The reorganization of a logistics business requires an analysis of the company and the installation of new digital tools. This is a large complex of works, which includes the automation and mechanization of the warehouse. Information technology helps build the structure of processes and improves interaction between employees. As a result, all tasks are implemented much faster.
To begin with, decide on an approach. On the one hand, within each company, key employees know best what should be done and how it should be done. On the other hand, they don't constantly follow trends in the market, don't analyze new products, and don't always know the specifics of digital services. Flexibility in combining competencies is important. Let your internal specialists describe current problems and define development goals. In turn, you need to get a view of non-obvious difficulties from external consultants, in order to understand whether it is time to make changes in the organizational mechanisms or in the IT infrastructure. New platforms or technologies appear on the market approximately every 5-7 years, so constantly think about upgrading your existing communication environment. This is even more often required for companies that are in their start-up phase or are already working with various digitalization systems for logistics. Request help from consultants to update the functionality to fit the current order structure. There are comprehensive offerings for such tasks. For example, Odyssey Consulting Group offers an express analysis of the current situation and the formation of target business processes, taking into account the characteristics of the organization and its development plans. As a result, you will get a selection of equipment and technology, and you can implement a Warehouse Management System (WMS). This allows you to integrate with ERP and other IT business platforms.
The main advantage of warehouse digitalization is the ability to combine new technologies and continue to use reference solutions in other company facilities. Any change is painful for business, especially one with an unpredictable outcome. At the same time, it is impossible to do nothing. Legislation is changing, there are requirements from retail chains, including marketplaces and partners. In addition, the transformation has a positive effect on reducing operating costs through more rational use of equipment and storage capacity. This reduces labor costs and decreases the cost of each warehouse operation. Automation improves turnaround time at each stage from production to delivery and increases the number of orders processed per day. The best option for implementation is comprehensive solutions. They may cost more than boxed versions or MVP systems, but they are a justifiable choice, as they are more flexible and better reflect all the needs of the company. They can be refined and customized to respond faster to market, regulatory, or counterparty requirements.
A market trend is robotization. But it can be costly for many companies, so you can start with mechanization: introduce conveyors and sorting machines. Automation combined with robotization of warehouse processes allows you to create two vectors of improvement:
- Reduced staffing requirements. The effect will be especially noticeable during peak periods: there is no need to hire and train new employees to work during the "high" season, which means there will be no downtime or unnecessary costs for personnel during periods of decline.
- Qualification requirements for specialists are significantly reduced: the system controls each operation as efficiently as possible, breaking down tasks into simple steps. This will enable faster training of new employees and reduce labor costs. As a result, you will save money by hiring less skilled workers, while all processes will be carried out to a high standard.
The benefits of digitalization of all logistics processes can be felt immediately - as soon as all system components are implemented. This is especially true for complex and crisis situations involving any changes in the intensity of the company's work. Pandemics, production downturns, peak season or promotions like Black Friday won't catch you unprepared, because you can easily plan all upcoming workloads and adjust your warehouse logistics operations to match them.
The essence of the transformation in the digitalization of the warehouse - increasing coordination and speed of goods flow. All activities can be carried out through the WMS - Warehouse Management System. It solves a whole range of tasks from receiving, picking and shipping of goods to planning and management of inventory and warehouse capacity. At the same time, it qualitatively improves internal company interaction and positively influences the state of business processes. WMS can be combined with ERP and transport system or any other automation modules. It provides all the necessary information on the status and current workload of the warehouse. This is very important for manufacturing enterprises, where the suspension of the work cycle has a negative impact on the timing of production. After implementing WMS-system, any downtime due to lack of raw materials is excluded, because all necessary information is available to each area manager. At the same time necessary storage space is reserved for finished products by zones, which allows planning an even load on the industrial chain links. Imagine how much better the whole infrastructure of the company would be if during the planning of the promotional campaign of a particular product your warehouse would receive timely data on the volume of orders for the near future. Employees will replenish picking areas in time and place products close to the shipping area. The company won't have any downtime, and all logistics are automated as a result of the warehouse's uninterrupted flow.
The result of WMS-system implementation is achieving full information openness for the construction of business processes. You are able to see the status of capacity utilization at any time and plan the relocation of necessary materials for the production process or delivery to customers. All this happens remotely. Employees no longer have to make personal rounds of the territory to assess the situation and think about what, where and how to rearrange. Nor do they have to look for a place for the products. You can also calculate the need for warehouse equipment. For example, during Cyber Monday, your company will need the maximum amount of capacity to staff and ship all orders on time. If you are planning for such risks in advance, you can reserve the option of renting the necessary equipment in the system. You can maintain the rhythm of your processes and prevent schedule disruption or losses from errors. Without the proper tools and processes in place, companies may not realize that their warehouse is not organized optimally and that the business is incurring unnecessary logistics costs.
All of the bottlenecks in these processes can become critical with even a small increase in workload on the production flow, such as a seasonal increase in product demand. These problems are better prevented in advance. Assess the state of your warehouse logistics for business requirements, consult warehouse process specialists, think about what needs to be fixed and implement digital systems. In-house expertise is important, but it's often the expertise of outside consultants that opens up new horizons for a company's growth. Article for Wayxar Wall
