64% time savings and zero errors through outbound reporting automation

64% time savings and zero errors through outbound reporting automation

5th February 2026 | 2 min read

The Challenge

Unipart’s North America operations produced a daily outbound report across all distribution centres for a leading automotive manufacturer. The report detailed all shipments from the previous day along with carrier tracking information, serving as a single resource showing which orders had been shipped and by which carrier.

Customer service used the report to answer retailer tracking inquiries, while operations relied on it to identify shipments that had left the warehouse but were missing tracking scans. This was critical for ensuring shipment accuracy and monitoring dock performance.

However, the process was highly manual and inefficient. Staff had to download two separate SAP files per site, plus five carrier reports, which were then manually cleaned, combined, and manipulated into one outbound report per site.

A time observation trial revealed that the manual process took an average of 28 minutes each day. Manual data handling also introduced frequent inaccuracies, meaning stakeholders could not always rely on the information provided. Unipart needed a faster, more accurate solution that captured all necessary data without errors.

The Solution

Through a continuous improvement project led by Cody McNair, Business Reporting Analyst at Unipart, the team automated the outbound reporting process.

Using Power Query, an Excel add-on for transforming and preparing data, the team designed a fully automated solution. Each transformation was saved, allowing the report to be refreshed at the push of a button, eliminating manual manipulation.

Key elements included:

  • Carrier tracking integration: Creating a scan and tracking file for each carrier, automatically cleaned and appended by Power Query.
  • Consolidated shipping data: Combining downloads from multiple source folders into a single daily file, with automatic cleaning and appending.
  • Data accuracy at site level: Merging shipped lines with carrier scan and tracking information to ensure complete and reliable reporting.

The solution simplified the process to downloading source reports and refreshing the queries, a background task that ensured accuracy and scalability across all North American distribution centres.

The Impact

The automation delivered measurable improvements. A time observation trial showed that the new process reduced average report time from 28 minutes to just 10, a 64% time saving. All data transformations were automated, resulting in a 100% reduction in errors and providing timely, reliable information.

The outbound report became a trusted daily resource for answering tracking inquiries and monitoring shipment progress. By removing manual effort and inaccuracies, the solution strengthened efficiency and service quality. The manufacturer now receives accurate, timely shipment information, enabling faster responses to retailer queries, more reliable service, and improved operational efficiency across its North American network.

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