Warehouse Management Systems - A Multifaceted Control Tool for Materials

What is a Warehouse Management System?

Inside any business that holds inventory on hand for customer orders, you will find a warehouse management system or WMS. In the supply chain, the WMS is vital to the integration of all product stations in the warehouse hierarchy. The progress of product into, through and out of the warehouse is monitored continuously.

Further to this description, the WMS can also apply to numerous levels of warehousing across the distribution model. This can include a central warehouse, any regional warehouses supplied by the central one and possibly retail warehouses that are supplied by the regional warehouses.

The movement of materials and product is tracked and controlled by the WMS. Receipt, storage, shipping and all temporary storage locations are monitored electronically 24 hours a day. All of this information is kept organized in a server based computerized environment that is dedicated to the performance and movement of goods and materials through the use of reporting software.

Many of these WMS systems are integrated as modules of a larger Enterprise Resource Planning solution or ERP. Warehouse management systems may be standalone solutions or may even be custom built software solutions for specific reporting needs. Based on the size and scope of the company, the sophistication of the WMS can be as simple as a handwritten list updated as required or part of a more complex system. Among these are Access based software packages or the more popular Excel spreadsheet systems.

Methods of WMS data collection

Data collection inside a warehouse management system is commonly achieved with AIDC (Automatic Identification and Data Capture) technology. This is a way of storing large amounts of information on individual goods in a very small electronic space. The most recognizable method is the use of a wireless barcode scanner in conjunction with a handheld 2D barcode reader.

AIDC may also use radio frequency identification (RFID), mobile computers or even wireless LANs (local area networks) to track the movement of materials through the ERP or WMS. This data can give a snapshot of any item at any time including the receipt, stocking location, last pick or bin changes associated with that item.

A practical example of a warehouse management system using wireless barcode scanner technology

You may have seen an example of this at your local grocery store. At the checkout, the cashier scans your items. On the back end of that transaction, the store manager can tell what items were sold and assist him/her with a restocking order. The WMS has told them exactly what goods came in, when they were stocked and ultimately purchased.

Conclusion

The uses of warehouse management systems are all around us. From the grocery store to the car parts dealer on the corner. When you look at items for online purchase, the item information is probably drawn from WMS data residing on that server for your use. Current stock, availability at various locations and pricing are all at your disposal.

Technology is moving at a fast rate now and will eventually be the go to method for all warehouse management activities.