What is a WMS
It is vital to get a clear understanding of what a true WMS software is. Currently there are a number of solutions being tabled in the SYSPRO marketplace that portray to be WMS software solutions, yet they are simply data collection tools that make use of barcodes.
The difference between a WMS and a Data Collection system.
A Data Collection system fundamentally extends your standard SYSPRO functionality to the operational floor to collect data and pass it back to SYSPRO using the SYSPRO e.net business object layer. These systems have little or no logic and do not drive the operations. They are reactive systems that collect and process data to and from SYSPRO. There is a place for systems like this in small companies with limited inventory movements.
A WMS on the other hand DRIVES the operations of a business. Some key features of a WMS are as follows:
- Must control inventory at a License Plate level (LPN or TrackID level)
- Must control all reservations of inventory for Sales orders, Jobs and Replenishments
- Must deliver tasks to the staff in the warehouse (Put away; Replenishment; Picking; Packing; Checking etc)
- Must process all transactions into SYSPRO on a live basis (batch uploading of data is almost impossible to achieve in large operations that are processing tens of thousands on movements per day)
- Must interface directly with SYSPRO’s data so that SYSPRO and the WMS essentially become one system.
You will find more information on how to select a WMS in the DATASCOPE Selection Handguide.
