Fercam SPA, Logistics and Transport solutions, supply chain solutions

• high parameterization of the system;
• without massive interventions, the system had to be usable for all sectors of activity (thus avoiding limiting the potential of the sales area);
• simple integration methods;
• the system had to allow the IT staff to easily create the interfaces needed to connect to the customer's various information systems.

The major players of the Italian and European markets participated in the selection process.

Problems

After having used each customer's warehouse integration system, the logistics operator found itself having to manage several solutions on each platform with the following problems:

• knowledge of the customer's system by a few persons
• the management of customers in linked to persons who are able to manage the customer's system
• the impossibility of using one warehouse for more than one customer
• each warehouseman assigned to picking that works for several customers must use several systems and, if the management is by radio-frequency, he has to use a different terminal for each customer.

Logistics operators have a primary need to standardize the software and hardware platform and create a simple integration with their own logistics management system for each customer managed.
FERCAM's choice of StockSystem allowed it to unify the management of various customers by standardizing procedures and, most of all, allowed to make its human resources readily interchangeable.

Methods of intervention

• Analysis to create a standard platform model.
• Layout analysis of the first warehouse.
• Type analysis of the materials to be managed.
• Flow and process analysis.
• Definition of methods for integrating with the central information system.
• Start-up of picking and shipping procedures.
• Analysis of results and optimization of the process.

• StockSystem.
• StockVoice.
• Dogana.
• 10 Vocollect Talkman T5 terminals with relative accessories.
• 99 RF HHP 9551 terminals.
• 40 HHP - IT4800DR image readers (of the 100 in the project).

Benefits obtained with StockSystem

• Increased productivity.
• Decreased goods picking, checking and stocking times.
• Reduced margin of error.
• Reduced management costs.
• Standardization of procedures on the platforms.
• Standard integration with the customers' information systems.

Personnel training and reactions to the new applications

The first implementation was relatively demanding (two months) since the study was not limited to satisfying the management problems of a single customer but an analysis and definition of the model to follow for all the platforms. This allowed FERCAM to use StockSystem for more than 70 customers with different management types and sectors of activity.
The platform personnel welcomed the possibility of having a single management for many customers.
In addition, the sales area welcomed the possibility of being able to offer logistics services without taking the computer management of the customer into too much consideration.

Future implementations

Activation of StockVoice on the Milan platform: through the use of Voice terminals (Talkman) the Voice Picking system allows communicating directly with the management system by voice. In this way, the operator can manage logistics operations while working autonomously with hands and eyes free.
In fact, during picking, operators receive instructions, confirm the correctness of their work and report errors by simply speaking and listening to StockSystem through a headset, a microphone and a light, compact terminal clipped to their belts.
Activation of the Dogana module for the management of:

• customs warehouses for non-European Community goods with suspended customs duties and for the Community goods anticipated by the current regulations of the Community Customs Code (CCC).
• tax warehouses for Italian and Community products with suspended excise taxes
• VAT warehouses for Italian and Community goods with suspended Value Added Tax.

“We selected Replica Sistemi's StockSystem because we needed to find a WMS that was highly flexible with reasonable costs. The program had to be customizable to each customer and, thus, also adaptable to any merchandise sector. This is certainly the strength of StockSystem. During the initial months, the company stayed very close and supported us at all times, in every situation. It was a close and profitable collaboration for both companies. In the future, we will surely still be relying on Replica Sistemi, with which we are implementing the Voice Picking part on two platforms,” states Marcello Corazzola, Director of FERCAM's Logistics Division.