Warehouse Control System

Warehouses and distribution centers (DC) increasingly deploy automation technology and material handling equipment (MHE) to meet rising throughput requirements. This typically leads customers to deploy mixed portfolios of MHE, with different automation technologies from multiple vendors that need to be managed individually. However, managing automation systems individually poses significant challenges. Operating a multi-vendor MHE infrastructure as a unified solution becomes increasingly difficult. It also prevents businesses from leveraging their automation solution to its full potential and from achieving targeted ROI.

Some of the challenges include:

• Actual system performance falls short of projected increases in throughput and fulfillment capacity
• Tracing the cause of malfunctions and bottlenecks is time-consuming
• Material routing can not be changed fast enough to accommodate receipt changes or to avoid problem zones
• Lack of end-to-end material visibility across the automation chain

• Automated environments
  Our WCS manages and controls mixed portfolios of MHE and automation equipment. This means it is a natural fit for the type of complex warehouse operations that analyst firm Gartner describes as level 4 (intelligent) and level 5 (automated) warehouse facilities. These typically process large amounts of orders which necessitate the broader use of MHE and warehouse automation.
• Deployment flexibility
  Our WCS solution offers a high level of integration capability – not only with various supported automation equipment, but also with the customer’s existing supply chain systems landscape. It also seamlessly integrates with our WMS as well as third-party solutions.
• New or existing facilities
  Our project teams have successfully completed numerous WCS implementations. When it comes to greenfield facilities, we work closely with system integrators and automation vendors to model and simulate the operation and performance of the future automation solution. This ensures that the WCS delivers high-level performance and scalability. In existing facilities, the WCS can be deployed into the existing automation landscape and ongoing operation to minimize downtime.