Information Management

AI and vision technology are making robotic depalletizing and palletizing solutions more flexible, but master data on SKUs still needs attention, and palletizing needs proper buffering and sequencing of cases to optimize the pallet build.

Bulk picking productivity has risen by nearly 20% as accuracy improved to 99.99%.

Palletizing presents an interesting microcosm of digital transformation, where data about products, machine performance and manual labor must work in concert.

The system has improved Tropical Cheese’s order accuracy by up to 50%.

In step with automotive innovations, lift trucks are gradually moving toward autonomy.

Best practices like network segmentation, encryption and visibility into operations technology-level communications matter to today’s warehouse operators. While they need better uptime, they also must assure IT that sound security methods will be followed.

The 2016 Casebook features over 35 case studies that put the spotlight on successful innovation projects that are changing the face of productivity in the materials handling and warehousing fields

Comprehensive online platform to help companies improve business processes and data quality.

Cloud-based SCE solutions have been around and catching on for functions like transportation management and visibility, but the WMS market has been slow to adopt. But with more SCE vendors providing cloud options and cloud pure-play providers gaining steam, cloud-based WMS may finally be ready to break through.

Integrated platforms for supply chain execution apps are folding in distributed order management (DOM) solutions and processes, which often need data from systems for inventory management or store labor to arrive at optimal fulfillment options for customers and retailers.

Bringing the planning and execution worlds together is a classic problem, but one that can be solved with additional planning tools that sit between corporate forecasting and WMS.

Warehouse execution system suppliers are offering higher-level functionality—such as waveless order processing, performance analytics and mobile apps—transforming WES into a configurable platform for warehouse operations management.

Use of TMS and WMS are moving to a more concurrent, less fragmented environment as part of new approaches to supply chain execution.

Here’s a look at how the use of slotting solutions is evolving in the omni-channel era, and how part of the answer lies in other complementary methods such as better forecast communication and flexible, WMS-directed replenishment.

Modern’s annual Casebook continues to provide comprehensive coverage of productivity solutions for materials handling professionals in distribution, warehousing and manufacturing.