The seven advantages of automating stock management

In logistics, robotics and new technologies help improve supply chain and warehousing processes.

Stock management has benefited greatly from advances in these fields.

Management tools include ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), WMS (Warehouse Management System), and WCS (Warehouse Control System).

These tools allow you to accurately track the different steps in the supply chain - including order picking, a key factor in customer satisfaction.

From supply to delivery to buffer stock, every aspect of the supply chain can be closely controlled by digital stock management tools.

Discover the advantages of computerized warehouse management with SCALLOG.

1 - Time savings 

Smart software gives all users improved visibility of stock management.

Listings of products in stock are optimized as a result.

Inventory is easier and quicker to perform.

The resulting time savings allow you to move to the next steps (order picking, packaging, delivery, returns management etc.) faster. 

Which improves the competitiveness of your organization as a whole.  

2 - Fewer errors

When it comes to doing sums, automated stock management software is more reliable and efficient than an operator working on an Excel spreadsheet.

This reduces the risk of error, making it easier to avoid stock shortages or excessive restocking.

Which makes stock management more accurate. 

3 - A predictive solution to avoid unsold stock

Unsold stock is an investment which yields no return  (or yields it too slowly). It is costly in terms of storage, and takes up space that could be dedicated to high-turnover products that are easier to sell.

© Checking stock levels using WMS software

An ERP or WMS  tool can be associated with a WCS such as the Scallog Software system.

In such a configuration, future orders and the respective stock requirements can be predicted on the basis of the following parameters:

• stock moved
• time spent in storage by each SKU (stock keeping unit)
• amount of recent orders

4 - Improved financial management

With better visibility of inventory levels, you can:

• plan ins and outs more easily 
• anticipate cash requirements and cash flows related to the distribution centre.

As cash flow constraints are better defined, negotiations with your suppliers will be more successful. 

5 - Information in real time

A key benefit of digital stock management systems is their ability to deliver all the information needed to logistics decision-makers in real time.

Which means problems can be immediately identified and resolved.

© The Scallog solution

Determining the stock turnover ratio for a finished product is faster. 

In terms of sales management, this helps establish an effective sales strategy.

The same applies to the determination of the production cost of an article.

Also, calculations of realized margins are more reliable once optimized by the software.

6 - Ensuring customer satisfaction

The use of stock management software streamlines order, delivery and return processes in a context of rapid growth.

This means shorter times between steps, improving the ability to meet demand and enhancing the customer purchasing experience.

7 - Sustainable development

With powerful software, a company can increase its resilience and competitiveness. 

These software packages drive the improvements mentioned above and enable your company to re-organize its processes.

Stock management is optimized, more cost-effective in the short term, and better able to cope with unforeseen events: the e-commerce boom, Covid-19, omnichannel etc.

© New technologies like the Internet of Things are arriving in distribution centres

Improving the quality of your services translates into customer satisfaction, which in turn contributes to the sustainability of your business.

And for companies with  multiple warehouses, stock management software can synchronize data across sites. 

For the warehouse, any time saved helps reduce lead time  (the time  elapsing between the placing of the order and the actual delivery). 

The objective? To deliver in the shortest possible time while accurately fulfilling the order.

That’s why new technology is the future of the automated warehouse. 

The combination of ERP/WMS and WCS software helps optimize your distribution centre’s operations and the various missions it has to accomplish.

And then there’s the Internet of Things (IoT), which will gradually make its mark in the sector.

In logistics, IoT is all about interconnecting Internet and Things so that increasingly precise operations can be performed with safety and speed. 

MIT researchers claim that:

human-robot collaboration is 85 percent more productive than human or robot work alone.

Scallog offers a complete solution that includes:

• a WCS that interfaces with your own management software,
• and mobile robots which work in support of your logistics operators.

For logistics professionals, such developments greatly facilitate decision making.

With Scallog, you can keep ahead of the times, gain a significant advantage over the competition, and better foresee the challenges of the coming years.

Contact us for more information. Our advisors will be delighted to answer your questions.