Warehouses are under pressure to perform.
With the growth of e-commerce and the ‘always-on’ nature of the digital consumer there is a growing expectation to provide faster turn-around and shorter delivery times, all while product tracking and identification is becoming increasingly granular.
According to research done by Zebra Technologies, 89% of retail, manufacturing, and logistics professionals agree that e-commerce is driving a greater need for faster delivery times, while 78% currently provide or expect to offer same day delivery by 2023.
At the same time many warehouses are still using hardware with outdated operating systems that are becoming increasingly difficult to support and maintain as they approach end of life. This outdated equipment is not structured to help warehouses keep pace with current market demands and can actively hamper warehouse performance.
This is creating a gap for a number of warehouses between how they are operating, and how they could be operating, if they were modernised.
While a fear of business disruption often prevents decision makers from upgrading technology and investing in new hardware it is important to see that it can create an opportunity to reassess your warehouse processes and implement a modernisation initiative.
By modernising your warehouse, it is possible to introduce greater speed and accuracy into your operations, with better communication and improved productivity.
Reasons to modernise your warehouse:
Equipping workers with up-to-date technology can supercharge warehouse operations – improving accuracy and speed, reducing downtime, and shortening training times. Upgrading technology also eliminates problems caused by legacy devices such as delays, double entries, errors, and backlogs.
Connected teams can solve problems faster – mobile devices allow workers to communicate with each other, enabling people on the floor to reach whoever they need when they need them.
Create better end-to-end information flows by optimising the receiving process – drive better decision making, greater accuracy, and reduced handling times. No more inventory hiding in plain sight. Proper traceability of all stock items ensures an accurate view of current stock levels.
Drive efficiency in picking, packing, staging and loading – by tracking the movement and status of all stock it is possible to optimise picking and order fulfilment, ensuring shorter turnaround times and increasing profitability. Orders are fulfilled accurately, fewer items are returned and customers are satisfied.
Real-time management means less down time and fewer surprises – when warehouse workers have instant insight into every asset’s location and condition, they can more easily avoid out-of-stocks and over-stocks. They will spend less time hunting for and counting inventory, and more time filling orders.
New technology can help take your warehouse to a new level, giving you more control in an on-demand economy. The safest and smartest decision a warehouse can make is to future proof their operations by modernising their technology.
Most importantly the modernisation of your warehouse does not have to be disruptive to business operations, if it is managed correctly. With expert knowledge and carefully selected solutions, can super-charge the performance of your warehouse.
At Cradle Technology Services we are ideally situated to assist with your warehouse modernisation strategy. We can provide hardware, software, support, repair and servicing of all warehouse management and barcoding components. With 20 years of experience in the field we can provide expert consultation on the hardware and solutions that will be right for you, to fully optimise your warehouse environment.