Page 20 - Logistics News June 2016

warehouse software
Next evolution of
warehouse software arrives
A new breed of warehouse control software (WCS) has arrived. It’s helping companies gain
efficiencies on unprecedented levels by providing visibility and control over what is happening
at the machine, parcel, associate and order/wave levels.
WCS IS beginning to absorb
functionality from warehouse
management systems (WMS)
and other technologies and
tapping a deeper pool of
talent to develop innovative
solutions for the next generation
distribution centre (DC).
Speed, complexity and the
need for flexible fulfillment
operations are the hallmark of
today’s distribution environment.
The Holy Grail is real-time order
optimisation, where algorithms
balance workflow and optimise
rhythms throughout the entire
operation. The result is adaptive
flow control, which enables
unprecedented efficiency
and accuracy, without putting
service levels in jeopardy. This is
causing more companies to turn
to WCS as a new frontier for
efficiency gains in the DC.
With the adoption of
automation solutions to solve
labour, speed and accuracy
challenges, WCS is the key
to making all the pieces of
fulfillment operation work
together. But the complexity
and types of solutions that
omni-channel commerce
demands are where the
WCS really starts to shine,
with algorithms that balance
workflow and optimise
rhythms throughout the entire
operation. With the real-time
monitoring and control of the
warehouse that WCS provides,
higher throughput can be
achieved without putting
service levels in jeopardy.
18 June 2016 | Logistics News
WCS taking on greater
functionality in the DC
WCS is now capable of handling
data directly, bypassing the
WMS, and optimising waves
based on real-time inventory,
labour, process and equipment
information. One of the biggest
advantages of WCS is that it’s
always aware of every piece of
equipment and device in the
facility – where boxes are, where
lanes are full, how long boxes
have been sitting in an area. It
provides greater visibility into
the state of the entire facility
and order stream. And it can
perform ‘what if’ analyses to re-
route orders around bottlenecks
based on the status of any piece
of equipment or zone.
Today’s WCS also opens new
possibilities for analytics data
to help drive smarter decisions.
The systems can now run more
than just automation equipment,
like conveyors, pick carousels,
print and apply stations and
AGVs. They can tie in other
devices like wearables, voice-
recognition, smart watches
and other mobile devices. This
adds a completely new level of
visibility into the location of and WCS has flown under the radar
actions of people, which further
extends visibility into the DC.
WCS provides greater
flexibility
In the future, WCS will provide
even greater flexibility by being
written in modular plug-ins or
apps (like those on a cellphone).
In this new app environment,
Acknowledgement to Fortna
and the functions required
can be purchased and others
can be added as operational
requirements change. WCS
is more flexible than a WMS
system with an open source
platform that allows easier
customisation and lower total
cost of ownership. WCS is used
to integrate with many different
types of equipment, both new
and old. And it can also plug
into any home-grown or legacy
systems like those still operating
in many DCs today.
WCS is often used with
simulation modeling to test
software changes before
implementation. Best-of-
breed solutions also use real-
time simulation to validate
design concepts and actively
run alternative analysis in a
live production environment.
Understanding how the facility
responds to changes under the
pressures of actual day-to-day
operations reduces risk and
enables faster implementation
with fewer issues.
WCS is producing better
solutions
for years. It has historically
been thought of as the piece
that moves things around. It
was for the most part relegated
to the role of middleman that
sends messages to machines.
That wasn’t exciting enough
to attract top talent, that is,
until recently. Amazon’s drones
announcement shed new light