Raymond Podcast
Summary
: It is National Forklift Safety Day on June 9th, and to celebrate the occasion, Derek Miller, a senior sales manager at The Raymond Corporation, joins the Warehouse Underground podcast to talk about Raymond's philosophy when it comes to empowering operators and helping them work safely. They discuss the increasing pressure on operators to perform and the constantly changing landscape in distribution centers. Raymond's approach is to understand each customer's unique needs and then provide the right solutions to help them be successful. They don't lead : Providing the right solutions for warehouse operations involves understanding the specific needs of each company and optimizing their processes to improve efficiency. This includes evaluating the current equipment and technology being used and determining the best fit for the job at hand. While larger companies may have more advanced technology, it is important to consider the maturity level of each company and determine the appropriate solutions that will help them improve their operations. Ultimately, there may be a middle ground between upgrading existing equipment or investing in new technology, and it is In conclusion, Raymond is aware that some customers may not be ready for the most up-to-date technology and offers solutions for mixed fleets and non-Raymond equipment. Data is important, but it needs to be easily digestible for the operators and managers. Raymond also offers professional services to help customers analyze and use the data effectively. As for robots, Raymond is aware of the increasing presence of robotics in the industry but believes that their customers are more interested in simpler, yet effective technology solutions. Mark Longergan, Senior Director of Sales and Marketing at The Raymond Corporation, discusses the future of warehouse performance and the role of technology in improving operations. He highlights the importance of optimizing operations and using technology to aid employees rather than replace them. He also stresses the need for planning and taking small steps towards automation, rather than trying to jump to the top of the technology ladder. : "Derek Miller, Senior Sales Manager at Raymond, appears on the Warehouse Underground podcast again to discuss how they are adapting to the new trends shaping the warehouse industry. He shares his insights on the importance of automation and optimization, as well as the impact of e-commerce and sustainability. He also emphasizes the need for ongoing training and technology investment in warehouses to stay competitive and efficient. To learn more about Raymond and their latest products and solutions, visit their website and stay tuned for future updates."
Transcription
Ben Hopkins
[00.00.06]
Hey, what's up everyone? Thanks for tuning in to another episode at the Warehouse Underground podcast, Real Talk or Warehouse DC and FC professionals of all levels around the globe. I'm Ben, the host of the show, and some of you may not know that June 9th is National Forklift Safety Day, and I happen to know some people who know a lot about forklifts and lots of other equipment and services and technology. So Derek Miller, who's a senior sales manager at the Raymond Corporation, is my guest on the show today. Now, this will be the second time that I've had these guys on the show, so hopefully they consider themselves a friend of the show. I certainly consider them a friend of the show, but I'm really excited to talk with him about the latest and greatest that's going on at Raymond. All of the solutions that they are providing, and really what is going on out there in warehouses across the country because they are very well connected with the truth, the truth, the realities of what operators and managers are facing today and where they come in as a partner and a solution provider to really help them. So I'm excited to have him on the show. And with that, I will bring him on the stage right now. Derek, my friend, thank you very much for joining the Warehouse Underground podcast. How are you today man?
Derrick Miller
[00.01.27]
Doing good Ben, thanks for having me on.
Ben Hopkins
[00.01.29]
Yeah, you got it. So I want the audience to know that we are recording the show on a Friday evening. So let there be no doubt about our commitment and the dedication to bringing the goods and bringing the the good stuff for the listeners out there when it comes to things in distribution. So Friday evening here we are recording the show. So thanks for doing that, man. Thanks for taking the
Derrick Miller
[00.01.55]
time. You mentioned friendships between Raymond us. That's why I'm here for you, man,
Ben Hopkins
[00.02.03]
I got it. That's how boring my life is, right? That I am not. I'm 45 years old, so I'm no longer at the clubs. I am much rather be right here talking with Derek Miller about some stuff going on at Raymond. So. Absolutely. All right, so everyone I mean, Raymond, a huge player in the industry, right? Everyone knows about it. Everyone knows about Raymond. And in the spirit of National Forklift Day. Forklift safety day. Can you talk just a little bit about, you know, high level up front, Raymond's general philosophy. Right. The general overarching philosophy on empowering operators everywhere around the globe, zap listeners around the globe, empowering operators to really work securely. You know, can you talk to us about about that overarching vibe and and feeling that you have towards that?
Derrick Miller
[00.02.55]
Sure. So I think Raymond's philosophy, high level, is to just really keep our finger on the pulse of what customers, the distribution centers, the employees, the managers need in terms of what they're seeing, the dynamics of the the distribution landscape changes daily. And so for us, we view ourselves as the partner and enabling a successful operation, uh, assisting operators with doing the best they can, whether they've been at that facility for five years or five days. And ultimately, once we identify and help customers understand what's happening and their needs, then we tend to back into products, services, whatever that might be to help solve that problem. So really, I think the most important thing in philosophy that Raymond's got today is just really knowing what's going on. And we find that out through feedback, our customers, through shows like this, uh, our network solution and support centers, they're in the customer facilities every day and really just trying to make sure we've got that mechanism in order to make sure we're helping solve that customer problem.
Ben Hopkins
[00.04.02]
Yeah. And one of the things that that, that I see in out there going on in the industry, and I'm sure operators who are listening will agree with me when I say this, is that it just seems like today that the pressure grows bigger and bigger. Right. The pressure to perform the the requirements to do more with less, which is a figure of speech I hate. Right. But to do more with not necessarily less, but just more variability. Right. More variation, more changes, more things on their plate. So is that kind of the general vibe that you're getting from a lot of the customers out there? Because for me, where I sit, I feel like that is the reality of distribution ops in 2026. And maybe it was not that way 15 or 20 years ago. What do you think on that? Because I feel like that's what life is like for a warehouse or ops manager out there today.
Derrick Miller
[00.04.56]
I would not disagree with you. So. Well, I've been in the industry for for long enough to have seen that transition. And there was this weird, you know, Covid then, you know, they've really accelerated and changed the landscape. But it was it is this thing where not only is the dynamics and the landscape changing within a warehouse, but from one customer to the other, maybe who their competitors are. Right. So one day we might be overnight shipping, the next day we might be carrying halite, and we need to change our rack in the next day. There might be a facility that opens up down the road and there's competitive pressure for labor. So there's just this constant change every day as a new it's a new a new battle, right? Or a new battle, plus the one we didn't saw yesterday. So it stacks up. Yeah. But you know, we are we are seeing this constant change and it not only does it hit, you know, the the operations management teams, it's hitting the leads, the clerks, the lift drivers, everyone. Right. Because everything flows in one direction or the other operationally. And so we're seeing even more this interconnectedness of change where it used to be, you know, hey, the way we work with our supplier changes. But to the operator on the floor, they see more or less no difference. Not the case anymore, right? Everyone's aware of the dynamics of how the facility is changing and the insight customers have made to their customers, and they see that whether it be, you know, one day I'm doing order picking in, the next day I'm in a sling reach, you know, or one day I'm a clerk and I'm being asked to be put through live training for the first time. So there's a lot of change going on. And that variability requires a lot of fast motion, whether it be educating your teammates and keeping them up to speed, whether it be, you know, we've got new ship commitments. So we've got to enable technology in order to increase throughput while maintaining kind of operational cadence. And that would maybe align with that more with less or more of the same mentality. So it really just depends. And then every customer is different. Every customer is in a different stage of their life. They're doing a different type of business. You know, if you drive down the interstate, people see a facility and yeah, there's a warehouse. But we all know that what's going on inside that warehouse is very different from the one sitting right next. So we're just constantly trying to figure out how what the customer problems have, knowing they're all unique and how do we partner with them. Where do we start? Usually it's identifying the problem first.
Ben Hopkins
[00.07.21]
Yep. Now, I appreciate you saying all that. And and like the warehouse underground was started. One of the reasons why I was started is because there was this there was this constant feedback and feeling from some of the leaders, many of the leaders in the industry that like, hey, people that are not in here don't understand this. They don't understand the reality of what's really happening. Right. We kind of getting fed this one thing with all these assumptions, but the but it doesn't match the truth of what's happening at the ground level. And that's one of the things that kind of grew this site in popularity, you know, just kind of speak into the to those folks and those folks speaking back to me. So it sounds like Raymond's right there, too, right? Like, that's right where you are in terms of like, cutting through all the junk, right? All the fluff and really getting down to, hey, what's really going on here? What are they really going through and what do they really need, you know, in order to help them be successful? And where can we come in? Right. So I love that. Is that is that true statement I'm able to
Derrick Miller
[00.08.25]
feel like yeah. Right here a line five years ago we may have said, you know. Hey, next customer. I've got this product for you. Right? And it and usually just scratch and itch for that customer. But the, the dynamics have become so variable that for me to come in and say Raymond offers these 20 products, well that doesn't help you, it doesn't help me and it doesn't necessarily help your operations. So from our perspective, it's, you know, build a relationship. Let's walk around the floor together. We have our pain points. You know, what's keeping you up at night. And let's back into the problem and then ultimately may lead with a solution. Right. So what we may say, you know, Raymond can or maybe Raymond can't. Hopefully Raymond can help you, uh, solve that problem in one way or the other. Or we can partner together to solve it. But we're not going to lead with that because we wouldn't know. Everything is so very well. Derek's not going to walk into your facility and say, yep, that's the solution. We're going to have to land on that solution, the problem together before we land on the solution.
Ben Hopkins
[00.09.25]
Yep, absolutely. And I remember I mentioned in the beginning that this is the second show that I've done with Raymond. So Keith Ingalls was was a previous guest on the podcast. Check that episode out if you haven't. And that's one of the things that we talked about too, is that. Like every operation is different. And they look. They might look the same from the outside, but when you really start to peel back the onion, the life or the manager in this building can be different from the manager at this building. And they're not they're not looking to buy equipment. Right. Like they're not necessarily in the market for equipment. They want solutions, you know, like they're trying to run their operation. And so I think you're really on to something. So I think is it fair to say that I mean, is that a fair assessment that, you know, hey, when we start to talk with these operators out there in these leaders and these managers, like we realize that it's not just it's going way past, we want to buy a piece of pit. So we're calling up Raymond. It's like we really want to offer a figure out a wholesale buy, wholesale solutions that make my operation run and efficient and the equipment and services and frankly, you know, wherewithal and knowledge that Raymond provides is is really what they're what they're looking for is what they're really looking to buy. I mean, is that is that a stretch or is that is that kind
Derrick Miller
[00.10.46]
of. Yeah. No, Keith and I are even are very close in that mentality. Right. So he he may go off on the the Raymond lead management perspective because that's what he does. I very much sign up for that as well. Right? We don't if we don't have an understanding of the facility and the opportunities that maybe what we can do with what she already has, right. So I don't want to just walk in and say, okay, we're Raymond, you have a reach truck that's hit about the right age. Let's give you another one. We want to say, like, hey, based on what's going on today, your operations probably changed 12 times since you purchased that piece of equipment. I mean, maybe, maybe replacing it is perfect. Or maybe the only reason you're using that piece of equipment before was because you were doing your operation or performing a task in this way. Maybe we did a little step back and see if we can optimize that process and standardize that process and make that as process as efficient as possible. And then let's go back and say, is that a piece of equipment you need? Or maybe you need that one plus a piece of technology, right. So what? The solution isn't always what the solution was before. And that's where the partnership comes in. Right? So Keith, Keith, probably, uh, I can probably give you Keith's presentation because we presented at trade shows together. So I, uh, yeah, I know it is what he said, and I'm sure it was spot on, but optimizing your opportunity, uh, right up on optimizing your operation is the first thing we want to do. Then again, let's peel back the onion and figure out what the problem is. It's certainly discussing a piece of forklift equipment, whether it be the best in class or not. Doesn't matter. We still need to make sure that our product is the best fit for the problem you have today. Not the problem you had four years
Ben Hopkins
[00.12.34]
ago. Yeah. And you know, it gets to the you hear this mantra a lot. If you're on LinkedIn a lot like I am just due to what I work on. You hear the thing. Well, people always say we always did it this way or we've always done it this way. And that's a that's a very, very bad word in today's distribution industry. No, no one says that. And now you get. So I think what's happened is you get you get you get all this new stuff that came online. Right. Like lean initiatives. And a lot of companies have lean consultants and they have lean people on staff. And then you get these big time fulfillment centers that everybody knows, the Amazons of the world and Target and Walmart. Well, they they turn over their staff. So those leaders that were ops managers, area managers, whatever at Amazon, they they leave and then they go, they go propagate other companies. Right. Like other industries. And they bring that philosophy with them. So now you may have just had this traditional type warehouse that was just stuck in. Well, we just we need a reach lift because we've always picked that way, that type of thing. But you get these new people come in and they're like, no, no, no, no, no, no. We need to change the way that this is designed, that this is look, and there's a better way to do it. And, you know, here is the new piece of equipment that we type. We need to do this, not just, oh, we you know, we've got racks we pick from them for, for. So we need a, uh, a cherry picker. Right. Or an order picker, I should say. So, uh, you know, definitely. You know, I think and we talked a little bit about the forest show by the industry's moving so fast. You know, it's just moving so fast every year it's different. It's it's really starting to accelerate. So, um, I like the way that you go. You go about that solution
Derrick Miller
[00.14.15]
and then, you know, this is the scale up, right? Like it's, you know, we need it this way. Our volume is doubled. So let's go two times as much chatter right. Yeah. Twice as many trucks. Twice as many people. Twice as many shifts. Twice as many drivers. Twice in the class. You know you get it. And I don't you know, that's where you do have to take a step back and say, hey, where were we? Are we still on the right path? And if not, what path do we want to be on? And we have to plan and design the ecosystem with our customers to make sure that that path is flexible. Because you're going to get another curveball, especially if you're a three PL and your customers change over, or your product mix changes, or your fulfillment goes from B to B to whatever it might be, you're probably your your journey has got to be flexible, but you got to know where you're at today and where you like to be. And then that helps us work together to plan chart a path to get there. So it may be the same exact equipment. It may be more different doctors or some other technology. Especially with the turnover and management and turnover of employees. You know, just making sure you've got consistency in that mantra, that plan, that journey continues to move through the organization even if leadership and employment changes.
Ben Hopkins
[00.15.31]
Yep, yep. Yeah. I mean, the only thing constant distributions change, right? I mean, that's just that's that's just how it goes. So now now let me ask you let me ask you this question, Derrick, about, you know, maybe some of the I don't want to call it high tech stuff or high level tech stuff, but maybe some of the more advanced type things that are accelerating that are happening, that are being developed. I mean, they're everywhere. Are, are are these. Are these being adopted by big Fast? Well known distribution and fulfillment centers kind of only or are things like that solutions like that, technology like that making their way down to the mid-tier or even the small warehouse type operation. Like, what do you see in terms of that, that type of that type tech and that type of propagation of it down? So yes. So yeah, yeah, we're seeing the big the bigger companies, you know, obviously they help define, uh, what some of the market needs. You know, they, they have the volume that pressures themselves and us as, as, um, their distributors to, to manage, develop, enhance, change our technology. Um, and no, I don't see a lot of, um, mid-tier companies just wholesale saying I need it all. And I think one, because they don't need it to unfold because our service centers and Raymond corporate and conversations with them have steered them away from that. Right. Because they're out for every operation has the right mix of solutions. And so you may have pharma who really needs X, but if you're low lover, low level or picking e-commerce and you're using a low level order picker and you're pushing just volume or your, you know, local distribution where you have five different cases going to five different retail stores, the technology completely changes, right? If someone's on a on a centimeter versus if they're up in the rack with an order, totally different technology. And a lot of it does come down to maturity. So it's not just a question of do they need it, but are they ready for it? So yeah,
Derrick Miller
[00.17.54]
it's and it's okay. Everyone can everyone can be somewhere different on their journey so that you can be ready for it all. You could be the smallest low, lower volume customer, but it is on the cutting edge of sophistication. You've used data. You've been driven your operation with data. That's how you make decisions. You can be ready for it all, just like the big guys out there, right? All right. It's totally okay if we're still just talking about putting telemetry on the access control and to certify certification and lower impacts. Right. So maybe maybe that's where you are. Maybe you're over here. But it's our job to really figure out where you are on that technology maturity curve and make sure it's the right fit for the job you're doing.
Ben Hopkins
[00.18.41]
Yeah, yeah. No, I agree with you on that. And like, let's say like I have many warehouse managers who follow me on LinkedIn and, and follow the podcasts and the whole thing. And I know from working in facilities that are like that, and I'm sure you probably do too, that a lot of them, the smaller type things they have, they, they, they have their legacy lifts. It's forklifts that they've had in there for a long time. A lot of sites will name them. That's Bertha, that's large, Marge, that's George over there. Whatever the names of the lift are. I mean, they've just been been running forever. So if I'm a if I'm a manager and I'm in, I'm at a place like that. But I'm, I'm, I'm I'm iffy about, you know, upgrading. Right. Because the, the it's like an old pair of tennis shoes that are very reliable that I trust some iffy about. Just jumping into the pool of the latest and greatest and the hot new stuff, and I'm not sure about that. Is there a middle ground for me? You know, is there an option for me where I still want to improve the security for my operators? Right. I still want to move forward in that. But I'm not ready to go the whole way. So is there a middle ground where I can upgrade, upgrade my current, you know, Big Bertha and Large Marge and my old list? Can I can I upgrade them, or is it best for me to just say no? You know, you need to get rid. You just need to get a new car, right? Like you need to get rid of this old thing. Stop putting all these mods on it and the whole thing. Just get a new car that's better for you. Like what? And that's kind of a hard question to answer because I'm sure it depends. Right. But. But what what do you think about that? Is there a middle ground out there? Is there a solution for people that that that like their old stuff that want to keep their old stuff, they just want to get a little bit better? They're not ready to go all the way.
Derrick Miller
[00.20.32]
Sure. So first story I was in the distribution center a few months ago. And speaking of the the old the old trucks in the corner and gentleman had it. That was his left hand picture of his kids. Right. Every year, school picture every year. And I think just looking at that list, I saw his daughter progressed from second grade through high school that lived there for that long. Right. So that would be, you know, the corner that may not be quite ready for the most up to date technology just tossed on it. Um, but no, I think we're very mindful of that. And I do think there's a, a spot that will help define for those type of operations as well. Right. So, Raymond, if we look at our technologies and what we do that we have some some stuff that is really integrated in our lifts, a lot of truck control. Right. So we'll prevent you from lifting if you're not properly tethered and or tether product. We have laser detection. So if there is an obstruction in front of you and have a travel, um, it would alert the operator. We've got other types of technology, real time location sensing. You know, some of those are designed very specifically for newer lifts. Right. Because they're like the the, the brain, if you will, of the newer lifts, are designed intentionally to have inputs to control older. So a lot of our customers have mixed fleets, right. So we also offer solutions that are not only applicable to many ages of indigenous of trucks. So it can be we can put stuff at our 15 year old. We can also put them on non Raymond equipment. So of course you know what that technology is. We we have more or less, you know, capability. At least we build more capability than ours and control our own equipment and others. But certainly there are technologies that we offer, uh, telemetry, for example, um, we've got field sensing detection. So that could go on any piece of equipment that's, you know, magnetic based does not require to be a piece of equipment that does proximity detection. So that could go on there. Uh, telemetry is that already. But going back to that, we can still provide access control. It can still check for certifications. It can still measure for impacts. The 20 year old forklift still registers an impact, just like a new one does when it accidentally runs into a wall or you know, so we've got we've got technologies like that. And so we do have things that can assist folks that are saying, like, I'm a little bit hesitant, like you said, I'm a little bit iffy and I'm not really quite ready. Didn't you know I'm dabbling, right? I'm dabbling in technology. I'm not deep and, and, and most people that are in that position, we would never we would never encourage in the defense. It's a lot. Yeah big investment. And for us you know we value data as well. So that's a lot of data. A lot of our products do produce data for digestion to help improve the operation. Does that help the operator enable the operator reinforcement behavior, but it also provides data to the management team to understand where am I opportunities to go train? Where are my opportunities to go? Um, you know, maybe perform maintenance or change how my how I pick my picks so that I eliminate congestion, whatever it might be. So if I throw too much hardware on there right away, I'm overloading everyone, both the operator who's never seen this stuff before. Now they've got 12 things deep and had one. But I also got a lot of data. And as a new operator, a new office manager who's not familiar with managing data, it can just be too much. So it's a crawl, walk, run mentality. But certainly if you're iffy, there are certainly products that we can we can align with that keep it simple and provide value. And then as he outrages lead over time, maybe we say as you operate just like a journey, just like our maybe your next solution or your next problem results in a different technology. So when you swap that out, when it comes back, it doesn't come with the same thing. It's just a conversation.
Ben Hopkins
[00.24.34]
Yeah, yeah. So what about that though? I mean, speaking of the data and the things that you create, I mean, what about it from the from the managers perspective? I mean, yes, the, the the person driving the forklift is going to benefit from a lot of these functions, a lot of these features and a lot of this functionality. But what does it look like for the manager? I mean, what about things like. You know, tracking, dashboards, KPIs, metrics. I mean, that's the that's the flavor of the day for ops managers today. It's no longer just well. Are you good on the PNL? Is labor okay on the PNL, the House of revenue? I know, I mean, there's way they're managing the way more things now, including things that they can get from the fork. But so what does it look like to them? I mean, is, is there is there, uh, you know, do they have pretty good visibility or are they happy with what they're seeing? Like, what's your feedback from the the managers who are kind of seeing it on the back end on a, on a computer, I guess, uh, if you depends on the
Derrick Miller
[00.25.30]
manager. So it's always about data is power. But data takes time. Right. So and any office manager I've or almost see any but almost every office manager I've seen in the warehouse. I'll be with you in a minute. You know, I gotta run and take care of this thing, and I gotta run and figure it out. There's still fires and operations that need that need to go a handle. So what we do is we provide a lot of our data, telemetry data. You know, it gives us equipment utilization, weather checklists for properly performed, you know, weather and almost like the labor management life. Right? I can see that Eric was on the equipment for so long. I can see that they did or did not properly log off. I could see if there was an impact. You name it. We can make recommendations with whether the trucks should be kept in service or not. Um, so the data is there. The question is. As an operator, here's a manager. How much time do you have for that? And so that's what you spend a lot of time is trying to figure out. We're collecting a lot of good data. Everything I just mentioned is off of telemetry, let alone, you know, our object detection detection that tells us when, uh, the detection system took over in lieu of the operator. It tells us when someone or smart teller, when someone wasn't properly clipped in and attempted to left. Right. So operator behavior reinforcement that all provides data and some of them provide alerts. If there's an impact you're getting an alert on the spot as an operator. So Raymond is constantly looking and saying, okay, we've got all this data, unless we unless the operator finds value in it and can use it to make changes on the floor rapidly. And is there actually out. And so we have been working really hard to create personas, right. So you go into the data, you can see like mates and then really try to distill down these actionable insights for maintenance. I'm the ops manager. I'm a lead. I'm the DC manager. Really just trying to figure out how to give them this quick, actionable insights. And they want to dive deep. They can. But how do you make it quick and we're continuing to add technology. All of these technologies tend to add data. And we're still trying to like how do you give more to keep it justice? Yeah, we've been working on that through what we call the gateway. That's our data platform. But we also have professional services. And we've been finding that that's been very valuable because, Raymond, we can come in and, um, bring professional services in, whether that be someone who's good at analyzing data, giving you data insights, or maybe it's calling key things and saying, hey, Keith, we see something in the data. Come on, help us figure out how to lead management this thing. Right. So we've got that. But we have that at Raymond Corporate also our service center. So a lot of our service centers today have their own independent professional services groups and service groups and lead management groups. So as we're seeing these things in the data and they're partnering with you to review the data together they can come out locally. They're not coming from Raymond Corporate. They're coming from Carolina Handling or associated or Raymond or whomever. And they're local and they can pop down there maybe this afternoon and take a look from an operator's perspective, a manager's perspective. Is we need to keep it digestible for them. If we can find value. If it becomes that they have to step away from the operation to analyze, it's it's not as good as a gentleman. Or if you don't go to the gym, you can have others all day long.
Ben Hopkins
[00.28.55]
Yep, yep. If they trust me, I know if it takes too long, not going to be adopted, not going to be used because it's just fast moving ball game in there and not going to work, not going to work. So I agree with you 100%. Now I can't do I can't do a show these days without asking guests about robots because you go to a pro mat or you go to a moto X, maybe not so much now. It used to be more. It's kind of lightened up a little bit, but robots everywhere, all over the show floor. The feedback that you hear from people is, I didn't know I was going to a robotics show, the whole thing, right? You I know you've heard this before about that. Just the eye candies everywhere. But you know, what do you think about that? I mean, what do you think about robots? I mean, do you do you do you think that people should jump on the robot train? I mean, do you think that that is the wave of the future? Is Raymond a player in that? Do they need to be? Is it is the end user not want it? You know, or are they not hearing things from the world? Like where do you come down on robots? I have to ask you about it because it's, you know, it's sort of all over the industry right now and everybody wants to know.
Derrick Miller
[00.30.11]
Somehow I had a feeling you're going to ask this. So. So you're right. I mean, I've been to the trade shows in the last several years as well, and there's some pretty impressive stuff out there. What we're finding in our general customer bases that our customers, for the most part, have interest in some of that advanced technology. But I'm using my hand deliberately this way because that customer journey and most of them are like, okay, we're getting operator assist technology, right? We're working on improving the throughput while maintaining ergonomics, which would be like our advanced product. Or we're looking at educating employees in a in a simulated fashion through a virtual reality simulator. You know, these are very fundamental things. Um, and then maybe what comes next and what Raymond is kind of living today is we do have automation, right? We our service centers do conveyor. We've got sister companies that do the same. We have automated Tucker's auto swing reaches things like that. Our automation today is basically designed to aid, enhance and and automate some of those kind of regularly recurring, well known, repeatable tasks, right? The stuff that once we've optimized and standardized your process, we can simplify through some automation. But Raymond is and, you know, parent companies are constantly keeping our eye on advanced technologies inclusive of robotics. But I think a lot of our customers say, yeah, it was cool until I started to back into the implementation cost, the integration cost. My contract terms with my customers and whether I'm going to get an ROI on that. And today, frankly, one thing feedback I've gotten from a lot of our customers is I can get the robot. It's everything that I need to do technology wise upstream from that robot to get what it needs to do. I mean, we see that even with just. Our automation which is known standard equipment, just automated. Now we've got something else. So you're tying it into a the WLS E14
Ben Hopkins
[00.32.20]
world. Yep. And that's the part that people
Derrick Miller
[00.32.22]
miss. I mean, I think I think
Ben Hopkins
[00.32.24]
people miss that. People miss that because you're you're right. Because you go to the show and what you see on the show floor is just a demo. It's just a demo. I mean, it's programmed to do that. It's not it's not fulfilling real orders. It's not handling the stress and the variability of day to day ops and all that unpredictability. I mean, that's the that's the hard part, right? Like that's where it really happens. It really happens inside the computer or computer. Right. To use a very bad Zoolander line. They're inside the computer you're
Derrick Miller
[00.32.55]
talking about. Yeah. Yeah,
Ben Hopkins
[00.32.57]
yeah. Any, uh, any Zealander fans out there? But that's the that's the hard part. And so what I but it seems like to me and and and I could be wrong on this. Right. Like I can't speak for every facility across the country and what everybody's doing. But for me, what it kind of seems like to me. And what I hear is, you know, the robotics and everything is fantastic, but it's like going to a big car show like Sema. I mean, you go to one of those and they have all these incredible futuristic cars and new tech and everybody walks away and they're like, I want that. But the majority of what you see driving down the road is what I mean. It's just like a Chevy Malibu, a Nissan Maxima, just like just cars, right? Like just regular cars that people use in the in the real life, in the real world and in the facilities that I've been in, in the warehouses and DCS that I've been in. That's kind of what it was like, too. Right now, there are some out there that have the latest and greatest stuff and everything, but I don't think it's I don't think it's nearly as much as people might think when they walk away from a trade show, a pro map or codex. But again, I, I could be wrong. You know, I'm not I'm not expert
Derrick Miller
[00.34.05]
in robots is a broad term. Right. So if we're talking robots, like I'm vacuum picking something up and dropping it. All day. I'm thinking when you say this, I'm probably the same. I saw a robot that picked the box and then did it right. Like, that's the stuff that I'm thinking, right? And so I need that, you know, if that's, you know, everyone's operations are changing. So if that's what's going to be what's required to satisfy the operational reality for a vast majority of our customers in ten years, I'm certain Raymond will have investigated and talked to the rules and figured out if that's a real need and figured out how we kind of scratch that itch. Um, just not seeing that extreme. However, Raymond's position so far has been, if that's where you see yourself in ten years, let's plan for now. You're ready to rock across if you're going to put new racks. And let's make sure it's automation ready so that it meets the sex of an automated reach or, you know, the turning. If you're going to put conveyor over there, make sure there's the turning diameter. Doesn't mean you have to put the conveyor in. So just make sure you got the end state in mind and then back into your planning. Still figure out where you are and your maturity curve. Maybe you're still just ready for telematics in the teller, or maybe you're ready for us to throw some automation in there. It's okay. Regardless where you're at, that's okay. But if back flipping robots is is where you. Yeah, you're going to be in ten years. Raymond will help you plan for that. I'll tell you right now, we do not offer correctly. Uh, yeah. Robots. But, you know, we appreciate, you know, the type of infrastructure that you might need, some decisions you might need to be thinking about, um, you know, in order to have that, that you're right on that path. Yeah. And, and maybe and again, you might be asked up to that maybe step 20, but at least let's make sure you've got a path to 20 and that everything you do leading into that all works together at the end. Let's not hodgepodge it like, that's a cool dude. That's a cool conveyor. Let's make sure that it's planned seamlessly enough that the integrations are clean, because that's I think that's the biggest future to think about is not the device, not the technology, the brain and the device. It's how all the devices interact together. And that's and that needs to be part of your biggest
Ben Hopkins
[00.36.26]
100% agree. And I think that gets overlooked all the time. And you know, like I say, if it if it works, if it provides value, if it hits the number, if it reduces costs, guess what? People will adopt it. If it doesn't, I mean, if it doesn't there, they're going to try it out for a little bit. But that that has its limits and it's just not going to work. So I think the people that win, just like anything else, right, have to have to understand what the true problem is, who the true end user is, the warehouse managers out there and design something that works for them. And if it does, they will use it, right? They just they will. If it does not, they will not. And it's really probably just that simple. I think at the end of the day it is. I
Derrick Miller
[00.37.07]
mean, I think you look at Raven's philosophy, it's, you know, you just said it right there, ROI, finding value. You know, for us, it's making sure that there's value to the operator consistency and operation. You know, I if if I've got a product I can certainly probably in some instances get somebody to say, yeah, yeah I'll just take it. But if they find the value, if they don't find the ROI, if they don't find how it improves and makes their operation more efficient, more sustainable or better for their employees. Then I don't have a long term relationship with that customer. Right. So our our goal and our philosophy is to be this ingrained with our customers and their operations the way they think and especially their strategic planning. Yeah. And then the rest of this stuff will just come. But you know, our focus right now, especially with this week coming up, is making sure that we're focused on technologies that have, you know, the benefit to the operator, reinforcing what is probably a revolving door of new employees, reinforcing behavior and making sure that we're supporting with data and otherwise, the the managers who ever operate those ever changing people and ever changing operations.
Ben Hopkins
[00.38.22]
Yeah, I love that. I think that's a good way to look at it. Right. So, you know, you know, it's just it doesn't need to be over complicated. And it doesn't sound like you're overcomplicating it. I feel like you're right there with your finger on the pulse of just the realities of operation. I appreciate that. So. So what's the big takeaway, man? Like, if you if you want to leave the listeners with a final thought. Right. What's the final thought about what you think about the future of warehouse performance? You know, like where Raymond comes in or if Raymond's not in, like, what do you just think about the future of operations and what it means to have a high performing warehouse operation or distribution operation and where, you know, the technology and the tools come in to, to aid in that. What's what's the takeaway in the future look like? Yeah,
Derrick Miller
[00.39.10]
I think and this has kind of been Raymond's adage for a while is, you know, optimize connect, automate. Right. So let's let's figure out where you're at and let's clean it up. Everyone's got a lot of room to clean out. I can probably clean up this office right before we have this thing. Um, if everyone's got a ly optimize this office. Um, optimize. The opportunity or the operations. That way, we're in a place that's very stable. Very consistent. And then you can start adding technology and getting value out of that. And usually the focus for our customers and for Raymond, as well as how do we assist the operator. Right. So how do we make their job easier, consistent and reinforce good behavior all at the same time helping the operation drive throughput? So we always think about both of those things, like if we're going to drive throughput, because that's probably the objective of the customer. How do we enable the employee to do that while, you know, being able to operate the equipment as intended, and so you get the stuff out the door as accurately as possible. So I think that's our big takeaway is, you know, standardize, start slow, identify your problems, know where you want to be, and then kind of work with us and we'll work on that journey together. But I don't think I don't think jumping to the far end that like what the big DCS have and say, you gotta replicate that. It's probably not the right answer. I think the biggest thing is planning and figuring out holistically where you're at and then just taking the first step.
Ben Hopkins
[00.40.44]
All right, man, I love it. I think that is, uh, very sage strategy. Uh, and say a sage advice there for everybody to take hold of. I, I personally like that. Right. I personally like that approach, for what that's worth. Uh, for, for for you. So. Well, where can people find out more about you, man? I mean, I, you know, I know, so I've been to the the Raymond Corporation LinkedIn page and you're on there. You've given some speeches at, uh, shows. So I've seen some of that stuff. But where can people find out more about you? More about you and Raymond and what do you what do you got, uh, going on for the rest of 20, 26 and beyond? Maybe.
Derrick Miller
[00.41.18]
Sure. So, I mean, everyone can find me on LinkedIn is, uh, 2026, and I have one, um, Derek Miller, also on the Raymond web page, Raymond comm. You can find a there's an optimization tab, automation tab that goes into a lot of detail about some of the things that just kind of dropped in today. I didn't want this to just be streaming about products, but you can find those in there. Um, we've got solution and support centers all over North America, so there's always one in your backyard. Feel free to pick up the phone, reach out to me, reach out to whomever. Um, but yeah, take a big look. In the meantime, be excited. We've had some exciting recent launches, real time location, sensing some upgrades to some of our existing products. You know, just stay tuned. Over the rest of the year, you're going to see some enhancements in some of the additional products we have, and maybe some sneak peeks on some of the new products that we've got coming.
Ben Hopkins
[00.42.10]
Cool, man. That's exciting. That sounds like some exciting stuff. So we'll be busy. Derek. Yeah, I mean, uh, thanks a ton for appearing on the Warehouse Underground podcast. I know, like I said, we we work through dinner, so I'm sure. I'm sure you're starving. We're both starving on a on a Friday night, but, uh, you know, thank you again for taking the time and coming on and talking about all this great stuff. Like, seriously, like, it's just some really great stuff and how you look at it, I love and how Raymond looks at it, I love I really think you have your finger on the pulse of operations out there, which appeals to me and the warehouse underground and all the listeners and followers. Man. So it's a it's awesome. Uh, thank thank you again. I really appreciate it. Appreciate
Derrick Miller
[00.42.51]
you having me, Ben. A good time. Yeah.
Ben Hopkins
[00.42.53]
Yeah, you got it, man. Take care.
Derrick Miller
[00.42.55]
You too. Thank you.
Ben Hopkins
[00.42.58]
All right, guys, that concludes this episode. Thanks again. Derek Miller, senior sales manager at Raymond, for appearing on the show the second time with Raymond. Great guest seeing him at the trade shows. See them in all your facilities across the country. Really good stuff that they have going on. They're really, really happy and honored to have Raymond on the show again for a second time, so I appreciate that. As the Warehouse Underground goes, please sign up for the community. Over 300 people have signed up for the community so far in there. We have message boards and networking and knowledge share, and we have some live events that we've already done that are in there. You can check out, and we have some future live events that we're working on in the future that you will want to be a part of inside the community. Free at the Warehouse underground.com. Sign up today and check out the other show that I do call the Tiger Team Show. It's with my host, my co-host Jordan. It's all about life in warehouses, DCS and FX, but with a little bit more of a humorous, witty, sarcastic flavor to it. So if you guys work in that industry and you listen to the show, you will get it right away. The humor and the things that we were talking about and you'll really appreciate. So check that show out. We just released episode number ten two weeks ago. Very funny. As this podcast goes, I will see everyone next week for another episode. Thank you for listening. Bye bye.
