The recent uncertainty in the global economy has not deterred executives from preparing for their next move in order to leverage their Warehouse Management System (WMS) investment to drive improvement, according to a study from Aberdeen. The Best-in-Class companies are setting their sites on being prepared for the next upturn.
An analysis of over 200 respondents found that Best-in-Class companies are more than twice as likely as Laggard companies to be utilizing a commercial WMS to drive warehouse operations. The Best-in-Class have set the bar very high for the Average and Laggards when it comes to performance. With 98% of their order lines being filled complete, 98.2% of all orders being picked accurately and a 3% year-over-year reduction in labor costs, the rest of the respondents have a gap to make up in order to remain competitive. In particular, Average and Laggard companies have seen a year-over-year increase (2% and 4% respectively) in labor costs compared to Best-in-Class.
In the latest report, "Distribution Center Strategies for Today's Economy: Managing Growth Without Adding Labor or Space," Aberdeen points out that having visibility to real-time operations is a critical component to maintaining velocity and efficiency in the warehouse. Today's Best-in-Class not only leverage commercial WMS solutions to drive processes, but are twice as likely than Laggard companies to utilize daily or weekly performance measures and three times as likely to use event management in order to create better workforce productivity, driving down labor costs.
"Today's economic uncertainties have baffled executives across the globe, especially when it comes to managing the warehouse," said Brad Wyland, Sr. Research Analyst, Aberdeen. "Despite the uncertainty, the Best-in-Class continue to invest dollars and time in order to streamline operations and sustain profitability; knowing that the rebound will happen quickly and being prepared and agile will be the difference to getting ahead of the competition."
To view the report, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=5376.
