Grain Operations division schedules locomotives with greater accuracy.
Performance of 72-hour trains improves 46%.
Strategic Intent
Grow revenue and improve ROI by increasing capacity to meet growing market demand through better power planning in the Grain Operations division
Situation
- One of North America’s largest Class I railroads
- Operates approximately 32,000 route miles
- Competition increasing as customer demand for rail transportation grows, versus long-haul trucking
- Corporate growth creates need for increased capacity to meet growing demand
- CEO seeks to improve daily forecasting for train power in Grain Operations, to assist in driving improvements in locomotive and car schedule attainment & utilization
Issues and Barriers
- More powerful locomotives not scheduled with enough frequency, by power group, for Grain Operations’ longer and heavier trains
- Current planning and reporting processes include manual components and should be more automated
- Poor communications and cooperation between power group and Grain Operations
- Top management’s sense of urgency not fully shared by middle and lower management
- Lack of internal resources to dedicate to this initiative
Key Implementations
- Establishment of metrics to measure power plan attainment as well as performance measures for 72-hour notice
- Further automating initiatives for planning and reporting processes
- Daily power meeting agenda structured to identify key problems and opportunities, keeping group focused
- Continuous improvement process to assure sustainability of new systems
Results
Performance of 72-hour Trains Improves 46%
More effective and longer-range power forecasting helps client to improve ability to schedule power for the trains, thus improving asset utilization and capacity. These improvements contribute significantly to the division’s 28% revenue increase over the previous year. Other results include:
- Improved measured performance for 72-hour trains by 46% over base period
- Schedule attainment increased by 17%
- Project ROI exceeded seven to one
Client Perspective
The power element of the latest effort is giving us new capabilities and insights into an area that I believe will translate into velocity. It’s cliché, but fitting: You cannot manage what you do not measure, so these new measures will help us manage more effectively.
—Director of Grain Operations
