Optimizing the order fulfillment strategy is an ongoing process for most organizations, especially in the current context, in which the supply chain is increasingly complex and shopping and consumption habits increasingly difficult to anticipate.
Satisfying the demand for a wider range of products and faster and faster delivery are big enough challenges for most distributors to be busy evaluating new technologies and equipment that can help them refine their order fulfillment strategy for your customers.
Technology plays a bigger role in optimizing the order fulfillment process, making clear the results of the analysis of the company’s needs and objectives.
The evaluation of the order fulfillment strategy in 2020 should take into account 3 elements: start with data analysis, be honest about the needs of automation and embrace the flexibility of technological solutions on the market.
Analyze the data
The first step in evaluating the order fulfillment strategy should start with data analysis, which you can do either internally or with the help of a consultant. In essence, you should consider a few things about the volume and type of orders (retail orders, bulk orders), the channels they come from (e-commerce or a combination), the type of customers on which company you have, the number of items you manage, and the type of picking you apply. All this data will help you to organize your warehouse much better and, finally, to optimize the order fulfillment strategy.
Companies should also consider short- and long-term goals. For example, e-commerce is only a part of the business, but growing? How fast have e-commerce sales grown, especially in this context? Also consider how seasonal peaks affect your order fulfillment process.
Data collection and processing is a key part of optimizing and automating any process within an organization. The data collection phase consists of gathering information from different IT systems that the company uses – enterprise resource planning (ERP), warehouse management software (WMS) and transport management software (TMS), for example – and analyzing them to understand patterns and business performance.
WiSoft Professional Services, part of the BITSoftware group, provides companies with advanced logistics software solutions that are a critical component in developing an order fulfillment strategy, namely visibility.
Consider process automation
Determining the appropriate level of automation for a warehouse or distribution center is an important step in the evaluation process. The strategy you adopt regarding the automation of warehouse processes depends to a large extent on the data collected, and then on the short- and long-term objectives.
FluxVision WMS automates and optimizes the activities of receipt, storage, collection and shipment of goods, constantly providing real-time information on the status of stocks and storage space. In addition, FluxVision WMS covers over 50 types of logistics activities that can be configured and recorded automatically.
Take advantage of the flexibility of software solutions
Logistics departments are constantly facing increasing pressure to streamline processes, speed and accuracy of deliveries, and improve their quality.
The cloud software solutions for logistics that WiSoft and BITSoftware provide provide automated logistics processes, which helps increase productivity.
The integrated ERP & WMS solution manages every phase of logistics processes, from supply to delivery to the customer. The Warehouse Management Module (WMS) streamlines the activity, ensuring the storage of each batch of goods in the right location and optimizing the rotation of stocks to help increase the company’s liquidity. Logistics processes optimized with the help of mobile devices offer multiple possibilities in terms of increasing turnover and market segment.
