Business · January 27, 2020

6 tips to implement an efficient Warehouse Management System

Moving from an fully manual warehouse to a highly efficient warehouse with a new swanky Warehouse Management System can be exciting. Real estate has always been, is, and will be a huge asset. When used well, it has the potential to perform more than a fixed asset – in the context of a warehouse, you can do so much with the space you have, by making storage procedures and systems better.

Whether you are a third party logistics provider, a A grade Warehousing Company in Hyderabad, India or a consultant that offers EPC services on turnkey basis, it is undeniable that a WMS can make or break the whole ecosystem, which makes it vital that certain zero tolerance areas need to be catered to before deploying a WMS.

Evaluate before choosing:

You have decided to partner with technology to make you warehouse digital? That’s an awesome decision. Before you just go, order and purchase the most popular WMS in the market, pause. Ask yourself why exactly do you need a WMS. Is it to expand? Is it keep better track of existing procedures? Is it to increase efficiency in storage and inventory management?

While a good WMS provides all these and much more, coordinating every micro level warehouse process and activity through well organised, faster and easier procedures like decreasing inventory held, enhancing order fulfilment, and quick, accurate feedback for improvement.

Decide which way to deploy:

With the cloud taking over everything in entirety, a lot of Best industrial parks in Hyderabad, India will advise that you choose a cloud based WMS given its obvious advantages like scalability, on demand usage, and pay as your use model.

However, every need is unique, and so is every warehouse and business model.

When it comes to WMS, there are three methods in which you can choose to deploy WMS,

Stand Alone WMS:

Also called the on-premise model, like the name suggests, his is an independent model, where a WMS software is installed onto the company’s system, and you have direct access to servers, networks and power supply.

Hosted Warehouse Management System:

Much like the on-premise model, a hosted WMS is only where you rent the infrastructure and the software is owned. This offers an advantage of decreased costs when it comes to infrastructural maintenance, since it will be done by the service provider.

WMS on the cloud:

This is where most WMS services providers are moving to – cloud based solutions are very safe, are entirely hosted remotely, and extremely cost effective. Data will e provided to, and can be accessed through personal/corporate logins, irrespective of the computer or machine you use.

Employee readiness:

Implementing a WMS is a huge step. It could mean disruption in everything thing you have been doing for so long, and every way you have been addressing issues. Therefore, employees must be sensitised, not just in terms of technical training, but also on what to expect. Prepare yourself for confusion, distress and distraught. Even though you have a basic “Why WMS” session, ensure every employee is communicated to, and encourage a healthy dialogue instead of just thrusting the new software onto them. Let everyone voice their opinions, concerns and questions. Think of it as a internal marketing pitch. This is very important because the first few weeks during the transition will be filed with teething issues, and can be frustrating.

Clear communication, and addressing employees’ concerns will be the key to tiding over this phase.

Form an internal team:

Once you have zeroed the model that works the best for you, sensitized all stakeholders in the process, it is time to get the ball rolling. Building an internal team, irrespective of outsourcing the installation of WMS is a must. While the WMS migration is a huge project, an a top executive will oversee the whole operations, Data administrators – who will ensure that the company’s internal data is safeguarded, Module leaders – identified member from each team who will serve as a SPOC from each team during the whole migration project, and of course the project manager – who will serve as the interface between the third party service provider, who will keep a track of deadlines, assign tasks, and look after the transition as a whole are absolutely essential roles.

Other than these, employees can be identified for specific tasks and role, depending on the size and need of the warehouse.

Post implementation:

While the actual implementation process is important, the proof of the pudding is in the eating – and so, the post implementation phase is the most crucial. Give the process a reasonable time, and once you think the WMS and the warehouse, the team have set into a comfortable zone, it is time to evaluate.

What are the issues you did not foresee?

Does the WMS plan help in realising goals that you had in mind before bringing the WMS to the table?

How better can you use the data that the WMS is churning out?

Have regular team meetings, where you can gain invaluable insights.

Businesses today are in an ultra competitive, hyper consumer centric world, while still balancing regulatory and government compliances. A good WMS provides the warehouse tools to make this balance better.