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Vol. 2, No. 7, July, 2015
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719
Employee Pe cep ion o he E ec i eness o he
Wa ehouses: Wi h Especial Re e ence o he
Telecommunica ion In as uc u e De elopmen
Field, S i Lanka
Ra hnayake JA
1
and Ka una a hne EACP
Depa men o Indus ial Managemen , Facul y o Applied Sciences,
Wayamba Uni e si y o S i Lanka, Kuliyapi iya (NWP), S i Lanka
Abs ac
Wa ehouse plays a majo ole in logis ic ope a ions especially in he
elecommunica ion in as uc u e de elopmen indus y. Ine icien wa ehouse
managemen makes huge cos o he company. Thus, i is impo an o manage
wa ehouses especially in his indus y as hey a e using e y speci ic ma e ials,
machine ies, equipmen and ools. On he o he hand, i ms need o keep la ge
as well as cos ly in en o ies o he success ul comple ion o he cons uc ion
p ojec s. This implies he di e ences wi h compa ed o o he ype o wa ehouses
and also gene a es some speci ic equi emen s in wa ehousing o his indus y.
Thus, his esea ch s udy ocuses o iden i y and examine he ac o s a ec ing
e ec i eness o wa ehouses in elecommunica ion in as uc u e cons uc ion
indus y. The s udy was ca ied ou by pe o ming a comp ehensi e su ey and
a ques ionnai e was used o ge he eedback om he selec ed sample which
comp ises bo h execu i e and non-execu i e employees wo k in wa ehouses. Fo
he pu pose o analysis, desc ip i e s a is ics and o he s a is ical ools we e used
o examine he ac o s. Th ough he s udy, en i onmen al impac s, eme gency
unloading and sa e y & p o ec ion we e iden i ied as la gely a ec ing ac o s o
he wa ehouse e ec i eness and hei beha iou s we e u he examined. Based
on indings, he pape has gi en ecommenda ions o elecommunica ion
in as uc u e cons uc ion i ms o e ec i ely manage hei wa ehouses o he
be e pe o mance in hei cons uc ion p ojec s.
Keywo ds: Wa ehouse, Cons uc ion indus y, Telecommunica ion
In as uc u e, S i Lanka
Ci e his a icle: JA, R., & EACP, K. (2015). Employee Pe cep ion o he E ec i eness o
he Wa ehouses: Wi h Especial Re e ence o he Telecommunica ion In as uc u e
De elopmen Field, S i Lanka. In e na ional Jou nal o Managemen , Accoun ing and
Economics, 2(7), 719-726.
1
Co esponding au ho ’s email: ch[email p o ec ed]
In e na ional Jou nal o Managemen , Accoun ing and Economics
Vol. 2, No. 7, July, 2015
ISSN 2383-2126 (Online)
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720
In oduc ion
Wa ehouse managemen is a e y impo an aspec o e e y o ganiza ions since he
p ope wa ehouse managemen makes he wo ks mo e e icien while he imp ope
wa ehouse managemen makes some ex a cos s and ine icien . On he o he hand, he
impo ance o he wa ehouse managemen also inc eases wi h he alue o he handling
ma e ials, machine ies and equipmen in he wa ehouse. Telecommunica ion
in as uc u e cons uc ion ield is such speci ic a ea whe e a ious ypes o aluable
ma e ials, machine ies and equipmen a e handled. Hence, i is e y impo an o s udy
abou he a ec ing ac o s on he e ec i eness o he wa ehouses o elecommunica ion
in as uc u e cons uc ion ield which handle a ious ypes o aluable ma e ials,
machine ies and equipmen .
Li e a u e Re iew
Cons uc ion is he only one ask in a p oduc ion wo k in which he ou comes o he
p oduc ion p ocess a e s a ic on he p oduc ion loo . The ollowing a eas a e conside able
is his cons uc ion p ocesses: p ocesses a e unique and signi ican o each and e e y
p oduc ion a ea and i s en i onmen ; p oduc ion loo s do no adjus o change he design
o he s uc u e; he p oduc s which p oduced by he p oduc ion i m a e assembled and
implemen ed on an dynamic en i onmen ; he s uc u es o he p oduc ion loo exis s o
a long ime wi hou changing and a e lexible o modi y in o de o changing demand;
ules and egula ions o he i m has an essen ial place in he p oduc ion (The
Cons uc ion Sec o Sys em App oach, 2004).
Ma e ials which a e used in he cons uc ions ha e a signi ican impac on he o al
expenses o he p ojec whe e he 50-60 p esen o he o al cos o he p ojec ba es by
he cos o hose ma e ials. Since his signi icance o he cos , i is needed o manage he
cos o he ma e ials in cons uc ion p ojec s mos impo an ly in in en o y managemen .
T acking he ma e ials deli e y and loca ing hem in he in en o y e icien ly is much
impo an in ha case. In e ec i e acking o cons uc ion ma e ials and imp ope s o ing
will lead o make he cons uc ion p ojec s ime consuming and unsuccess ul (Kasim e
al., 2012).
Nowadays, he ad ancemen s in digi al elecommunica ion lead o imp o e he
economic de elopmen in all o e he wo ld while imp o ing he quali y o li ing pa e ns
o he people. E en hough he in es men in p oduc ion sec o was limi ed in o whe e
he in o ma ion and he physical esou ces loca ed in he pas , he e is no need o limi
only o he u ban a eas in he p esen wi h he help o he echnology and communica ion
ne wo k de elopmen s. Those all implies he impo ance o he elecommunica ion
in as uc u e de elopmen s (Egan, 1996).
Wa ehouses place a signi ican ole in logis ics ac i i ies as well as he supply chain
which impac on he speed and he cos o hose ac i i ies. Each and e e y single ac i i y
has huge impac on he e ec i eness and he e iciency o he wa ehouses. The
pe o mances o he wa ehouses highly depend on he echnological knowledge o he
wa ehouse managemen s. By using s a is ical app oach o iden i y he a ec ing ac o s
In e na ional Jou nal o Managemen , Accoun ing and Economics
Vol. 2, No. 7, July, 2015
ISSN 2383-2126 (Online)
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721
on he e ec i eness o he wa ehouses will help o imp o e he quali y o he assessmen s
and esea ches on he wa ehouse managemen , u he (Johnson, 2005).
In en o y managemen is he p ocess o e icien ly o e seeing he cons an low o
uni s in o and ou o an exis ing in en o y. This p ocess usually in ol es con olling he
ans e in o uni s in o de o p e en he in en o y om becoming oo high, o dwindling
o le els ha could pu he ope a ion o he company in o jeopa dy. Compe en in en o y
managemen also seeks o con ol he cos s associa ed wi h he in en o y, bo h om he
pe spec i e o he o al alue o he goods included and he ax bu den gene a ed by he
cumula i e alue o he in en o y.
In addi ion o main aining con ol o he olume and mo emen o a ious in en o ies,
in en o y managemen also makes i possible o p epa e accu a e eco ds ha a e used
o accessing any axes due on each in en o y ype. Wi hou p ecise da a ega ding uni
olumes wi hin each phase o he o e all ope a ion, he company canno accu a ely
calcula e he ax amoun s. This could lead o unde paying he axes due and possibly
incu ing s i penal ies in he e en o an independen audi (www.ba code sinc.com,
2013).
Resea ch P oblem
In cons uc ion ield, wa ehouses do a g ea oll as i is essen ial o keep he aw
ma e ial s ock as equi ed o un he cons uc ion p ocesses smoo hly and p ope ly. Due
o i s uniqueness in hese aw ma e ials, wa ehouses need o ha e speci ic equi emen s
acco ding o he s o ed ma e ials and machine ies. Fo an example, some o he ma e ials
equi ed o main ain some speci ic condi ions such as chemicals and some ins umen s
wi h digi al measu ing me e s.
In elecommunica ion in as uc u e cons uc ion ield, hose ma e ials, machine y,
equipmen and ools a e e y speci ic. Some o hem a e Cable b acke accesso ies
(S aigh and angle clamps, One/Two side bol b acke s, S ay and S u se s e c.),
Chemicals such as Ben oni e & Rheobiuld 1000, machine ies such as Ho izon al
Di ec ional D illing (HDD) machine, handheld GPS Uni s e c. So he equi emen s in he
wa ehouses in his ype o cons uc ion ield a e e y speci ic and di e en .
On he o he hand, wa ehouse holding cos is one o majo cash ou low o any
indus y. Thus, i is impo an o main ain he s ock le els a he equi ed and su icien
le el, Fu he , main aining he quali y o he speci ic wa ehouse ma e ials and
machine ies in s anda d le els is also u mos impo an .
To each abo e men ioned equi emen s, wa ehouses need o modi y hei p ocesses
which a e cu en ly p ac icing in he elecommunica ion in as uc u e de elopmen
sec o wa ehouses o imp o e he e ec i eness o he wa ehouse. Hence, he main
objec i e o his esea ch s udy was o de elop a p ope amewo k o he wa ehouses in
elecommunica ion in as uc u e de elopmen ield including he mos ly a ec ing
ac o s on he e ec i eness o hose wa ehouses.
In e na ional Jou nal o Managemen , Accoun ing and Economics
Vol. 2, No. 7, July, 2015
ISSN 2383-2126 (Online)
© IJMAE, All Righ s Rese ed www.ijmae.com
722
Me hodology
Cha ac e is ics o he wa ehouses in elecommunica ion in as uc u e de elopmen
sec o we e iden i ied h ough li e a u e. Based on collec ed ac s, ques ionnai e was
designed aiming o iden i y a ec ing ac o s o he e ec i eness o he wa ehouses.
Meanwhile, equi ed seconda y da a we e ga he ed h ough he li e a u e. Clus e
sampling echnique was applied when selec ing he esponden s o he ques ionnai e.
The e we e 86 ques ionnai es dis ibu ed among bo h execu i e and non-execu i e le el
employees.
The collec ed da a we e analysed o iden i y he a ec ing ac o s. S a is ical ools such
as co ela ion we e ca ied ou o he s a is ical analysis. Based on he indings, he
ecommenda ions o imp o e he e ec i eness o he wa ehouses we e made. To collec
he da a on he employees’ pe cep ion on he le el o he ela edness o hose opics wi h
he e ec i eness o he wa ehouses, a ques ionnai e was designed while co e ing all he
ields which we e iden i ied wi h he help o he ci a ions, obse a ions and epo s &
summe y gene a ed by he s o e keepe s so on.
Da a Collec ion and Analysis
To go h ough he designed model o he esea ch, he employees’ pe cep ions o he
ac o s a ec ing o he wa ehouses e ec i eness we e ga he ed om 86 employees
co e ing bo h execu i e and non-execu i e le el. These ga he ed da a was ca ego ised
acco ding o he a iables and hei basic s a is ical beha iou was measu ed and gi en in
Table 1.
Table 1 Rela ed S a is ics o Iden i ied Va iables
Va iable
Mean
S d. De ia ion
Space U iliza ion
0.5581
.67156
Sa e y and P o ec ion
1.2291
.38956
Sc ap Managemen
0.4442
.33663
Was e Managemen
0.5610
.39096
En i onmen al Impac s due o ma e ials/machine ies
1.6337
.37120
Eme gency Unloading
0.9128
.41439
Con inues Main enance
0.5959
.44253
Acco ding o he licke e scale analysing on selec ed a iables, en i onmen al impac s
was anked as mos ly a ec ed ac o o he wa ehouse e iciency. All he a iables’
signi ican was es ed s a is ically and he esul s ha e gi en in Table 2.
In e na ional Jou nal o Managemen , Accoun ing and Economics
Vol. 2, No. 7, July, 2015
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723
Table 2 Va iable’s Signi ican
Va iable
Sig. (2-
ailed)
Mean
Di e ence
Space U iliza ion
7.707
.000
.55814
Sa e y and P o ec ion
29.259
.000
1.22907
Sc ap Managemen
12.237
.000
.44419
Was e Managemen
13.308
.000
.56105
En i onmen al Impac s due o ma e ials/
machine ies
40.815
.000
1.63372
Eme gency Unloading
20.427
.000
.91279
Con inues Main enance
12.488
.000
.59593
Acco ding o he analysis, i shows all he ac o s ha ing signi ican beha iou s
owa ds wa ehouse e ec i eness. Bu acco ding o hei impac , en i onmen al impac
due o ma e ials/machine ies is highly a ec ed ac o o he wa ehouse e ec i eness. I
means mos o he employees hink ha he e exis s an en i onmen al impac due o
wa ehouse ela ed wo ks and ac i i ies. Sa e y & p o ec ion and Eme gency unloading
a e he o he mos la gely, signi ican ly encoun e ed ac o s o wa ehouse e ec i eness.
Though sc ap managemen shows signi ican beha iou , acco ding o he pe cep ion
o he employees, Sc ap Managemen is no a ec ing oo much o he e ec i eness o
he wa ehouse. Simila ly, was e managemen , space u iliza ion and con inuous
main enance a e also no a ec ing oo much o he e ec i eness o he wa ehouse.
A e analysing he esul s h ough desc ip i e s a is ic, u he analysis was ca ied
ou on mos ly impac ed a iables o iden i y hei beha iou s on he basis o demog aphic
ac o s. Demog aphic ac o s’ ha we e used a e;
Employee Ca ego y
Educa ional Le el
Se ice Du a ion
Table 3 Independen Samples Tes o En i onmen al Impac s due o
Ma e ials/Machine ies
Desc ip ion
Sig. (2- ailed)
Mean Di e ence
Employee Ca ego y
0.640
0.524
0.066
Educa ional Le el
0.691
0.492
0.057
Se ice Du a ion
0.028
0.977
0.002
Acco ding o employee ca ego y in demog aphic ac o s, he e is no signi ican
di e ence on hei pe cep ion o impac on wa ehouse managemen ela es o he
In e na ional Jou nal o Managemen , Accoun ing and Economics
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724
en i onmen al impac s. Also, i is same wi h he se ice du a ion and educa ion le el o
he employee.
Table 4 Independen Samples Tes o Sa e y & P o ec ion
Desc ip ion
Sig. (2- ailed)
Mean Di e ence
Employee Ca ego y
-8.205
.000
-0.663
Educa ional Le el
-2.310
.023
-0.197
Se ice Du a ion
0.560
.577
0.056
Acco ding o he analysis, signi ican di e ences among employee ca ego y and hei
educa ion le el ha e been shown in employee pe cep ion o sa e y and p o ec ion on
wa ehouse e ec i eness. Fu he analysis ca ied ou o iden i y he g oups which
showing such di e ences. The Analysis on hose wo ac o s is shown in Table 4.
Table 5: G oup S a is ics o Sa e y and P o ec ion
Desc ip ion
Mean
S anda d De ia ion
Employee Ca ego y
1
0.688
0.414
2
1.352
0.257
Educa ional Le el
>= 2
1.158
0.432
< 2
1.355
0.260
Acco ding o he analysis, hough execu i e employees ha ing less conce n on sa e y
and p o ec ion on wa ehouse e ec i eness, non-execu i e membe s’ conce ning ha as
highly a ec ed ac o o wa ehouse e ec i eness.
Table 6 Independen Samples Tes o Eme gency Unloading
Sig. (2- ailed)
Mean Di e ence
Employee Ca ego y
-3.247
0.002
-0.353
Educa ional Le el
-1.197
0.235
-0.111
Se ice Du a ion
-1.040
0.301
-0.111
Acco ding o he analysis on employee pe cep ion o eme gency unloading, signi ican
di e ences among di e en employee ca ego ies we e iden i ied. Thus, u he analysis
was ca ied ou and he esul s we e gi en in Table 7.
Table 7 G oup S a is ics o Eme gency Unloading
Desc ip ion
Mean
S anda d De ia ion
Employee Ca ego y
1
0.625
0.341
2
0.978
0.403
In e na ional Jou nal o Managemen , Accoun ing and Economics
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725
The analysis shows ha he non-execu i e employees a e ha ing highe signi ican
conce n on eme gency uploading ela es o he wa ehouse e ec i eness wi h compa ed
o execu i e pe sonals.
Resul s and Discussion
Acco ding o he abo e analysis, en i onmen al impac due o ma e ials/machine ies
was iden i ied as mos signi ican ly and la gely a ec ed ac o o he e ec i eness o he
wa ehouse. In e es ingly, wha e e he demog aphic g oup ep esen s, all employees a e
ha ing simila ype o pe cep ion.
Sa e y and p o ec ion is ano he signi ican ac o iden i ied h ough his s udy. E en
hough, di e en g oups o employees, based on hei employee ca ego y and educa ion
le el ha e shown signi ican ly di e ence pe cep ion o e wa ehouse e ec i eness. Clea
di e ence was iden i ied in be ween execu i es and non-execu i e employees. While
execu i es we e ag eeing on issues ela ed sa e y and p o ec ion, non-execu i es we e
la gely conce ns i s impac on e ec i eness.
Also, iden i ied hi d mos a ec ing ac o was eme gency unloading. Acco ding o
he employees’ pe cep ion, his also la gely a ec ed o he wa ehouse e ec i eness.
In e es ingly, signi ican di e ence pe cep ions we e eco ded acco ding o he employee
ca ego y. Non-execu i e employees we e la gely conce n on his ac o s a ec while
execu i es we e ma ginally conce ned.
Conclusions
Th ough he indings o he s udy, i can be concluded ha he “En i onmen al Impac s
due o Ma e ials/Machine ies” is he mos signi ican ac o in inc easing he
e ec i eness, as he elecommunica ion in as uc u e sec o deals wi h many chemical
and haza dable ma e ials and equipmen . Hence, he wa ehouse layou should be
de eloped in o de o minimize en i onmen al impac s due o s o ing i ems. Thus,
managemen should ake necessa y s eps o elimina e all he ela ed ac i i ies which ha e
impac on he en i onmen as well as he employees.
Secondly, he Sa e y and P o ec ion is also highly in luencing ac o o he
e ec i eness o he wa ehouses, hence he wa ehouse layou should be modi ied in o de
o make he wo king en i onmen mo e sa ely which is he ools and equipmen usage,
e y high. This can be done by making he wo king en i onmen mo e sa e y, and
p o iding awa eness on machine ies and wo king p ocedu es. .
Eme gency unloading makes a huge e ec on he e ec i eness o he wa ehouse as
well. E en hough he wa ehouse is p ope ly designed, i he e is no any place o he
eme gency unloading, i will elimina e he e ec i e p ocess o he wa ehouse. Hence,
he e should be a place o eme gency unloading while conside ing he wo king shi s as
well as he wa ehouse layou .
As he e we e di e en pe cep ions among di e en g oups o employees,
managemen should ocus and s udy on hese a eas o make hings co ec . As he e was
highe conce n on mos ly a ec ed ac o s om non-execu i e employees, i is equi ed
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Vol. 2, No. 7, July, 2015
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© IJMAE, All Righ s Rese ed www.ijmae.com
726
o ha e p ope unde s anding among wo employee ca ego ies o make he wo king
en i onmen much sa e and a ec i e o wo k. I all g oups ha ing simila pe cep ion, i
will be easie o es ablish e ec i eness in wa ehouses. O he wise, i will no be wo ked
ou i he e we e any con lic s ega ding he pe cep ions o he employees.
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