Naxtor Technologies WMS helps companies increase sales, control costs and reduce overstocks - quickly and easily with a barcode-enabled solution.

Sydney, Australia - With its newly WMS released, Naxtor Technologies is empowering small businesses to effectively manage all aspects of inventory. This updated software, which is also available in complete solutions that include a mobile scanning device and barcode printer, offers the extensive features of an enterprise-level inventory control product without a hefty price tag or complex implementation.

Packed with new functionality, Naxtor WMS helps business owners know exactly how much inventory they have, where it is located, and what’s moving and what’s not. With Naxtor WMS, small businesses will experience increased sales, reduced costs associated with write-downs and write-offs, improved customer service, and increased value of their companies.

“Small businesses can be absolutely overwhelmed when trying to effectively manage inventory,” said Peter, Project Manager of Naxtor Technologies. “Without an effective inventory solution, it’s far too easy for a business owner to think inventory is in good shape. Yet in reality, inventory can’t be found, is unexpectedly out of stock, or drastically overstocked.

With this new version of Inventory Control, small businesses can dramatically streamline the entire inventory control process, from searching for items to labeling, picking and shipping them.”

The easy-to-use software is ideal for all sizes of small businesses, from individual contractors to larger operations with multiple warehouse locations and mobile trucks. For example, the solution is used in warehouses, light manufacturing and distribution centers, retailers, stock rooms, supply closets, and inventory-carrying trucks such as TV or satellite installation.

With the updated version, Naxtor WMS offers an updated and easier-to-navigate user interface, as well as new list reports, an improved database and updated labeling software. This improved usability will make it even easier to track inventory by location, serial number and other variables, perform inventory audits, assist in a cycle count process, as well as create barcode labels and inventory tags.

Naxtor WMS licensing is not restricted and it comes with unlimited mobile licenses and one server application as well as 60 management reports. Features of the Standard version include a streamlined and refreshed user interface and runs on Microsoft SQL Server Database.

In addition, users benefit from unit breakdowns during receiving, new picking functionality, the capability to designate multiple suppliers per item, and the ability to create purchase orders - even automatically once stock falls below a designated level. New receiving features enable users to quickly receive purchase orders as they come in, with the flexibility to accept partial shipments and create back orders. As a result, inventory can be matched against purchases to reduce errors.

For a complete solution, customers can choose from a wide range of packages that include hardware items such as a mobile scanning device, barcode scanner and barcode printer, in addition to Naxtor WMS. The mobile solutions include the various Windows for mobile Symbol or Intermec devices, which allows users to scan and update inventory in the field or warehouse and then synch the data with a PC. Business owners can be assured that they get a complete solution: inventory software, a scanning device and a barcode printer from one source that works together.

Keywords: WMS, mobile scanning device, labeling, picking, multiple warehouse locations, inventory audits, cycle count, label, mobile licenses, windows for mobile, SQL server, quantity on hand, backorders, symbol, Intermec

If you don’t have it or can’t find it, you can’t ship it. And nothing can drive customers away faster than not having what they want, when they want it. Traditionally, companies would prevent out-of-stock situations by ordering additional safety stock. But that increases inventory costs and can lead to a glut of unsold inventory.

Naxtor Technoogies offers a better solution with its Warehouse Management System (WMS) software. Providing real-time inventory control, WMS tracks items from receipt through storage, picking, and shipping, preventing lost inventory and out-of-stock conditions.

“With real-time inventory control, you always know what you have and where you have it,” said John product manager Easyway. “You can eliminate excessive overstock, reducing inventory levels and their related costs by 15 to 20%. “What’s more, because workers don’t have to search for items, you can reduce order pick cycle times by 50 to 100%.”

To prevent out-of-stock conditions, WMS directs automated replenishment of items when inventory drops below a predetermined level. Workers can manually restock the pick face or automated material handling systems can deliver replenishment stock to the pick face.

WMS provides real-time information on item levels, order status, and operator activity.

Cycle count processes ensure accurate inventory records, reducing or eliminating the need for physical inventories. Counts can be ordered for a specific item, by item and lot, or for all items in a specified range of locations.

Keywords: Out of stock, inventory cycle counting, wms, replenishment, inventory-record-lot-locations, picking, shipping.

With over 10 year’s experience, Naxtor Technologies continues to expand its caliber of warehouse systems. A pattern is emerging suggesting customers are requiring the full suite of warehouse systems encompassing; stock inventory management, stock inventory management as a total solution.Among numerous functions, the warehouse system caters for all stock movements into, within and out of warehouse, pick and pack operations which can also incorporate EDI functionality. The final step in this warehouse system process is dispatch where data is sent to create carrier consignment notes and/or consignment labels and data files for delivery of orders.
Using handheld mobile computers with barcode capture, full automation can be achieved with all warehouse activities and tasks communicating directly with ERP host systems. Naxtor warehouse system is capable of importing files from host system or connecting directly to extract data from host database.

The warehouse systems developed by Naxtor Technologies replace the arduous and error prone paper based methods, eliminating the paper trail and improving operations and warehouse accuracy. Wireless and manual desktop processing of information is possible depending on requirements of customers or in some cases it may be a combination of both.

A growing number of Naxtor Technologies clients are requiring warehouse systems to be capable of operating at various sites worldwide. With Naxtor Technologies warehouse management systems companies are able to use a single database and central server to access warehouses around the globe.

Keywords: Warehouse management system (WMS), stock inventory management, pick and pack, consignment labels, handheld mobile computers, barcode, ERP, paper trail, paperless, ODBC connectivity host systems, sites, server.

Inventory inaccuracy is a nightmare for any warehouse. If left unchecked, inventory inaccuracy can lead to a negative feedback cycle of declining productivity and increasing inaccuracies. A downward spiral where warehouse productivity declines and feeds even more inaccuracies in the system. Left to itself, inventory inaccuracy erodes profitability and warehouse efficiency in a big way:

a. Poor customer service when a wrong product is shipped to a customer or a wrong delivery date is promised

b. Increase in Backorders because ATP system thinks there is plenty of stock

c. Lost productivity when operators run around looking for missing products

d. High product obsolescence when the missing products are “found” but too late to be of any use

e. Direct hit to profitability when there is an inventory write off

f. High inventory levels because you need the extra safety stock to hide the inaccuracies

g. Inefficient warehouse usage when you need to stop warehouse operations to carry a physical count in order to satisfy auditing requirements

Here are some steps that you can take in Naxtor WMS to improve accuracy:

1. Use RF devices to transact on the spot. This is the easiest way to improve inventory accuracy. When transactions are recorded on the spot in real time, there is less chance of error. This means going paperless and using task management in WMS to convey pick instructions to operators.

2. Train Warehouse Personnel to follow documented procedures when exceptions occur in the warehouse. The warehouse workers should be familiar with the procedure when an exception occurs e.g. if a product is not found as suggested by the system or damaged, the operator should know how to log exception and follow the steps.

3. Find and fix root cause when exceptions occur in the warehouse. Task execution using RF is a great way to record exceptions in real time as they occur. Analyze exception data in warehouse control board to see where and why exceptions are occurring? Are more exceptions being recorded for certain items or certain employees? Why? If a shipment of wrong product was detected, where did that pick come from and was the inventory corrected for the original item? Was wrong putaway the cause for a pick exception?

4. Storage Policy of items in your warehouse also impacts accuracy. To avoid picking the wrong items, make sure that items similar in appearance are stored apart from each other. Commingling items in the same locator is also a recipe for shipping inaccuracy. You also need to make sure that locators properly marked and physically distinguishable. When slotting items in the locator make sure that the locator corresponds to the item velocity and has enough space to store the maximum quantity of item specified. If a locator stock is overflowing into warehouse aisle, its usually not a good sign. If you have negative inventory allowed flag enabled in your warehouse, you need to question really hard as to why is it needed?

5. A counting policy is a must for every warehouse. Cycle counting a great way to gradually improve inventory accuracy. While eliminating yearly physical count is a noble goal, it can only be achieved when the warehouse has reached a certain threshold of accuracy level.

6. Bar codes or RFID are great auto-ID technologies to improve accuracy. Barcodes have an error rate that is significantly lower than human data entry. Additionally DFI feature in WMS can further improve accurate data entry.

7. Checks in warehouse processes to ensure accuracy. Example of such checks could be an additional packing step to scan items prior to putaway or shipment, a weighing scale linked to a divertor to weigh and compare standard and actual weight of LPNs bound for storage or staging, etc.

8. Check Digits is another way to improve data entry accuracy. When you dispatch an operator to a suggested locator how do you make sure that the picks are coming from the suggested locator and not from any warehouse locator? Locator check digit is a great way of ensuring that operators perform picks and putaway at the same physical locator as the data entered in WMS.

By Katrina C. Arabe

How do you handle nearly 3 billion lbs. of merchandise a year with speed and accuracy? For Sears, the answer is a wireless mobile system that tracks product movement in real time.

Upgrading the communications system of your material handling operation can pay big dividends. This is what Sears Logistics Services Inc. discovered after implementing a new wireless mobile system in its seven retail replenishment centers (RRCs). The new technology’s impact was quickly evident, boosting productivity by more than 30% and paying for itself within eight months. In addition, it dramatically cut overtime, virtually wiped out system errors and forestalled more than 90% of support calls.

The new system, installed in fall 2001, delivered the kind of performance that Sears Logistics, a subsidiary of Sears Roebuck & Co., demanded. Its seven RRCs provide all the merchandise to the 870 Sears shopping mall stores across the country. Volume is very high. Last year, these RRCs supplied 2.7 billion lbs. of merchandise to stores. Each day, these facilities process more than 25,000 pallets. Furthermore, merchandise is constantly flowing in and out, staying in storage for only 24 or 48 hours on average. “The new system was a bigger benefit that we thought it was going to be,” says Bryan Howell, a hardware specialist at Sears Logistics’ biggest distribution center, located in Pennsylvania .

The MobileBuilder 2.1 system from California-based PenRight Corp. replaced another wireless mobile system, which Sears had installed in the mid-90s. That older technology, in turn, had taken the place of a manual paper-based system. While the old wireless system had improved the management of deliveries, shipments and inventories, it wasn’t delivering enough speed and accuracy. “The old system was based on a DOS system, the new system is Windows CE-based,” says Winston Yuan, an internal consultant who selected and adapted the applications to the RRCs. “The DOS system was slower, less reliable and it was very difficult to connect to the host. With the new system the network connection is much more efficient, provides more memory, more hard drive space and it’s faster.”

Besides superior network connection, Yuan chose the MobileBuilder system because it didn’t need multiple scanning devices. It runs on a Pocket PC made by New York-based Symbol Technologies. This mobile device can utilize different scanning libraries. Instead of having to use four different scanning devices like it did in the past, Sears could rely on one handheld. This mobile device scans merchandise on its way into the distribution center to confirm receipt and on its way out of the distribution center to record that it has been shipped to fill an order. In this manner, product is tracked in real time—giving valuable information to everyone involved. Retail replenishment managers, who restock stores, can quickly find out what merchandise is available at the RRC. Also, store managers can access this data to learn what products are coming into the store and in what amounts.

By providing information in real time, the system has drastically reduced error. “The old system didn’t give us real time information for available bins and locations in the warehouse,” says Howell. “With the Pocket PC we have the ability to go real time and it actually eliminates human error.” It prevents such mistakes as workers selecting the same bin location twice, an error that can disrupt the process. “Based on an 8-hour shift, the old system would run 30 to 40 errors a day,” says Howell. “An error would lock up the entire system and it would be a lot harder and a lot longer to reboot the system to get it up and running again. With the new system sometimes you won’t see an error for a couple of weeks. It’s a major difference.”

This error reduction has translated to increased productivity, greatly improving slotting applications—the process whereby warehouse workers called slotters receive pallets sent by manufacturers via truck and then store the merchandise in bins in the warehouse. “We’ve (almost) doubled the productivity of our slotters,” says Howell. “I would say that in our old system the average pallets moved per slotter would be around the 220 to 230 range. Now our range is between 300 to 400 pallets.” Even peak time volumes pose no problem for the new system. The RRCs don’t have to hire extra help anymore for the busiest seasons and have even cut down on overtime. “Before we installed the new system we saw people working overtime in order to complete a shipment,” says Yuan. “Now I can tell you that most employees are getting their shipments filled in their regular shifts.”

Even if the wireless connection between the handhelds and the server is lost, the process is not hampered. Employees can continue working because these mobile devices retain the information until the connection is restored, during which time workers can send the data to the server. Memory storage is dense—with the Pocket PCs, which are equipped with a wireless LAN radio, holding up to 64MB. In fact, this large memory makes continuous connection to the server unnecessary. By only periodically connecting to the server, these mobile devices are able to run faster and get even more mileage from their batteries.

With its MobileBuilder system bringing so much speed and reliability, what is the next step for Sears replenishment? Even greater accuracy. “For the future, my personal expectation is to have a voice interface with the device because that will create even better accuracy,” says Yuan. In a few years, employees may be commanding their mobile devices to “scan box” or “display order” with their voices.

Source: Replenishment Heaven

Peter Strozniak

Streamline All Warehouse Processes and Reduce Errors

Developed by Naxtor Technologies, the Wireless Warehouse Management Solution (WWMS) streamlines all warehouse processes - receiving, picking, inventory operations, cycle counting, and adjustments.

Capabilities

• Enables distributors to improve customer service by helping ensure they get the right products out on time, every time, while improving operating efficiencies through directed warehouse activities

Benefits

• Streamlined warehouse process
• Immediate feedback
• Improved control over warehouse tasks
• Improved customer service

A small wireless handheld device communicates with Naxtor WWMS solution, sending information about who picks what inventory activity and when, in real-time.

Because the Wireless Warehouse Management Solution is fully integrated with Naxtor WWMS, distributors can implement one technology solution for all of their needs, and since the system offers a graphic user interface (GUI), it is easier to navigate than most character-based RF offerings.

Accurate Inventory

Wireless functionality enables on-the-fly inventory adjustments when discrepancies are found, and a fully integrated audit trail tracks all changes. Inventory movements within the warehouse are also immediately confirmed within the system.

WWMS also offers self-directed and system-directed methods for inventory management. The system-directed method automatically suggests up to six bins, giving users the option of choosing an alternative bin location.

WWMS includes a ranking system similar to ABC classes, but based on the number of hits a bin receives. Primary bin, bin ranking, along with weight and volume of bins and items can be used to calculate optimum placement in your warehouse. When a user locks a damaged bin location or indicates a full bin, the warehouse manager will receive an alert.

Receiving

With Naxtor WWMS, one or more users may receive against the same purchase order or warehouse transfer. The solution sums up the receipt line quantities as the user processes the transaction. If a distributor has multiple package sizes for an item or runs a random warehouse where more than one item or lot is in the same bin location, then a system of license plating or tagging is an available option, with the ability to create lot numbers and traceable tags on the fly.

During the receiving process, users may identify serial, lot, and lot attributes. If required, tags for individual pallets, cases, or boxes can be applied with recursive identification for several boxes on a pallet. Directed put away is part of the receipt process.

Picking Features and Benefits

Naxtor WWMS allows for the picking of a single order, multiple orders for different customers, and transfer orders in a single pass through the warehouse. The system directs the picker via the wireless handheld device to the appropriate bin locations, and ensures the correct bin is scanned, the correct item is scanned, and lot/serial is correct. Users have the ability to pick by zone or to pick the entire pick ticket, which enables multiple pickers to simultaneously pick the same ticket or by a pick-and-pass method.

Enhanced bin functionality allows picking sequences to be associated to bin locations. The picker has a “What’s Left” function that indicates the lines of the order left to pick. The user also has the ability to add multiple pick tickets to a “Group Ticket” and then pick either by zone or for the entire ticket.

You Can Count On It

Naxtor WWMS works with either a wireless device, or a batch-oriented PDA initiated from a PC, for cycle counting and physical inventory. The count is created and the user uploads the count to the PDA or enters the count number on the wireless device. Physical count selection allows you to count all bins for a single item or single bin location. The user then enters the count number and the system prompts the user with the bin and item to scan. By having the user verify the item and bin, it ensures the correct items/bins are being counted. The final count quantity is entered and the count updated. Lots and Serials can be adjusted on the device too. The PC user approves the count once any discrepancies have been investigated.

Inventory Operations

Item-lot quantities or individual tags can also be consolidated onto other tags or into other bins if needed. Similarly, item-lot quantities in large pack sizes can be broken down to smaller quantities and identified with individual tags before being dispersed within the warehouse, and all inventory movements can be immediately verified.

For more information on Naxtor Wireless warehouse Management System(WWMS) enterprise software solutions, please visit our website.

The NAXTOR-WMS Warehouse and Distribution Management System - an Overview

Whether your warehouse is a thousand square feet or a million square feet, the fundamental challenges are the same: how do you reduce inventory, fill orders fast (and ship them faster), improve accuracy, prioritize the movement of your most profitable goods, maximize worker productivity, minimize wasted space and at all costs keep from having to tell your customers that you don’t have what they need? The answer to all of these challenges is the same: Naxtor’s Warehouse Manager. An extraordinarily powerful and flexible solution, Our Warehouse Manager offers a comprehensive menu of capabilities, and practically infinite flexibility in their application making it an ideal product for virtually every warehousing and logistical operation.

Overall System Diagram

Goods Received

Order Processing/Goods Out

Locations
A fundamental concept in The Warehouse Management System is the Location - the place items are stored. As the Naxtor WMS is a generic system, it must provide flexibility to cope with any type of warehouse and any type of stock. In order to provide such flexibility, the following conceptual areas within the warehouse are used:

• Zones
• Faces
• Bays
• Levels

Example Warehouse - top view

A zone is the largest area within a warehouse. In some warehouses, especially small warehouses, there may be only one zone whereas in other, possibly larger warehouses there may be several zones. You can use zones to separate different departments: you may like to have different zones for departments T01 and T02, for instance. You can also use zones to represent different physical locations within your warehouse: you may have a zone for downstairs and a zone for upstairs. When The Warehouse Management System is installed at your site, a survey will have already been carried out to determine the best system for your needs.

A face represents a picking face: the aisle you walk down when picking goods from a particular bay. Faces generally run parallel to each other. In order to arrive at a particular bay, you must therefore specify a zone, a face and a bay number.

A bay is a vertical multi-level collection of locations. One level within a bay represents the smallest area within a warehouse: a single unique location. A location can store any type of item and could be a pallet, a clothes rail, a bin or even simply floor space. Therefore, to identify a single unique location within your entire warehouse, you must specify the zone, the face, the bay and the level.

This system ensures that The Warehouse Management System is able to work with practically any warehouse configuration. Under some circumstances, however, Naxtor WMS System may have been tailored further to accommodate an unusual situation.

Technical Features Includes

• Wireless hand held devices support
• Cycle Counting
• Inventory Moves & Transfers
• Multiple Units of Measure
• Paperless Picking & Receiving
• Physical Inventory
• Supports Plug-Ins through WiA
• Staging
• Portable data collection terminal Bar Code Printing
• Terminal Messaging
• RF (WiFi) portable data collection terminal Application
• Cross Docking
• Cubing(Space Management)
• Directed Pick & Put away