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Is any cargo lost when moving between warehouses? It is time for automation!

19.08.2021

Progressive technologies in logistics have made our life more comfortable. Today, clients are so used to the high speed of deliveries that they can no longer imagine how their ancestors lived without all modern technologies.

»This company delivers cargo for more than three days! I'd rather turn to another one and get my order tomorrow! « - this is how we think today. High competition in the logistics market forces companies to fight literally for every client and constantly improve its services. The winner is the one who provides the service faster and better than everyone else. In such conditions, automation technologies are the main helpers for companies.


How one board destroyed the brand's reputation in the eyes of a client

This real story takes place in one average city. The client goes to the online store of one popular furniture company, which has its own manufacture and promises more pleasant prices than competitors. The client is tempted by this offer and orders a bed. The company gives a promise that the bed will be delivered in a month taking into account the time required for manufacturing. The shipment is delivered with a two-weeks delay with a broken board in a set. This board is an important part of the bed's supporting structure, without which the assembly of the bed is impossible.

The client contacts the company, draws up the replacement of the damaged part, and waits for a board to be replaced for another two weeks. All this time the client has a sleep on an inflatable mattress, as earlier in his joy he threw the old bed out. A box with new furniture is bored in the hallway. On the cherished day of delivery, the courier calls and informs that the replacement board has not been shipped. The hotline dispatcher states: there was some confusion at the warehouse in city S, fr om which the board was being delivered to city N. Again the client has to wait another two weeks. Gritting his teeth and an air mattress, the client agrees to wait, because the main kit is already in place. Two weeks later, unfortunately, all to be continued and repeated.

The story ends with the client buys a more expensive bed from a well-known international brand and literally in one day gets it from the warehouse on his own. A month later for the first time, comfortably falling asleep on the new soft bed, the client finally swears an oath of eternal loyalty to the company that has delivered him the goods on time.

What is the moral of this story? How the speed of cargo handling and cargo flows management at the warehouse and between warehouses are important and how these aspects help the company to be competitive, maintain a good reputation in the eyes of customers and not to lose profit in a whole.

»Technologies for accounting the cargo movement between warehouses in different cities could just help in the above-described situation – the company would have solved the problem of replacing the damaged part quickly and would have every chance to keep the client,« a specialist in the Auto ID SOLVO department comments.


How can you track cargo moving between different warehouses?

To solve this problem, first of all, a WMS-system - the »brain« of all operations performed - must be installed at each of the warehouses. The system will show the stock at the warehouse and recommend allocating the products in the most convenient way for further shipment. As an example, it will increase the efficiency of loading items for one order. If goods move around the territory of one warehouse, then WMS monitors their movements, controls placement and further shipment.

When we talk about two or more warehouses located at different points of a large production area, in different districts of the city or even in different cities, then we need to ensure the exchange of information between these objects. WMS systems help to do this. For instance, the Solvo.WMS system has a remote warehouse management module. This solution unites remote warehouses in a single digital space, from which you can manage each of the objects and get all the information you need. But how to control the fact that the cargo has left one warehouse, and then has driven into another one? In this case, cargo tracking systems become like eyes for WMS, helping to assess what is happening in real time.


Transparent control and management technologies

»Special readers are installed at the loading docks. For example, RFID readers or other tags. Each cargo, respectively, is marked with a label or code. A warehouse loader or a truck drives passes by these sensors, the tag is automatically read and the data on the time of the cargo delivery or removal from the warehouse is sent to the WMS system. If there are several entrances, the system will also transmit information about which truck has passed. This helps to avoid confusion and to accurately understand that the cargo has left the warehouse. If Yard technologies are also installed on the compound of the warehouse, then we can record as accurately as possible which truck has driven out of the warehouse at a certain time with a certain cargo,« – the SOLVO specialist explains the principle of the system operation of.

The WMS-system of destination warehouse »meets« the cargo directed to it using the same control system, records the arrival, organizes the optimal placement, as well as the shipment and departure from the warehouse. The departure of cargo from the site is also recorded. In fact, all operations become transparent, which means that if a mistake is made somewhere, it will be possible to quickly identify it and find, for example, a box with a lost board.

This technology allows you to see online what is happening with the products at the warehouse, how it is distributed and wh ere it is located. All this is associated with financial flows and analytics, which allows to minimize the occurrence of cash gaps.

»You can put tags not only on cargo, but also on components of loaders and trucks. This also helps to carry out vehicle maintenance. Installed dock-mounted readers mark the start and the end times of the vehicle, and the head system analyzes its mileage and can automatically direct to the nearest service station after the end of work. It also helps to correctly distribute transport across the territory of the warehouse,« the SOLVO expert adds.

Someone will respond to this: “Yes, by all means that sounds great, but all of these technologies require new investment. Is it really what my company needs?

»Automation significantly increases the viability of the business. It is a necessary and significant investment if you want to grow, develop and insure against situations such as lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic, when warehouse employees are not able to go to work for a long time, but the business must continue functioning and bringing profit «, - SOLVO specialist concludes.



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