Why your business needs a warehouse management system

If your business deals with any large volumes or quantities of stock then you should definitely be using some sort of warehouse management system. The days of using spreadsheets or even pens and paper are long gone. Warehouses have gone digital and it has dramatically changed the way that SMEs manage and track inventory items.

Effective Warehouse Management

Professionally managing your warehouse will bring a number of advantages to your business. That’s why it’s key to get your goods in and out processes right. There’s a number of core basics that need to be focused on to achieve effective warehouse management. First of all you’ll want to establish clear inbound processes. There’s no point investing in stock that goes missing or expires due to mis-management.

One thing that SMEs often ignore is the layout of their warehouse. Your most popular items – or anything that is perishable – should never be placed towards the rear of your warehouse. You’ll also want to get your picking, packing and shipping right to meet customer demand. If you can get the right practices in place, you’ll also limit the amount of returns back into your business.

Warehouse Management System (WMS)

An advanced WMS system doesn’t have to cost the earth. These systems will help your warehouse operatives work smarter and faster. Organisations using a WMS will quickly reduce picking errors. These systems link to handheld devices and use barcodes to ensure the correct items are being picked. With everything being managed digitally from a centralised solution, SMEs can optimise stock control by reducing items that tend to go missing.

By capturing all of your warehouse data digitally you’ll be able to produce more accurate reports and analysis. Organisations can save time and resources by reducing the amount of required stock takes. Accurate forecasting will also empower SMEs to streamline their supply chain management processes and meet customer demand and maximise sales opportunities.

Warehouse Management SAP

SAP Business One is filled with features aimed at helping growing businesses to manage their warehouse. In fact, SMEs can manage the complete order-to-pay cycle. Starting with quotes, sales orders, invoices, payment and even returns, everything your warehouse needs to function effectively is controlled in SAP Business One.

Companies can put in new, best practices processes, such as requisition requests and returns management, when they deploy an SAP warehouse management system. Because master data is managed in a single, centralised database, users can easily analyse and identify trends to work smarter without having to trawl throughout various spreadsheets.

By using a powerful set of warehouse management tools that integrate with other departments and functions across an organisation, SMEs can enjoy the benefits of real-time synchronisation of data from their goods in bay. Ultimately, any organisation that uses SAP Business One to manage purchasing and inventory control achieves lower costs, less human errors and greater levels of productivity.

If you’d like to take a demo of the WMS tools in SAP Business One get in touch with one of our experts today here or by calling 01932 212 777.