Warehouse Management System
WMS: find out everything about the system that brings efficiency and performance to your eCommerce logistics
Warehouse Management System for eCommerce
logistics is one of the key points for the success of any business, after all it is an operation that is directly related to customer service, in addition to managing an important part of the company’s active capital (i products in stock). The more effective the supply chain management is, the more likely a company is to ensure customer satisfaction, reduce its operating costs and increase its profits. However, achieving this efficiency is not that simple.
In many cases, when the right resources are not used, a lot of time and money is spent. This is why there are specific technologies to help managers in this challenge and one of the most relevant in logistics is WMS , the warehouse management software. With the system, processes are automated , increasing the speed of order processing and reducing errors. The implementation of WMS in a warehouse can be considered an investment with an immediate return on business.
WMS for eCommerce
The challenges of logistics
Managing a warehouse , controlling thousands of products and monitoring the work of employees is a great challenge that requires not only technical knowledge, but also preparation to guide people, strategic vision for develop an efficient and cost-effective distribution plan and the ability to make important decisions under pressure, as the operation cannot stop.
All of these skills are important for the manager to achieve the goals that aim to make the business more profitable. These include:
- Achieve optimal inventory level, i.e. decrease the amount of inventory of a particular product;
- Making the most of the physical space of the warehouse, researching strategic positions for each product;
- Optimize employee work by looking for ways to manage tasks;
- Making intelligent use of machinery and equipment in order to reduce costs;
- Reduce human errors as they can cause problems in customer service;
- Accelerate logistics operations from start to finish;
- Relying on high product traceability and warehouse security, so that it can monitor the movement of goods;
- Increase inventory accuracy, which is physical inventory.
Achieving all these goals is not an easy task and we can say that the complexity increases as the logistics business gets bigger – when the company works with a large quantity and variety of goods, when it owns more than one warehouse, receives from multiple suppliers, fulfills hundreds or thousands of orders per day, etc.
In these cases, having accurate and reliable inventory information is critical to making the right decisions that will grow your business and generate profits. And it is worth remembering that this data must be centralized in one place and at the same time be accessible to all workers, from all areas of the warehouse.
So how should the manager act?
The first step to achieving warehouse organization, inventory security and process productivity is to rely on a Warehouse Management System (WMS). The WMS is responsible not only for the centralization of all intralogistic operational information, but also for the automation of activities, always aiming at the best use of warehouse resources (people, equipment and area).
It is a system developed to facilitate inventory management, logistics operators, wholesalers, retail and eCommerce , so relying on this technology will make the difference in your company’s logistics .
But what does a WMS do and what is it?
Everyone knows that WMS is a specific software for logistics , but many do not know how it works at every stage of the process, from receiving the goods to their shipment. Basically, WMS makes all activities more agile and efficient, generating important metrics for monitoring, performance evaluation and planning of future actions.
With a WMS , the manager has the confidence that the entire operation is coordinated and tracked, because it is the system that “carries out the tasks”, not the people, which greatly prevents the occurrence of human failures. . When an order arrives in the warehouse , the WMS already starts working, defining who will carry out each activity (based on the role, availability and equipment used) and monitoring the performance through the connection to mobile devices. Every action performed by an employee, whether it is a transfer from the reception area to storage, sorting the goods for an order or shipping, is recorded by reading the barcodes of the products and their address. As a result, it’s easier to keep track of each item and its location, ensure fast and accurate picking, and track each operator’s work.
When the WMS is accessed from a computer or mobile device, the manager will have access to a series of functions and information that will facilitate its management. In the system you can access data on purchase orders, movement, output, delivery, quality control, inventory, among others. Thus, you can closely monitor order fulfillment (on time or late), storage orders, replenishment and movement, picking lists, courier performance, courier outbound performance, address and status of each product stored, as well as a series of other information that will allow the control of everything that happens in the warehouse.
It is worth adding that WMS works in tune with ERP, i.e. information reaches ERP, passes through WMS and returns to ERP. Consequently, logistics is fully integrated with the other sectors of the company, ensuring greater efficiency and internal organization.
Goods Entry
All your transport documents imported from your ERP.
Positioning of goods
Shelf management and goods positioning.
Order Acquisition
A single tool to manage multichannel sales.
Picking Orders
Easy and immediate collection of outgoing goods.
Packing Orders
Simple and intuitive goods packaging.
Generation of Courier Labels
Compatibility with the main national and international couriers
Track & Trace Shipments
Update on the status of shipments in real time!
Marketing FollowUp
Update the customer for each progress of his order.
Supplier Management
Management of orders to suppliers with sales predictions for the last months / years
How to choose the best WMS logistics software provider?
This is a problem faced by many managers when evaluating the options available in the market and choosing the one that best suits their needs. Companies need to look for WMS software vendors who are on the same wavelength as themselves.
In addition to evaluating the economic offer of the WMS , verifying if the system has all the features your company needs, it is important to consider some points.
Does the supplier have a well-defined project methodology? Have the vendor’s customers achieved significant results? How was the ROI from the projects achieved? Does the supplier have a lot of experience in logistics and technology? Does the supplier company have flexibility, transparency and a good relationship with its customers? And above all, is the support offered by the supplier agile and does it meet your expectations? What communication channels are available?
Knowing well the work of the company that provides the WMS logistics solution is even more important than the analysis of the product it offers you!
Do not hesitate to contact us for information on WMS Logistics software for eCommerce ( Warehouse Management System ).