Five tips when implementing a Warehouse Management System
Implementing a Warehouse Management System can be complex. It requires management support, using standard operating procedures and proper preparation. The system will bring in new technology that will be new for many team members. Make it as easy as possible for them to succeed. Here are five tips when implementing a Warehouse Management System.
- Key business objectives – when picking a WMS, narrow down the top 20% of your objectives. These will achieve 80% of your success. If you try to address all your needs, it will slow down the decision making process and implementation. The biggest influence on your objectives should be to reduce time/labor to get tasks done and attain more flexibility to satisfy customer needs. This will lower costs and increase revenue.
- Start Slow – the key with a WMS is to get it going. Get the basic setup of the PC’s and RF terminals in place. Get the staff used to the new system. Learn from the results and ger to know all the possibilities to enhance the full possibilities of the software later. As you learn, your original plans may change, taking you into a different, but better direction.
- Tailor instead of customize – off the shelf software is managed for future revisions and enhancements by the software developer. Make use of the software as designed and intended. Off-the-shelf packages use common industry practices that are required across many customers. Trying to customize it or do something completely different will lead to future revisions issues. A good package will have plenty of options to tailor the package for your core needs. The historical success of the industry will help you.
- Get your people ready – it is critical that upper management mandates the requirement of a WMS system. They need to sit down with all management and staff to ensure they understand the objectives and that failure is not a option. Everyone needs to be in support of the system. Do not allow any resistance to hamper the execution of each process. Monitor the progress of each team member and further train or educate as needed. Implementing a WMS will reveal your team’s true capabilities.
- Ensure you have a test environment – do not let your business run on something that was not in a trial mode first. Ensure you have an offline system in place where you can test all the connections with other software and implement the tailoring needed. Use the test system to do preliminary training. have all your ducks in a row before turning on the go switch. Should anything go wrong in the early go-live stages, you need to be able to take the new system offline and revert to the old.
A successful WMS implementation will quickly pay off and produce a return on investment. Once successfully implemented, most companies quickly realize that the results are even better than anticipated. The implementation process should be easy. Many companies before you have done so successfully and reaped the benefits.
About ProVision WMS
ProVision WMS can streamline your processes and create greater efficiencies. It provides functionality to reduce costs and increase revenues. You can tailor the product many different ways to suit your business needs and demands of your customers. It will increase turnaround and decrease errors providing better overall customer satisfaction. For more information on our WMS software, request a demonstration today.
