Many businesses face various challenges related to warehouse management. These challenges range from exorbitant operational costs to inconsistent customer satisfaction metrics and workplace hazards. Labor costs constitute close to 65% of warehouse management budgets. Automation can significantly reduce this expenditure and facilitate quicker items conveyance to and from warehouses.
Interestingly, an average of five workplace injuries occur for every 100 full-time warehouse workers during the conveyance of items. While reducing labor costs is essential, safeguarding workers from hazardous working environments is even more critical.
Using warehouse management software (WMS) can help reduce accidents, automate multiple warehouse operations, and reduce long-term expenses. In this article, let us look at how warehouse management software can benefit your business.
What are the top five benefits of a WMS for businesses?
1. Improved efficiency and productivity
SKU proliferation is a real problem experienced by many businesses. As the product variety and number increase, it can quickly become a concern for everyone operating a warehouse. With an 18.5% increase in the SKUs handled, the need for accurate warehouse item tracking and visibility is critical.
Another survey showed that 43% of currently operating warehouses require more storage space, and 34% of warehouse handlers deal with outdated warehouse picking and equipment handling. Whether you manage a small business or an established company, a WMS can help automatically optimize SKU management practices and help directly increase your warehouse efficiency and productivity.
Priority's WMS streamlines the picking, packing, and shipping operations. Automating these critical logistical processes helps your staff focus on more important tasks. Most importantly, a WMS reduces injury hazards during unplanned and haphazard movement of items.
2. Enhanced accuracy and inventory management
According to a GS1 study, only 63% of retail inventory is accurate on average. Up-to-date WMS modules help you seamlessly read multi-factor barcodes and ensure flawless stock management. Advanced picking technologies allow you to automatically scan RFID tags and barcode labels and gain complete visibility over your inventory.
If you own a small business, moving from paper-and-pencil to an integrated order-processing system will help you boost productivity by 25%. Indeed, it is not just the larger businesses that need a WMS. Whether you manage an SMB, SME, or large organization, Priority's WMS solutions give you access to advanced order-based replenishment waves driven by stock level and turnover strategies.
A WMS system automatically replenishes your storage bin when your warehouse encounters empty containers. In other words, inventory management will be driven by intelligent business insights derived from real-time data.
3. Save costs in the short and long term.
On average, severe injuries in the transportation and warehousing industry cost $84M weekly. And in recent years, warehouse rents have shot up by 28%.
Modern WMS tools integrate robotics and automation technologies that reduce workplace injuries and optimize available warehouse space. This directly results in a reduction in expenses and the elimination of potential lawsuits. Priority WMS has advanced receiving and put-away features that help reduce the manual moving of items.
In addition, a WMS system automates checking delivery slips against Goods Receiving Vouchers (GRV) and Advanced Shipping Notices (ASN), contributing to immediate savings and reducing expenses in the long term.
While smaller businesses underutilize these features, improving order fulfillment efficiency will help boost your bottom-line figures and make profits faster.
4. Improved customer satisfaction
After the pandemic, most customers expect online and multi-channel order fulfillment. Businesses must unify data from multiple commerce channels, online and offline, to maintain customer satisfaction. However, receiving incorrect products can have a profoundly negative effect on your brand image and will reduce customer satisfaction scores.
Manual processing of orders invariably leads to unavoidable human errors. A WMS is equipped with automated storage and retrieval features that enhance accuracy to 99.99%. WMS ensures that only suitable products move from the warehouse to the shipping logistics and the final delivery location. In addition, improved inventory management and timely order fulfillment will ensure that your customer satisfaction metrics will continue to soar.
Priority's advanced Delivery Tracking App ensures that shipments reach their destination on time, much to your customers' delight.
5. Scalability and flexibility
Essential WMS features are flexibility, agility, and scalability. A moderm WMS supports Small and medium-sized businesses in scaling quickly and rapidly optimizing their warehouse operations. By reducing injuries and ensuring the quick movement of products, WMS helps companies to reduce and eliminate avoidable expenses.
Rapidly changing rules and regulations, such as tracking and managing expiry dates, inventory movements, and Lot numbers, make manual operation inefficient. The system's flexible feature will allow your employees easily adhere to the changing market environment and focus on growth and complex tasks that require analytical skills, helping the business to scale and quickly diversify to new industry verticals.
Start using WMS for enhanced warehouse operations.
Most think large organizations and manufacturers use the WMS module to move heavy equipment. However, with the growth of the e-commerce industry, even smaller businesses can benefit from the WMS automation features.
As described above, a WMS helps companies improve key performance indicators and rapidly gain visible results. Improved inventory management and order fulfillment will enhance customer satisfaction metrics and improve bottom-line figures. Most importantly, you can avoid workplace injuries and safeguard your workers from hazardous situations while moving equipment and items.
Contact us today to understand how to start using WMS at your organization.
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