Amazon Yard Marshal

Discipline: Business

Type of Paper: Question-Answer

Academic Level: Undergrad. (yrs 3-4)

Paper Format: APA

Pages: 1 Words: 275

Question

TDR - Trailer Dock Release

This is a process to ensure that a trailer is safely attached to and released from a delivery station trailer dock.

Inbound  a vehicle arriving to a delivery station.

Outbound a vehicle departing from a delivery station.

Final Mile the vehicle movement that contains customer packages between a delivery station and the customer’s residence.

Middle Mile any on-road piece of the logistics process that occurs after a unit has been ordered by a customer and before the final mile.

Linehaul a vehicle movement between two middle-mile sites.

Tractor  the motor vehicle that drives a linehaul trailer.

Trailer  the linehaul container that is pulled by the linehaul tractor.

PPE - Personal Protective Equipment  this is all the equipment that keeps a person safe at work, including (but not limited to) a vest, gloves, and closed toe shoes.

Bobtail  a linehaul movement that is executed with only the tractor (no trailer being pulled).

Live Unload - The driver waits while the trailer is unloaded, then takes away the same trailer they brought to the station.


Drop & Hook  the driver drops off the full trailer and immediately takes away an empty trailer.

Pallet Load  the packages in a full trailer arrive on pallets or in Gaylord's.

Fluid Load  the packages in a full trailer arrived stacked only on eachother.

Cart Load  the packages in a full trailer arrived stacked inside of carts. These carts must later be returned to the upstream site via an outbound linehaul.

KPI - Key Performance Indicators this is the set of metrics that are used to determine the health of the business.

Arrival Status  the trailer status of an inbound linehaul. The three options are bobtail, full, or empty.

Departure Status  the trailer status of an outbound linehaul. The three options are bobtail, full, or empty.

Driver State  the action a driver will take when they arrive to the station. The two options are Live Unload & Drop & Hook.

DSP - Delivery Service Provider these are companies that we work with to deliver orders to the final customer.

Staging Blocks - AKA Queuing Blocks  the physical space used for DSP’s waiting to enter the station.

Launchpad  the physical space where the DSP's load their delivery vans.

DA  delivery Associate (DSP Drivers or Amazonian’s).

DP  delivery Partner (Flex drivers - independent contractors).

Flex  this term refers to the third-party contractors who deliver to the final customer that are not part of a DSP

Trailer Yard the space where vehicles move around the building.

Dock  the space along an inside wall of a station where trailer doors are located. This is where trailers are loaded and unloaded for the station.

Load Plan

The set of attributes for any inbound or outbound linehaul movement. These include all fields listed on the Load Flow Board.

SWA - Ship With Amazon  this is a service Amazon offers where Amazon carriers pick up packages from companies and inject them into the Amazon Fulfillment Network.

Reverse Logistics  this is anytime that our packages go backwards (return) up the logistics chain.

SSP - Sortation Services Platform  a computer system that tracks where each shipment is within the logistics network.

BOL - Bill Of Lading  this is the document (now generally virtual - eBOL) that describes the contents of a loaded trailer.

CPT - Critical Pull Time  the time at which an inbound load must be departed.

DEA - Delivery Estimate Accuracy  this is the percentage of the time that the package arrives to the customer on the estimated day.

ROC - Relay Operation Center  this is the team that tracks and manages linehaul loads.

SCAC - Standard Carrier Alpha Code this is the (generally) four letter unique carrier identifier.


Carrier

A company that hauls freight in a linehaul logistics network.

Shipper

A company that ships freight in a logistics network.

FC - Fulfillment Center

These are Amazon buildings that store products that have not yet been ordered.

SC - Sort Center

These are Amazon buildings where packages containing customer orders are unloaded, sorted, then reloaded onto vehicles to continue through the logistics network

OTR - On The Road  this is the segment of AMZL that manages the dispatch and delivery activities.

UTR - Under The Roof this is the segment of AMZL that manages the sortation activities.

SDT  scheduled Departure Time

VRID - Vehicle Run ID  this is the unique identifier given to each inbound or outbound load.

YMS - Yard Management System  this is the computer system that handles all yard activities and statuses.


Drive Lane Sites  sites where loading area is 1-2 vehicles wide (as opposed to a Launchpad site which resembles more of a box grid).

How often are we currently performing stand-up meetings? once per shift

How are the stand-up meetings different during Covid-19?  they are not Gatherings, instead, Yard Marshalls will read through the board while wearing a mask and maintaining a 6ft distance from others.


Where is the standup board?  on the opposite side of the Yard Flow Board.

 What is a Spacer?  this is an acronym that reminds you of what to go over to Stand-Up meetings.

What are the 8 things that should be included in every stand-up meeting and written on the Standup Board?

  1. Safety tip
  2. Success story
  3. Standard work tip
  4. Quality tip
  5. Volume plan for the day
  6. High-level productivity results from previous day
  7. Site announcements
  8. Safety stretches.

Why is load tracking important?  it is important to always be aware of what is coming and what is going from the yard so you can plan for both the regular sort as well as mitigate any issues that arise.

FMC  freight Management Console (FMC)

Which tool do you use to track loads?  freight Management Console (FMC)

How often should you check on the status of inbound (IB) loads?  once per hour

Should you wait until a load is late to the site to track where it is? no! Track all loads once per hour.

What does ROC stand for?  ROC stands for Relay Operations Command

What does the ROC do? the ROC is the organization that schedules, executes, and monitors linehaul loads.

What are two ways to communicate with ROC?  load notes and Cases

Where are load notes entered?


What systems is used to create cases?

CPT  "Critical Pull Time" for scheduled outbound loads

How often do you check to make sure you're tracking to meet the CPT’s (Critical Pull Time’s) for the scheduled outbound loads? once per hour

What is the idea behind Goldilocks?  planned package flow rate per hour + / - 5%

How do you calculate the Goldilocks zone?  total Volume / Hours to Complete = Package Flow Rate + / - 5% = Planned Package Flow Rate Per Hour


Example: If Total Volume = 28,000 & Hours to Complete = 4 hrs. What is the "Planned Package flow rate"? 28,000/4 = 7,000 +/- 5%. The Planned Package Flow Rate Per Hour is 6,700 to 7,400

What is the goal of the Goldilocks Compliance Score?  60%

Where can you see your site’s Goldilocks Compliance Score?  Perfect mile

Where can the Sort Operations Managers see real-time how they're doing the flow?   Mercury

SCC   Station Command Center (SCC)

How do you know when a linehaul should be arriving?  Check the Yard Flow Board

When a linehaul arrives, what is the first thing you should do?

Greet the driver in person (MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCE!). Do not make the driver wait. Remember, drivers are our customers too!

What app is used to check-in driver's virtually?  Sesame

What is a BOL?   Bill Of Lading - It shows the contents of the trailer

What kind of BOLs do we use now?

We no longer use paper BOLs. This helps with social distancing.

What should you be aware of when you are checking in a driver?

The load plan and driver “arrival status” and “departure status” - If the driver should be arriving and departing with a load. The three options are: bobtail, full, or empty.

Why must you be aware of the load plan and the driver “arrival status” and “departure status”. How does it help you?

This information helps you plan how long it will take to unload or reload the trailer.

When should you escalate an issue to ROC via case?

Anytime there is a deviation from the load plan. Immediately!

What tool is used to virtually start the unload process?

Inbound Dock Manager


Why is it important to always start the virtual unload process immediately after TDR?

It is important to start the virtual unload process immediately after TDR so that the whole network can have visibility that the packages in the load are about to be processed by the sort operation.

With which team do you communicate regarding the physical unload process?

Waterspiders

What is a Hostler?

A Hostler is a person who drives a Hostler vehicle (usually a small tractor) and moves trailers around a trailer yard or between dock doors.

In what app are Hostler moves made?

Hostler moves are made in the Valet app

Where can you check the load plan and driver status?

When a linehaul arrives, what do you actually do? What are the six (6) steps?
  1. Perform the Sesame (app) Check-In Process to check the trailer into the Delivery Station IMMEDIATELY upon arrival.
  2. TDR in the trailer using the Trailer Dock & Release Checklist
  3. Update Yard Flow Board with Actuals (i.e., Actual Arrival Time, Actual Arrival State, Actual Departure State, Actual Departure Time, Dwell Time)
  4. Confirm (visually) the driver does not deviate from the load plan (arrival status, driver action, departure status). Otherwise, escalate the issue to ROC via case.
  5. Start virtual unload IMMEDIATELY using Inbound Dock Manager Virtual Unload SOP (it is important to start the virtual unload immediately after TDR so that the network has visibility that the packages are about to enter the sort operation)
  6. Communicate to Waterspiders to unload the trailer immediately

Why is it CRITICAL that all trailers that arrive physically get checked into the Delivery Station virtually via the Sesame App Virtual Check-In Process IMMEDIATELY upon arrival?

This Virtual Check-In puts a timestamp on the trailer arrival so that anyone throughout the Amazon network will know exactly when that trailer arrived.

This also adds the trailer to the local YMS (Yard Management System) so that there will be a virtual/physical match when you do your audits.

Why is it important to be aware of what is happening in the yard at all times?

So you can greet the driver IMMEDIATELY upon arrival and get the load checked in as soon as the load arrives.

What else must you do IMMEDIATELY when you TDR in the trailer?

Visually confirm that the driver does not deviate from the load plan:


Check on the Yard Flow Board to verify the driver arrived as they should in terms of trailer (full, empty or bobtail);


Confirm correct driver action is performed according to plan (e.g., driver dropped and hooked the INSTRUCTED trailer or live unload);


When driver departs, VISUALLY confirm driver is doing so according to the planned departure status in terms of trailer (full, empty, or bobtail).


If the driver deviates from the plan, do an IMMEDIATE seek to understand with the driver. Communicate clearly, respectfully and firmly with the driver that it is critical that the driver follow the scheduled load plan.


What must you do if a driver refuses to follow the scheduled load plan?

IMMEDIATELY escalate this to ROC (Relay Operations Command) via case and a planned mitigation strategy, which you must also write on the Yard Flow Board and communicate throughout the Yard Management Team and the Sortation Operation.

Why is it important to start the virtual unload immediately after TDR, and which system do you use to perform the virtual unload?

It is important to start the virtual unload immediately after TDR because this is the signal the system needs to let the entire Amazon network know that these packages are being unloaded from the trailer and that they will be processed by the sortation operation


The virtual unload is performed using Inbound Dock Manager Virtual Unload. Follow the "Inbound Dock Manager Virtual SOP"


Note that if you already chose a location for the trailer during the Sesame check in, you shouldn’t have to move the trailer during the virtual unload process

Why is it important to keep in constant communication with the Waterspiders?

It is important that all loads are unloaded ASAP when they arrive to allow the empty to either be used for an OB load or to be taken away to keep the yard clear and the flow moving.

What is TPH and what is a TPH Goal?
What does the acronym SPACER mean?
Where is the area readiness checklist located?