What is a WMS?

What is a WMS ? A WMS or Warehouse Management Software is a tool

that is used to control, coordinate and optimize the movements, processes
and operations of a warehouse.

Although the analysis of flows and the determination of the type of location
that will be applied in the warehouse will determine the specific adjustment
and parameterization of your management software, these are the main
basic functions that any WMS must perform:

 Ticket management
 Load unit location management
 Stock control management
 Output control management

Next, we will do a more in-depth review of all these operations that should
be covered by the WMS.
Example of warehouse management software architecture.

Input functions
Within this group, three operations that can be managed through the WMS
stand out, such as reception, logistics data capture and labeling of
containers and merchandise .

Receptions

In some cases, the products are received without palletizing and these are
consolidated in different containers, while their characteristics and logistical
attributes are recorded to later be located within the warehouse.

Another way to receive the merchandise is through containers in which the

merchandise arrives palletized to the warehouse, so its consolidation is not
required and it is only necessary to validate the logistical attributes and the
quantities of the merchandise received to, later, proceed to your location.

The third type of basic reception that can occur in a warehouse is that of
returned items. Although it is similar to any of the previous receptions
mentioned, it presents particular characteristics such as the application of
statuses and merchandise blocks in the process of entering the facility.
These statuses and locks can indicate, for example, the need to go through
quality control, pending review, etc. Subsequently, the location within the
warehouse will have to be carried out in specific or determined areas for this
type of merchandise.

Logistics data capture

These data include different information such as the batch to which the load
belongs, its expiration date, its weight, its temperature, the serial number,
etc. The capture of this data at the time of carrying out the reception process
provides traceability to the stock.
Logistical attributes, such as batch identification or serial number, allow us to
know later exactly which merchandise has been served to each specific
customer.

Labeling of containers and merchandise

The third function in the entries complements the previous one. A WMS
must be able to generate barcode labels for all containers and goods that
are stored. Thanks to this, all the processes and operations carried out
within the warehouse will be validated accurately by reading these codes,
which eliminates possible errors and confusion that may arise in the
handling of the merchandise.

Barcode reading speeds up identification processes

Each and every item received can also be labeled using barcodes so that,
later, the output processes are carried out with greater agility and efficiency.

The documentation of receipts also allows obtaining reports that reflect the
differences between the planned merchandise and that which has actually
been received, as well as other issues, such as compliance with reception
time slots.

The role of the WMS does not end in these activities, since through an
interface it is responsible for transmitting the closing of reception to the
company's ERP , which specifies exactly how many units of the different
references have entered the warehouse, so that the ERP can carry out
administrative procedures with suppliers.

Location Features
Within this type of operations, three managements stand out: location
management through rules and strategies, cross-docking , and replacement
and consolidation management.
Location management through rules and strategies

It is in charge of choosing the ideal location in the warehouse for a specific

merchandise. To do this, the software takes into account parameters such
as the rotation of items (A, B or C) , the types of containers used for the
consolidation of the merchandise, the families or types of products that are
handled, the dangerousness or incompatibility of some. products or others
so that they are not together or close, the presentation of the items, their
volume, etc.

'Cross-docking'

For its part, cross-docking saves movements with the load. If merchandise
arrives at the warehouse from which a product must be extracted that will be
part of an order that is active and in which there is a lack of stock, it is stored
in the order preparation area, directly from the reception area . Once the
necessary merchandise has been prepared for departure, the remaining
merchandise is located within the warehouse.

Replenishment and consolidation management

It also aims to save movement of merchandise within the facility. It is

applied, as in cross-docking, before proceeding to the final location of the
load. This function is carried out in centers where picking positions have
been established; If there is little product left in these, it must be replaced
with the merchandise that has just arrived, so that there is sufficient stock to
place the orders. Subsequently, the cargo left over from this operation is
located.

Stock control functions

In the management of stored merchandise, the WMS must be able to
provide complete and useful information about the stock. To do this, several
functions are used.
  The most intuitive is the visualization of the warehouse map ,
through which you access, on a screen, a graphic representation of
the facility in which each of the locations and their composition are
detailed, both with regard to the container, as to the merchandise
itself.
 Location management is another tool that a WMS must have.
With it you can obtain and edit information about the positions such
as the type of location, the locks applied, its dimensions, its
characteristics, the storage areas to which it belongs, etc.
 In the same way, it must be possible to manage stock statuses in
order to consult and modify data related to quarantines, breakages,
losses, blockages, reserves, etc.
 The WMS can also carry out, by itself, operations that help in stock
management. One of them is the calculation of article rotation .
Depending on the movements carried out during a period of time
indicated, the system can determine and report what the ideal
rotation of an item should be and compare it with the one
associated with it in the item master. With this tool you can
recalculate the ABC rotation and change the one assigned to the
item if it is considered more efficient or convenient.
 There is one last indispensable function related to stock, such as
counting and inventory . With these programmable tasks, you can
carry out everything from a global inventory of the entire warehouse
to a specific inventory of an item, a location or a specific area. In
the event that stock differences are found, they are automatically
reported to the ERP.

Output functions
In addition to managing the entry and location of merchandise, the
management system must also take care of controlling product exits.

 The main functions carried out in this phase of storage begin with
the management of the preparation of the cargo that has to
leave the facility. This activity covers order grouping and order
assignments, among other issues. This allows control over how
orders are executed and who is in charge of it: the assignment of
shipping docks, the operators who carry out the preparation, the
 way the orders are grouped and the time slot in which it is
produced, etc
 Within preparation, the WMS can manage at a very detailed level
the operations that have to be carried out, such as picking
processes . The system will be in charge of defining and guiding
the routes of the personnel assigned to this task, as well as the
presentation of the articles. One of the most important advantages
derived from picking management by the WMS is that the system is
capable of optimizing the process so that it is executed in the
shortest possible time and with the fewest number of movements
while at the same time The parameters specified for the order that
have been sent by the ERP are respected.
 Another part of the preparation of the merchandise is related to
shipping labeling , through which order packages are identified,
and through the same entry labeling procedures.
 Likewise, at the exit, the documentation of the shipments is
carried out, which facilitates the generation of documents such as
the packing list (list of the items that make up the order), the
documentation for the carrier and the reports that reflect the
discrepancies that have found.
 After these operations, the WMS manages the process of loading
the shipments into the vehicles . Thanks to this function, the
quality of the shipment is controlled, in such a way that errors are
avoided, such as, for example, the dispatch of a material to a client
who has not requested it.
 Finally, the WMS can manage up to the last phase of outbound
operations, such as communication to the ERP of the dispatch
closure , which is carried out through an interface between the two
systems. With this function, the company's resource manager is
informed of how many units and what references the shipment
consisted of, as well as what packages have been dispatched in
each of the output orders that have been executed. With this data,
the ERP can manage administrative processes with clients.

Functions in complex warehouses

Sometimes, the facilities are made up, in turn, of areas or warehouses that
interrelate with each other. We can find, for example, cases in which an area
with selective shelving, an automated silo with stacker cranes and an
automated horizontal carousel must be managed at the same time. The
combinations can be very varied and can give rise to really complex centers,
so the same WMS must be able to manage in a global and integrated
manner all these areas of different typologies and different operations in
their entry, location and exit processes.

 One of the processes that a WMS must manage is the preparation

of orders that use pick to light and put to light solutions . This
type of installation makes order preparation more fluid and agile.

In sectors such as pharmaceuticals, pick to light solutions are very useful

 Picking can also be streamlined through other technology, such as

voice picking . With this system, which must be managed by the
 WMS, the operator does not have to use his hands to manipulate
the terminal or other controls, but rather receives orders with a
voice system and can give signals to the system by also speaking.
This enables greater maneuverability for those goods that have to
be handled with two hands and is a particularly suitable solution for
frozen warehouses since it facilitates communication without having
to use the terminals with gloves and speeds up the work (whose
times are controlled) inside the chambers.

 The management software should also be able to manage the

stackability of merchandise during order picking. This allows the
organization of the packages to be optimized following certain
parameters, that is, it is controlled, for example, that the least
consistent merchandise is prepared on the same pallet or container
after the most consistent one.

Other functions
Depending on the type of warehouse and company, there are three other
functions that may be essential to integrate the facilities into the rest of the
company or logistics center:

1. The first is the management of merchandise flows (entries and

exits) to the production lines . Thanks to this feature, an optimal
flow is obtained (both in outputs and inputs) to the production or
manufacturing lines, which speeds up internal processes.
2. The second function has to do with the administration of several
warehouses with the same WMS, which is called multi-warehouse
management . With this feature, a single company can manage all
its warehouses in a single and global manner, thus optimizing
resources (as well as computer systems) and facilitating the
processes of merchandise transfers between facilities.
3. Thirdly, at a higher level than the previous one is multi-
organization management , whereby, as its name indicates,
different organizations can be managed by the same WMS.
A WMS can manage several warehouses in an integrated and global manner.

Finally, it is necessary to comment that in some projects a specific

development adapted to the client according to their needs is required.
Certain operations carried out by some companies may not be included, a
priori, in the software, so specific development is necessary based on an
already created WMS. In this sense, the management system has to be
versatile and open enough so that these personalized features can be
programmed.