though there were no umbrella

organizations for the carriers then, the first informal attempt to unionize was made by

Mahadev Havji Bacche in 1930. A charitable trust was registered n 1956 under the name

of "Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Trust". Even today every carrier is expected to

contribute Rs 15 (US $ 0.30) per month towards the trust. The commercial arm was

registered quite later in 1968 as "Mumbai Tiffin Box Carriers Association.

WHAT IS THE BASIC NEED ADDRESSED?

The value proposition that Mr. Madhu Havji Bache offered was very simple ensure

“timely supply” of “home food” to the working class. This involved pick up of lunch

boxes from individual homes and their delivery at the work place and again returning

these boxes back home. Though the job profile was simple, they were made aware that

non delivery of the boxes on time or abstention from work would seriously impact the

reputation of the Dabbawallas. No initial investment was required by him as he used the

available transport and infrastructure facilities for the task.

In the beginning he had an informal arrangement to handle the job o pick up and delivery

of the dabbas. The areas covered were restricted to the geographic regions were work was

underway. Over the years this has evolved to meet the growing demand for supply of

“home food”. It was only in 1890, when this services delivery model was established that

Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Charity Thrust was formed. The people working on

this job were formally called “Dabbawalas”.

THE NUTAN MUMBAI TIFFIN BOX SUPPLIERS TRUST

The Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association is a smooth 120-year-old

organisation with 5000 semi-literate members providing a quality door-to-door

service to a large and loyal customer base. 5000 semi-literate Dabbawalas

transport 1,75,000-boxes in a 3-hours period, through a 25-Km of public

transportation involving multiple transfer points at six sigma level of quality.

History: Started in 1880

Avg. Literacy Rate: 8th Grade Schooling

Avg. area coverage: 60 Km per Tiffin Box

Employee Strength: 5000

Number of Tiffins: 200000 Tiffin Boxes i.e.400000 transactions daily.

Time taken: 3 hrs (9 am–12 pm delivery of carriers, 2 pm – 5 pm

collection of empty carriers)Cost of service: Rs.200/month.

Turnover: Rs.50 crore per month approx.

ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE

PRESIDENTMr. Raghunath Medage.

VICE PRESIDENTMr. Sabaji Medage.

GENERAL SECRETARYMr. Gangaram Talekar.

MEMBERS (5000)

MUKADAM

TREASURERMr. Damodar Manohar

Pingale

DIRECTORS (9)

13 MEMBERS

BUILDING A CLIENTELE

The range of customers includes students (both college and school),

entrepreneurs of small businesses, managers, especially bank staff, and mill

workers.

They generally tend to be middle-class citizens who, for reasons of economy,

hygiene, caste and dietary restrictions or simply because they prefer whole-some

food from their kitchen, rely on the dabbawala to deliver a home cooked mid-day

meal.

Service charges vary from Rs 150 to Rs 300 per tiffin per month, depending on

location and collection time. Money is collected in the first week of every month

and remitted to the mukadam on the first Sunday. He then divides the money

equally among members of that group. It is assumed that one dabbawala can

handle not more than 30-35 customers given that each tiffin weighs around 2

kgs. And this is the benchmark that every group tries to achieve.

Typically, a twenty member group has 675 customers and earns Rs 100,000 per

month which is divided equally even if one dabbawala has 40 customers while

another has 30. Groups compete with each other, but members within a group do

not. It's common sense, points out one dabbawala.

One dabbawala could collect 40 tiffins in the same time that it takes another to

collect 30. From his earnings of between Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000, every dabbawala

contributes Rs15 per month to the association. The amount is utilised for the

community's upliftment, loans and marriage halls at confessional rates. All

problems are usually resolved by association officials whose ruling is binding.

Meetings are held in the office on the 15th of every month at the Dadar. During

these meetings, particular emphasis is paid to customer service. If a tiffin is lost

or stolen, an investigation is promptly instituted. Customers are allowed to deduct

costs from any dabbawala found guilty of such a charge.

If a customer complains of poor service, the association can shift the customer's

account to another dabbawalas. No dabbawalas is allowed to undercut another.

Before looking into internal disputes, the association charges a token Rs 100 to

ensure that only genuinely aggrieved members interested in a solution come to it

with their problems, and the officials' time is not wasted on petty bickering.

ECONOMICAL ANALYSIS

Everyone who works within this system is treated as an equal. Regardless of a

dabbawalas function, everyone gets paid about 2000-4,000 rupees per month

(around 25-50 British pounds).

More than 175,000-200,000 lunches get moved every day by an estimated

4,500-5,000 dabbawalas, all with an extremely small nominal fee and with utmost

punctuality. According to a recent survey, there is only one mistake in every

6,000,000 deliveries. The American business magazine Forbes gave a Six

Sigma performance rating for the precision of dabbawalas.

The BBC has produced a documentary on Dabbawalas, and Prince Charles,

during his visit to India, visited them (he had to fit in with their schedule, since

their timing was too precise to permit any flexibility). Owing to the tremendous

publicity, some of the dabbawalas were invited to give guest lectures in top

business schools of India, which is very unusual. Most remarkably, the success

of the dabbawala trade has involved no modern technology. The main reason for

their popularity could be the Indian people's aversion to fast food outlets and their

love of home-made food.

UNINTERRUPTED SERVICE

The service is uninterrupted even on the days of extreme weather, such as

Mumbai's characteristic monsoons. The local dabbawalas at the receiving and

the sending ends are known to the customers personally, so that there is no

question of lack of trust. Also, they are well accustomed to the local areas they

cater to, which allows them to access any destination with ease. Occasionally,

people communicate between home and work by putting messages inside the

boxes. However, this was usually before the accessibility of telecommunications.

DABBAWALAS ON SMS

It is for their hard work that dabbawalas of Mumbai have got the Six-Sigma

certified. Less than two months after they went online, the 4,000-strong food

delivery experts have gone mobile, too. One can book their dabbawala through

their cell phone just by sending an SMS to 3636.

According to Raghunath Medge, president, Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers

Charity Trust,, “On receiving the message, a dabbawala contacts the sender on

his cell, and the delivery service can be started immediately.” Dabbawalas have

decided to accept messages from outside the city as well. “Anyone can send a

message from anywhere in India,” says Medge. “Interesting messages is

updated on the website under the “Mobile Blog” section.”Medge feels that the

mobile platform is just another way for people to access the dabbawala service.

“When they launched the web site, mydabbawala.com, they could manage their

databases in an organised manner. Now, the mobile phone messages help them

to engage more customers, and all those who did not know how to access their

services.” The website has been receiving new orders every day, even from

management students from around the world. “Two students from Singapore and

Scotland contacted them through the website, and are studying the dabbawalas

from a logistics point of view. In fact, several people have volunteered to work for

them.”

DISTRIBUTION NETWORK

DELIVERY PROCESSAn important facilitating factor developed indigenously by these illiterates and

school level qualified dabbawala for smooth execution of the job has been the

system of coding. It comprises of the use of 3-4 symbols crudely painted on the

lunch boxes, in a combination of the colour which enable the dabbawala to easily

identify the dabba and facilitates accurate execution of the task. In this they are

guided by their intuition, spirit of teamwork, value and work ethics.

The coding system evolved by them is unique when viewed in its totality. These

have emerged from the needs of the job which has given freedom for individual

sub groups to develop their region specific coding system. Thus the dabbawala

in Central Mumbai would have their unique coding system while the dabbawalas

at Churchgate have what his group feel is best for their clientele and geographic

area covered. The logistics system revolves around its fit with the available

infrastructure, the culture of the people and the geographic characteristics. In

addition to the individual jobs at the micro level, it is important to know how this

complex system has worked consistently over the years in the most cohesive

manner.

STARTING JOURNEY 8.30 AM – 10.34 AM. The day for the dabbawalas starts at 8.30 am, with collecting the dabba’s from

the various houses. The dabbawala goes to collects the tiffin on cycle.

People usually leave the dabba’s outside the door for them. In case they are late

the dabbawalas have to urge them to hurry up, else if it gets late they have to

leave if the clients Tiffin is not ready in time. He then picks up all the tiffins and

meets the other dabbawalas at the station.

The dabbawala is forced to do so because he is bound by the train time. The

departing train’s time is very crucial and must consider the time required for the

sorting process. There may, on the other hand, be further delays caused by other

customers too. It is extremely difficult, yet crucial to ensure that the entire pick up

of all tiffins takes place as per schedule. The scheduling has to include cushion

time for uncertainties such as these without which the whole system will, be

disrupted.

For example, the dabbawala picks up the tiffin from his customers houses and

meets the other group members at the designated spot at the station. This

particular group of 10 dabbawalas takes the 10.35 am Churchgate local train

everyday. Therefore, the dabbawalas have to make sure that they reach the

platform for the sorting process at least by 10.15 am in order to ensure a smooth

flow of their networking throughout their daily routine, this period in the morning

that includes picking up the tiffins and meeting at the designated spot at the

station is the most crucial part of the system. One bit delay in this aspect will

disrupt the whole system and will lead to a chaotic situation. Therefore, the

dabbawalas have to collect the tiffins in time and reach the station with enough

time left for sorting to take place before the train arrives.

SORTING 10.15 AM – 10.34 AMThe critical phase of the system is sorting. Sorting of all the tiffins according to

their destination station and arranging them into wooden crates take 20 to 25

minutes. The aim of the process is to segregate the tiffins and differentiate them

as per the destination of the each of them. The tiffins are then handed to different

dabbawalas at the destination station and sorting makes it easier to identify each

group of tiffins and less time consuming for the respective dabbawala. The

sorting makes the entire process error free. The process of sorting is similar to

that of a post office where letters are segregated according to their destinations.

Since each tiffin exchanges many hands, each of he lids of the tiffins is marked

with a colored code indicating the originating station, destination and building

with the floor number. The coding is the secret behind the efficient working of the

system and that’s why the network is “information rich”. This is a unique feature

as it requires no documentation or record keeping. There is no communication

between the 2 groups, but just coordination among them because the whole

blueprint is pre-decided by the dabbawalas themselves.

The Mukadam plays a key role here to ensure smooth working and co-ordination,

his responsibility is to know all the tiffins his group carriers. The responsibility of

the Mukadam is to the extent that he has to know all the tiffins that his group

carries. Therefore, he must be able to recognize these tiffins even if the codes on

them are barely visible. Also, if any member of the group abstains from his duty

for a particular day for some reason, then it is the responsibility of the Mukadam

to ensure that all the dabbas that the absentee was responsible for, are duly

picked up and delivered back on time. Hence, we see that the Mukadam plays a

critical role in this stage of sorting and allocating jobs.

The dabbas are collected, sorted out and sent to their destination based on a

numerical and alphabetical code. Every station has a numerical code and each

place has an alphabetical code. The tiffin carries the code of the source and the

destination. The codes help identify tiffin owners. Very simple system of sorting

exists with this dabbawala network. Every tiffin carrier has the mark of a circle or

a lower of a specific colour and a digital identity number. Take this Tiffin mark for

example K-BO-10-19/A/15. Where K is the identity letter of the dabbawala. BO

means Borivali i.e. the area from there the tiffin is collected. The figure 10 refers

to Nariman point area. 19/A/15 refers to the 19th Building and the 15tj floor in

Nariman point area where the tiffin is to be delivered.

These codes have been developed over the years and began with simple

coloured threads. An employee delivers the dabbas, collected individually from

homes at the railway station nearest to the houses. At the station the destination

are sorted out, based on the codes, and then by train to respective stations.

JOURNEY TIME10.30 AM – 11.20 AMThe time period between 10.34 am to 11.20 am is the journey time for the

dabbawalas. They load the wooden cart filled with tiffins into the goods luggage

or goods compartment of the train. Generally they try to occupy the last

compartment as this help them to avoid the rush at the platforms and is easy to

be located and conveniently situated once the train arrives on the platform.

Mostly the commuter’s don’t get on this compartment as they are already filled

with crates and there is not enough room. This is a common understanding

among daily commuters and dabbawalas. In any case the platform is filled with

people and dabbawala have to unload the crates on the platform they start a

series of loud verbal comments warning everyone to make way of the unloading.

The unloading of this particular group takes place at Dadar, Lower Parel, Grant

road and finally Churchgate etc. Finally just six out of 10 dabbawala get off at

Churchgate. There are also others joining into the group from the station as they

have common destination points.

The allocation of manpower at each station depends on the number of tiffins that

have to be delivered in a particular area. E.g. if 150 tiffins are to be delivered in

Grant Road, 4 people are assigned to the station. This is done in keeping in mind

that one person cannot carry more than 35 dabbas. They will also be assigned

specific codes which are written on the top of the tiffin. This 4 dabbawala can be

from any groups and irrespective of any station. Their job is now to deliver these

150 tiffins irrespective of which group they belong to.