Using WMS software to work with multiple warehouses

Companies are sometimes required to manage their goods in different warehouses. In order to successfully manage this and because the logistics facilities are multiple and sometimes differ from one site to another, it is necessary to rely on a multi-warehouse management software (Warehouse Management System, WMS software).

 This technology will allow to manage the global inventory and different operations produced simultaneously between each warehouse and with the others involved in the supply chain.

Why can a company have several warehouses ?

• To increase storage capacity,
• To get closer to the final customer: by setting up in urban areas, in smaller warehouses and covering reduced surfaces,
• To manage exceptional overstocks: the case where the inflow of products into the warehouse is greater than the outflow,
• Temporary storage of certain goods: by transforming a warehouse into a transit warehouse and thus temporarily storing goods.

 These different reasons that lead the company to spread out over several warehouses obviously bring management difficulties.

What are the difficulties encountered?

• Communication: operators must be coordinated to avoid order preparation errors,
• Stock control: monitoring the entry and exit of products when the global stock is spread over several sites,
• Bottlenecks: if several operators are working at the same time and to the maximum of their capacities, delays or blockages in the preparation chain can occur.

 To solve all these problems and at best to avoid them the company must be accompanied by a warehouse management software.

The use of a WMS software

Warehouse management software must be able to integrate information from multiple locations at the same time. The company may have to add additional modules to its software to be able to manage multiple sites. With some software, this is a native feature.

In the same way as for the management of a single warehouse, the software ensures a total traceability from the first step of the order preparation to the shipping and the reception at the customer's (or the return to the warehouse in the case of a product return decided by the customer).

The management of goods in several locations makes it necessary to use a SaaS solution, hosted in the cloud and operated externally to the company. Thus, it adapts to all uses and becomes usable from anywhere.

The advantages of multi-warehouses with the use of a WMS software

• Acceleration of deliveries: when warehouses are multiplied, it is often to get closer to the customer and to be able to deliver as quickly as possible,
• Better organization of the stock: depending on the warehouse, the merchandise can be stored there by adapting to the demand and the history of the orders,
• Increased customer satisfaction: since it is delivered faster and at lower costs,
• Reduction of the carbon footprint: The distances to be covered for the delivery are reduced because the multiplication of the warehouses makes it possible to get closer to the customer.

 The growth in companies and the development of warehouses therefore poses problems of organization and strategy. Methods that worked before should not be disturbed but the results should be improved (not slowed down).