In our last DMW&H blog, we delved into some specific engineering questions related to the physical movement of items—conveyors, automated sorters, motors, etc. Of course, in today’s world, these physical components are only as good as the systems that allow them to operate and coordinate in digital space. As important as it is to ensure that the material channels of distribution centers are modern and adaptable, the back-end software is perhaps even more crucial to efficiency. Let’s take a look at how these new types of software can be used to the greatest benefit of you and your customers.
ALPHABET SOUP
Anytime you want to talk about software logistics in a general way, you run the risk of getting bogged down with jargon and falling into an alphabet soup of acronyms. What type of system is going to do the most for my business? Is it a WMS, ERP, TMS or WES? How are these similar or different? The lines can blur and overlap between these specific types of systems and programs, such as a warehouse execution system (WES), warehouse management system (WMS), enterprise resource planning system (ERP), or transport management system (TMS); but that does not mean that they are interchangeable terms. One way to approach these different systems is to think about warehouse management as a series of overlapping circles, like a Venn diagram. Your TMS will interact with a lot of what your WES or WMS is going to do, as transportation relies on goods being accurately scanned and moved to trucks so that they can be shipped. Similarly, a subsystem that tracks the location and status of packages via automated scanning is going to feed that information into a larger WMS. In the end, we are talking about a system of systems, and more and more, we are seeing that the connections between those individual pieces are the real key to efficient operations.
INTEGRATION
Before, but especially during and after the pandemic, we have seen increased consolidation of warehouse operations in all sorts of different industries. Large distribution centers often now provide services for many different businesses as subcontractors. We have also seen larger companies purchase smaller businesses and bring their operations under larger corporate umbrellas. When this type of changeover happens, or a business simply decides to bring in a new piece of software, the connections between the individual systems are tested. Maybe the TMS system has a hard time integrating with a new, larger WMS. Maybe the increased scale of packages hits a software bottleneck, slowing the flow of the entire system down. Our team at DMW&H has the experience to help you avoid these types of hiccups when it comes to integrating and improving your software logistics, which can be especially tricky when dealing with different software types. Utilizing a WES that can incorporate multiple subsystems and improve key factors such as order accuracy, traceability, and activity circulation is vital to competing in the modern area of distribution. Give us a call or email today!
