Avnet’s SVP global operations, Beth McMullen, walks buyers through the distribution process, from freight forwarding to master black belt six sigma experts.
Component distribution involves many moving parts, figuratively and literally. Sustaining the highest levels of service and quality across a global organization takes discipline and the world’s best procedures.
As a global distributor shipping billions of units from thousands of suppliers to customers across the world, warehouse logistics and quality control are fundamental to Avnet’s business success.
In FY24, Avnet’s global facilities shipped nearly 240 billion units. At a basic level, the flow of goods is simple: parts come into regional distribution centers in volume to fulfill smaller customer orders. With so many different parts in such huge volumes, errors are avoided by having the right procedures, backed by quality assurances. Avnet maintains error rates lower than 100 parts in a million (ppm). It can only achieve this through well-defined procedures and high levels of personnel training.
Distributors succeed by having the right parts in stock at the right time. Avnet receives those parts from its supplier partners. Goods arriving from suppliers may have crossed borders, travelling by road, sea and air. This typically involves a freight forwarder. Until received, the goods remain the responsibility of the freight forwarder.
Often the goods will be palletized. The first quality procedure is to weigh the package or pallet to ensure it corresponds with the shipping weight recorded by the freight forwarder. A visual inspection for evidence of damage or tampering follows.
Next comes detailed verification. Part numbers are checked and once verified a label is printed and applied. At this stage, the goods are registered in Avnet’s SAP system as received and either allocated to a specific customer or as part of general stock.
In one month, Avnet’s facilities produce over 2 million custom labels. The majority of these are generated automatically, demonstrating the importance of automation in a modern facility.
Storing high value goods
Turnaround times of 24 to 48 hours are not uncommon, but storage conditions are fundamental. The temperature and humidity in Avnet facilities are carefully controlled. Every bay in a warehouse is uniquely identified. As goods are stored, the location is recorded in the SAP system. An additional quality measure imposed here ensures parts with similar numbers are not stored side-by-side. This removes the possibility of picking components with part numbers that vary by a single character or include similarly looking characters. Access to high value parts—such as GPUs or FPGAs—is physically restricted. Only personnel with clearance can access these areas, and only when the SAP system requires it.
Technology controls warehouse activity, automatically directing the picker to the area, shelf, and even quantity of components to be picked. If the wrong 24 June 2025 • Electronics Sourcing North America LOGISTICS component is picked, the system LOGISTICS generates an alert. As components are picked, they are scanned. This registers the components as part of a customer order and adjusts the stock level accordingly. Complete orders can range from single components to multiple pallets.
If a customer is using Avnet’s programming and modification services, the components are transferred to a programming center. Modified devices are returned to the distribution center and added to the customer’s order.
Automated labelling
Customers may want their own part numbers to be applied, to simplify their goods-in process. Avnet provides this value-add service through additional labelling, generated and applied at the picking stage.
To avoid human error when capturing product information, Avnet has both semi-automated and fully automated labelling systems. The semi-automated system uses a handheld scanner. It recognizes a supplier’s label format and generates an Avnet equivalent to the customer’s requirements.
The fully automated system moves parts past scanners to capture the information needed for the label.
Lean six sigma
Avnet follows a lean six sigma methodology, aimed at improving quality and reducing waste. In five years, around 80 logistics employees globally have been trained to yellow, green, black or master black belt. Over 500 employees have completed the lean six sigma beginner program.
Underpinning all of this is Avnet’s commitment to quality (ISO 9001), environmental protection (ISO 14001) and environmental health (ISO 45001). In addition, supply chain security (CTPAT, AEO, STP) is prioritized. Distributing at scale comes with huge challenges, but Avnet’s experts have been adapting to them for more than a century. As well-connected extensions of our customers’ teams, it’s our dedication to quality and service that sets us apart.
