Repackage App -- Mobile Application

Project: Repackage App -- Mobile Application

My role: UX Designer

Another member of the team:

Developer -- You Song Hou

Duration: 4 weeks

Time: Sep 2020

Result: Concept Design

Problem Statement

Challenge Statement - Food

In the face of a global pandemic, there are many issues affecting suppliers’ ability to mobilize efficiently. COVID-19 presented a particularly ironic situation in which there was a counterbalance of food shortages along with food waste. Industry worked to reroute food where possible to meet changing demands but struggled with bottlenecks, lack of resources, rigorous certification/testing requirements built for “normal times” and other unforeseen challenges that hindered the supply chain.

Issue: Food Processing Systems

Problem:

The egg industry has struggled to keep up with surging demands during the pandemic, not from a lack of supply, but from limited availability of appropriately labeled retail packaging. Retail eggs, before they are available for consumption, must go through grading and packaging. Such a process is not required for food service eggs. But with restaurants shut down, the surplus of food service eggs did not make it to the consumer until the FDA temporarily eased up on the grading and packaging requirement. Food service diverted eggs are sold in flats and large cartons, which may be unwieldy for consumer purchase.

Milk faces its own bottleneck specifically around packaging. When children are not drinking milk from cartons at school, they are getting milk from plastic jugs at home. As a result, the demand for the product is the same, but the way in which it is packaged and delivered changes drastically. This requires the entire supply system to be reevaluated and reimagined with very little lead-time.

Workers are unable to process or transport goods due to travel restrictions, government shutdowns, or fear for their own safety.

Solution: Repackage App helps the business smoothly repackage their products and intergrade their supply chain trace system.

Features:

Identify a food item's current category, potential for category change, and location;

Easy communication in and between different levels of users in the food processing system;

Simplify the process of product tracing

Personas

Business: Sysco foodservice. (https://www.sysco.com/)

Sysco Corporation partners with GS1 in their supply chain.

New York Warehouse Branch:

Central Islip, New York

US0306 Sysco Long Island, LLC

Zip code: 11722

James: Logistics Specialist

Department: Supply Chain and Logistics

Education: Associate degree

Years of experience: 2 years in this company

Job Summary: The Logistics Specialist completes order lifecycle management of logistically arranged purchase orders across multiple levels of the business. Minimal travel may be required by air and personal vehicle.

Bob: Warehouse worker

Department: Warehouse

Education: High School

Years of experience: 5 years in this company

Job Summary: The warehouse worker is responsible for the following warehouse activities including but not limited to: shipping, receiving, stocking, replenishment, item demand, consolidation, count checks, loading and unloading of trucks.

Paul: Delivery truck driver

Department: Transportation

Education: High school

Years of experience: 5 years in this company

Job Summary: Delivery truck drivers must safely and efficiently operate a tractor-trailer and manually unload/deliver various products (meats, produce, frozen foods, groceries, dry goods, supplies, etc.) to customer locations on an assigned route schedule. Drivers build relationships with each customer using their positive, friendly attitude and become familiar with their operations to meet needs and expectations.

User Story

New York State announces lock down measures, which includes restaurants. Everything slows down and residents are sheltered in place due to Covid-19.

James had received an email from his boss at home. He needed to arrange the repackaging task. He needed to identify the restaurant-package-eggs in the New York warehouse and arrange for them to be repackaged in grocery-store-packaging and send them to the grocery store in New York.

James used Repackage App in his phone to filter GTIN (restaurant package eggs) and GLN(New York Warehouse) in the database. Then he chose the New York Warehouse Branch (Central Islip, New York,US0306 Sysco Long Island, LLC , Zip code: 11722) from the result list. Then he chose 10 restaurant-package-eggs from the 120 restaurant-package-eggs in the New York Warehouse Branch, then he assigned these 10 restaurant-package-eggs to Bob whose house address was near this warehouse.

Bob received the notification from Repackage App at home. He opened the App and accepted the new task. 3 days later, Paul used the Repackage App and scanned the 10 restaurant-package-eggs and the GLN number in front of Bob’s house which was assigned to Bob’s house and dropped the restaurant package eggs and empty grocery store packages in front of Bob’s house.

Bob received the notification from the Repackage App that the eggs were delivered in front of his house. He opened the door, he used Repackage App to scan the 10 restaurant package eggs and GLN in front of his house and then he started to repackage in his house.

3 days later, after Bob repackaged the eggs, Bob used Repackage App to scan the grocery-store-package eggs and clicked the button “complete the task” and selected the pickup time from available time slots. Then Bob put all the grocery-store-package eggs and empty restaurant packages in front of his house in the pickup time.

James received a notification from Repackage App that Bob’s task had been completed. James drove his car to Bob’s house and checked the grocery-store-package eggs. James was satisfied by Bob’s work so James used Repackage App to scan the grocery-store-package eggs and GLN to accept the repackaging task as complete.

Paul received a notification from Repackage App indicating that the grocery-store-package eggs at Bob’s house are ready for pick-up. Paul drove the truck to Bob’s house and scanned the grocery-store-package eggs and GLN in front of Bob’s house. Then Paul picked up the grocery-store-package eggs and empty restaurant packages. Then Paul picked up grocery-store-package eggs in front of houses according to addresses provided in the Repackage App. Then Paul delivered all grocery-store-package eggs he picked up that day to the grocery store.

James received a notification from Repackage App that all repackaged eggs successfully arrived at the grocery store.

Work Flow

Wireframes and usability tests

One of user story wireframes and usability tests

Final Design

James is a logistics specialist for Sysco Food Service Company in New York. After restaurants are shut down due to COVID-19 restrictions, he received a phone call from his boss at home. His boss said he needs to find a way to repackage restaurant-packaged-eggs in his warehouse and deliver the new packaged eggs to a nearby Wal-Mart as soon as possible. All of his workers are staying at home due to a shelter-in-place order, except truck drivers. Therefore, James uses Repackage App to help finish this task. James creates a new task.

Paul is a truck driver and works for James. He receives a notification. Paul accepts a new task from James

Bob is a warehouse worker and works for James. He receives a notification. Bob accepts a new task from James.

Paul gets ready to deliver the restaurant-packaged-eggs and empty grocery-store-egg containers.

Paul stops by Bob’s house and drops-off the items.

When Paul continues to deliver the items to the next house, Bob receives a notification. Bob accepts the items

Bob is working on repackaging eggs from restaurant-packages to grocery-store-packages. Bob finishes his work and puts the grocery-store-packaged eggs and empty restaurant-package-containers out on the sidewalk in front of his house when he knows the delivery driver is just a couple of car lengths down the street waiting and maintaining social distance.

Please notice the new GTIN number assigned to the grocery-store-package eggs.