IDII Software Newsletter
 To assist the professional dealing with software in Warehousing Distribution, Logistics, and the Supply Chain.
December 18th 2001 - Vol 2 No 20
Tell a Friend -- Subscribe to the Newsletter Now - It's Free -

Techniques, Vision, & Educational Thoughts

A Valuable List of WMS Implementation Tips

This case contains 10 practical tips for anyone who becomes involved in a WMS implementation.

Consider the Near Future During the Requirements Analyses

During the definition of all requirements not only today's operational needs need to be considered. During this phase the company strategy, market development and technologic developments need to be taken into account. The WMS also needs to support the future organization. Dare to discuss the current organization and it's primary processes.

Try Not To Be Misled By Demonstrations

During the orientation phase software suppliers often uses demo's. These demo's often provide a complete view on the primary functionalities of the package, but do not show the flexibility of these functionalities. During this phase not just the functionality of the package should be considered but the flexibility. Can all functionalities be parameterized and therewith flexible or should tailored software realize this flexibility.

Do Not Just Select the Package On It's Primary Functionalities

The final selection of a package is often based on the level in which the package supports the primary process of the organization. However, the package should also be selected based on criteria such as host-interface possibilities, web interface possibilities, the software language, financial support (activity based costing), the road map of the standard package (the project development horizon of the standard package), the organization of the supplier and the service organization of the supplier.

All Service Aspects Should Be Covered By A Contract

The development and implementation of the package is often executed and managed by a project team from the software supplier. After implementation the responsibilities are often transferred to the service department of the supplier. A contact should cover the way how this transfer should be executed and how the supplier will guarantee that all knowledge of the tailored software is maintained within his organization. Service level agreements such as time-to-response and time-to-recovery need to be covered by a contract as well.

Include the Right People in the Design Phase

Try to involve the right people in the design phase (conference room pilot). Both management and operation should be involved. Critical success factor's are the availability of operational staff and the empowerment of a person with decision power.

Minimize Tailored Software

During the design phase a balance needs to be found between required functionality and available functionality of the standard package. In this phase it should be avoided to create tailor made solutions. Tailored software has a great impact on the development time and the maintenance of the package.

Consider the Output of the System

The value of the system will be determined by the physical output of it. Pay attention to the functionality of documents such as a packing list. For both staff and customers this often is the only way to judge the added value of the system.

Freeze the Functional Design Document Until After Implementation

After the design phase the functional design document needs to be frozen in order to enable all involved parties to start development and implementation based on the same requirements. Especially in the area of interfaces, a change in the functional design has great impact on the overall planning. A frozen functional design document is an absolute critical success factor for realizing the planning.

Reserve Sufficient Time for Testing the Package

In both the FAT (Factory Acceptance Test) as the SAT (Site Acceptance Test) the package needs to be compared with the functional design. During FAT the stand-alone performance of the packages needs to be tested, while during SAT the functioning of the package in her new environment (host interface, PLC's, Radio Frequency network) should be tested. During FAT concentrate on subjects such as documents, user interface and functionalities. For both FAT and SAT test protocols should be written. Pay special attention to these subjects which are considered not to give any problems.

Implement a Functional User Group

Prior to implementation and beneficial use a functional user group should be established which will act as the liaison between user organization and software supplier. Cover issues such as documentation, training, problem logging, escalation for problem reporting and follow up and the follow up on change requests.

Written by Stef de Bont of RoadAir. This white paper available as a separate white paper at http://www.idii.com/wp-practical-tips.htm and is originally published on LogisticCases.com.

About the Author

Stef de Bont (1967) has been working in third party logistics since 1993. At Scansped he was responsible for a.o. implementation of a new warehouse management systems. Since 1998 he has been working with Road Air and has been involved in the implementation of a new distribution center for Rockwell Automation. Within the project he was responsible for a.o. implementation of processes and systems.


Our WMS - High In Functionality - Latest Technology

MOTEK

®

IDII News - New Website Features

FREE Educational Materials - Keep Learning - White Paper INDEX
 Cadre Technologies - WMS - Check It Out!
Cadre Technologies


Software Company News
  • Arzoon, Inc. (TMS, ITL) announced new logistics software bundles to address the specific logistics needs of procurement, sales/customer service, finance, logistics,and international trade-compliance professionals. The Arzoon software bundles include:
    • Arzoon Import Manager (for procurement and compliance professionals)
    • Arzoon Export Manager (for sales/customer service and compliance professionals)
    • Arzoon Inbound Transportation Manager (for procurement professionals)
    • Arzoon Inbound Transportation Manager Global Edition (for procurement professionals)
    • Arzoon Outbound Transportation Manager (for sales/customer service professionals)
    • Arzoon Outbound Transportation Manager Global Edition (for sales/customer service professionals)
    • Arzoon Freight Payment (for finance and logistics professionals)
    • Arzoon Total Transportation (for logistics professionals)
    • Arzoon Total Transportation Global Edition (for logistics professionals)
    • Arzoon FastTrack Rail Manager (for logistics professionals)

    Get Your Free WMS Report NOW
    HighJump - FREE WMS Report

  • CAPS Logistics Inc. (TMS, Optimization, APS, Div of Invensys) ANNOUNCES New Product "COLLABORATIVE DISPATCH". New Functionality Facilitates Collaborative Routing and Scheduling Across Multiple Dispatching Environments. Collaborative Dispatch enables a multi-user, vehicle routing and scheduling environment, providing visibility between dispatchers and allowing plans to be optimized across geographic boundaries. It provides real-time plan tracking and status notification allowing for immediate and responsive actions in a multi-dispatcher environment. For example, if an order has been delayed, the dispatcher is notified so all connected orders can be rescheduled, coordinated, and communicated to all other dispatchers.


  • HighJump Software (SCE, WMS) announced the new release of Warehouse Advantage Suite 5.0. New features of the Warehouse Advantage Suite Version 5.0 release include:

    • Event Management— By measuring and monitoring supply chain processes for exceptions and bottlenecks, Warehouse Advantage Suite's new Event Advantage module enables an organization to proactively manage events across its supply chain. Event Advantage is a stand-alone module that provides intelligent notification, control and collaborative resolution of specific events occurring-or about to occur-within the extended supply chain before they become problematic. Event Advantage provides a broad set of notification mechanisms such as e-mail, pager, fax or phone for managers or trading partners, as well as integrated workflow capability to facilitate inter-enterprise business processes and automatic rules-based response to supply chain events.
    • Easy Upgradeability — The same upgrade CD to all of its Warehouse Advantage Suite(TM) customers with an average upgrade taking hours as opposed to months or years.
    • Efficient Integration with XML —Warehouse Advantage Suite automates the process of creating, modifying and exchanging XML documents among trading partners without custom coding.


  • Lawson Software (ERP, CRM, Nasdaq: LWSN) went PUBLIC. Lawson had an IPO last week on the Nasdaq. Offering price was $14 / share. It closed last week on Friday at $17.19. Ticker symbol is LWSN - Lawson is headquartered at St. Paul, MN - Minnesota is one of the top 10 states in the USA for software development.
  • Kewill (ERP, SME, MRP), announced it will migrate the customers of eMake Solutions, a shop management applications provider that went out of business last April, to its popular JobBOSS suite of shop management applications.

    Under an exclusive agreement, eMake Solutions has sanctioned the migration of its eMake and Smart Shop systems to JobBOSS. Kewill will work with Begin2Know, a consulting company run by Stephe Faust, a former principal of eMake, to convert the data from existing eMake and Smart Manager systems. About 340 customers could migrate their systems to Kewill's JobBOSS.


  • LOGISTICS.COM (TMS, B2B Hosted Solution) announce a new version of OptiBid Lane*, a procurement tool for the self-service negotiation and securing of transportation service contracts across all modes-truckload, less-than-truckload, rail, air and ocean. OptiBid Lane standardizes and centralizes communication between shippers and carriers, providing carriers with bids in a consistent format and making it easy for shippers to choose the carriers that best support their business requirements based not only on rates but also on multiple service factors.

    OptiBid Lane enables shippers to:
    • Quickly create and post electronic RFQ's
    • Download results into their TMS
    • Use archived bids as templates for subsequent bids
    • Collaborate with and manage carriers
    • Create and run web-based auctions
    • Secure competitive rates and award contracts
    • Access to hundreds of carriers registered with Logistics.com
    • Add additional carriers as needed

  • PeopleSoft (ERP, CRM, HM) announced its new 8.3 Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) applications. The new EPM applications include:
    • Business Planning and Budgeting -Included in PeopleSoft`s Financial Analytics, this new integrated solution enables companies to project, implement, monitor, and adjust their financial strategies and objectives to increase overall profitability and efficiency.
    • Customer Behavioral Modeling (CBM) -Included in PeopleSoft`s CRM Analytics, CBM uses predictive analytics such as customer profiling, data modeling, and data mining to analyze information, enabling businesses to gain a deeper understanding of customers.
    • Workforce Planning-- Included in PeopleSoft`s Workforce Analytics, this application allows companies to model skills and competencies, plan succession, and determine workforce strengths and weaknesses to maximize organisational performance.
    • Data Warehouses -PeopleSoft`s four new solution-specific warehouses for Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Financials, Human Resources Management Systems (HRMS), and Supply Chain Management can be easily deployed with PeopleSoft and other enterprise applications, accelerating the analysis and reporting of data.


  • Phoenix Systems (TMS, ERP, CRM, MRP) Introduces Transportation Management to Canadian Syspro Impact Encore Users (ERP, CRM). Phoenix Systems extends the IMPACT Encore offering to include Transportation Management (TMS). The result will reduce customer's freight costs by up to 20%, improved customer service due to complete order tracking, provide accurate freight cost recovery, eliminate shipping errors and eliminate dependency on carrier machines. To ship items from the warehouse, end users will: Scan the order number, confirm the number of pieces and affix the barcoded shipping label. TMS automatically will record the weight from electronic scale, select the carrier and service level based on required delivery, select least cost, consolidate shipments by customer, print carrier compliant barcoded labels, calculate freight and handling charges for invoicing, print daily manifests and send electronic files to carriers.

    Phoenix Systems is focusing a significant effort on the integration of 3rd party applications that can be seamlessly integrated with IMPACT software. As a result of this relationship, they offer Manufacturing, Distribution, Accounting solutions, Warehouse Management with TMS software available at the shipping dock.


  • Provia Software (WMS, TMS) - announced web-based training courses for clients and partners. Designed to fully complement Provia’s extensive ‘in person’ curriculum, the web-based courses offer many advantages to Provia customers and partners including:
    • Self-Paced Learning – The classes are designed so students can take the class at their own pace, repeating sections as needed as often as necessary
    • On-Demand Scheduling – Students can schedule training when it’s convenient for them
      Reduced Travel Costs – The class can be taken from any computer with a browser and internet access
    • Standardized Information - New employees can take the same class that employees before them took, ensuring consistency and a non-biased assessment tool for each student
    • Simplified Upgrades - Clients upgrading to a newer version of Provia’s ViaWare can have employees train on the new version to familiarize themselves with it

  • SSA Global Technologies Inc (ERP,CRM) announced an OEM agreement with Logility (NASDAQ: LGTY, WMS, TMS, SCP) to optimize the supply chain. SSA GT markets and supports the Logility Voyager Solutions(TM) suite as "BPCS Collaborative Commerce powered by Logility.
    Working in conjunction with the BPCS enterprise system, the Logility solutions provide measurable and rapid ROI through advanced planning and optimization in the areas of CPFR® (collaborative planning, forecasting, and replenishment); demand, supply, inventory, transportation and factory optimization; and advanced warehouse management.

    Available today, BPCS Collaborative Commerce provides the necessary tools that enable companies to balance, optimize, forecast and plan at a detailed level. BPCS Collaborative Commerce is integrated with BPCS Version 8 and is available now through the SSA GT global sales organization. BPCS is installed in more than 6,500 companies in over 70 countries.

Quotes to Ponder - List of Quotes to Ponder from prior issues.
  • "Purpose is what gives life a meaning."
    --C. H. Parkhurst

Scripture to Ponder - List of Quotes to Ponder from prior issues.

  • "When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice;
    When the wicked rule, the people groan.    " Proverbs 29:2 NIV

Websites to Check Out

Research - Find - Locate People - http://www.researchingtools.com

Many Business Forms & Agreements - from AllBusiness - http://www.allbusiness.com/cmt/information/generic.jsp?fname=24701


Books & Reports - NEW Online Book Catalog

Books on Shipping, Warehousing, Distribution, Operations, WMS, ERP, CRM, Supply Chain, Customer Service, Logistics, Facility Layout & Design
"What To Look For In Warehouse Management System Software"


Order From
Amazon
or IDII
Obal, Philip See reviews and more information on this book at Amazon.com


WMS Advanced Search Bundle

"ADVANCED WMS RFI Search Bundle"
Available from IDII only
Obal, Philip
 Advanced Version is available only from IDII


Valuable Future Events - List Your Event or Convention

IWLA Annual Convention & Expo - March 10 to March 13, 2002 - San Francisco, CA, USA - 847-292-1891 or visit http://www.iwla.org

2002 Material Handling Show & Conference - NA2002 - April 8 to April 11, 2002 - Cobo Hall, Detroit, MI, USA - 800-232-1537 or visit http://www.na2002.com
Supply Chain Expo - April 16 to 18, 2002 - Rosemont, IL, USA - 800-964-9665 or visit http://www.supplychainexpo.com

National Conference on Operations & Fulfillment - NCOF - April 29 to May 1, 2002 - Nashville, TN, USA, 212-790-1500 or visit http://www.ncof.com

Logistics & e-Supply Chain Forum, May 9 to 12, 2002 - New York, NY, USA - 212-651-8700 or visit http://www.logisticsforum.com

Distribution/Computer Expo - DC Expo 2002- May 21 to May 23, 2002 - Navy Pier, Chicago, IL, USA - 800-338-4112 or visit http://www.logistar2.com

19th Annual Catalog Conference, - June 10 to 13, 2002 - McCormick Center - Chicago, IL, USA - 212-790-1500 or visit http://www.catalogconference.com


About This Newsletter - ISSN 1533-435X

We educate and share news on software for warehousing, transportation, shipping, packing, slotting, loading, optimization, and enterprise wide software solutions. This free newsletter is published twice a month. Feel free to forward this newsletter to others that you know. One may quickly subscribe, view past issues, view FAQ, & our rate card by accessing www.idii.com/esn/index.htm.

© 2001 Industrial Data & Information Inc. All Rights Reserved.. Trademarks belong to respective trademark holders. Information accuracy is not guaranteed due to variety of sources.

Go To IDII's Website