Published on: 01 March 2023
High-performance software for efficient staff and shift scheduling in distribution centers • PLANCISE can produce analyses, make recommendations, and visualize data on one dashboard • There is great demand for an intelligent solution designed specifically for automated warehouses
PLANCISE, founded by TGW Logistics Group, is a start-up that is developing an innovative software for staff and shift planning in distribution centers. The versatile and high-performance tool presents an answer to the challenges that many companies are currently facing.
A central element in TGW's range of products and services is a comprehensive software portfolio: TGW Warehouse Software (which plans, controls, monitors, and optimizes all processes in a fulfillment center), the implementation of SAP EWM®, and a variety of other digital products and services. PLANCISE is the latest innovation.
STAFF AND SHIFT PLANNING WITH SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS
Material flow is well-planned and well-structured in modern distribution centers. Yet the same is not always true of workforce management. Despite the fact that staff and shift planning is key for efficient operation, many companies still rely on Excel spreadsheets for this purpose. This prevents flexible planning, performance or productivity analyses, and the ability to maintain a reliable view of the workforce as a whole; instead, the work is time-consuming and susceptible to errors.
Even software solutions used for payroll, are not necessarily suited to handling workforce management. Their main issue is not enough flexibility to adapt to changing conditions in a fulfillment center. For example, operational delays in one area can lead to delivery backlogs and imbalances in staffing that are hard to overcome. Increasingly unpredictable ordering behavior and volatile supply chains also complicate things immensely as distribution center managers decide how to allocate their workforce.
EFFICIENT SUPPORT
»No matter whether they run medium-sized or global businesses, many logistics managers carry out short- and medium-term staff and shift planning using systems that were not meant for that purpose,« explains PLANCISE founder Thomas Mahringer.
»If a supplier is late, a technical error occurs, or too many orders unexpectedly come in at the same time, you quickly reach your limit. And this is an industry characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. That is why a lot of managers are searching so desperately for a solution tailored to the warehouse automation industry and thus to their particular needs.«
USER FRIENDLINESS, PERFORMANCE, AND FLEXIBILITY
With these challenges in mind, PLANCISE has developed an intelligent software that boasts great performance, flexibility, and user friendliness. It can produce analyses at the push of a button, make recommendations, and visualize data on one dashboard. Several TGW customers are already employing the workforce management tool as part of a pilot program.
»We used a cloud-native development approach and made PLANCISE available to our customers with just a few clicks,« emphasizes Thomas Mahringer. »Both the application lifecycle, which includes 400 automated regression tests, and the application and usage monitoring are automated.«
For most companies, implementing SAP Extended Warehouse Management (SAP EWM) is far more than an IT project. It marks a strategic shift: processes are redesigned, responsibilities clarified, and the role of the warehouse within the supply chain fundamentally redefined – from procurement and production to distribution.
Read more
TGW Logistics is delighted at BSH Hausgeräte GmbH's second order within just a few months. Following a project for the dishwasher manufacturer in the Bavarian town of Dillingen, a new shuttle warehouse with a clad rack structure will be completed in Nuremberg, Germany, by mid-2028. With this design, the rack structure also supports the building's wall and ceiling elements, making optimal use of the available space.
Read more
In the fast-paced world of consumer goods logistics, speed and reliability define who wins the customer. For leaders in general merchandise, consumer electronics, books & publishing, and DIY & home improvement, the ability to move products quickly, accurately, and across multiple channels is essential—especially during the peak season.
Read more