ALMI implemented a warehouse management system

April 07, 2015. The NORBIT company announced project completion in network of grocery stores ALMI based on SAP Extended Warehouse Management (EWM). Using NORBIT the ALMI network expanded functionality of logistic and warehouse IT systems and began to manage product flows and warehouse activity more effectively.

Goals and Objectives

Requirements of the retail companies for effective management of product flows and warehouse activity become one of crucial elements of success of large retailers and actively developing organizations today. In process of opening of new shops and in connection with acceleration of a product flow, ALMI more powerful tools of management of warehouses which could be integrated completely with a corporate ERP system and means of analytics were required. The ALMI retail network made the decision to expand functionality of logistic and warehouse IT systems, having charged the solution of this task of NORBIT company.

Choosing a Solution

For project launch in ALMI the solution which provided automation of storage at basic level was already used, but did not solve such important problems as management of the transport platform and integrated management of warehouse resources.

Having carried out the full-scale analysis of warehouse platforms and also the IT infrastructure servicing them, specialists of NORBIT suggested the customer to pass to more functional warehouse management system and logistics of SAP Extended Warehouse Management (EWM). This product actually expands possibilities of already implemented system, at the same time without requiring change of architecture of IT and interaction of systems.

The line of solutions for supply chain management (SCM Supply Chain Management) from SAP consisting of such independent applications as EWM, TM (Transportation Management) and EM (Event Management), having the most powerful functional arsenal, allows to implement standard settings and expansions any set of requirements to logic of creation of processes in warehouses and on the transport networks. The integrated through a core SAP ERP, these applications do supply management transparent, and processes synchronized. Systems have very convenient instruments of monitoring and the built-in reporting. The analytical module SAP BW / SAP BI, allowing to receive analytics in any imaginable foreshortenings can be in addition connected. The open code of SAP allows to do additional implementations, to finish and create new logic and interfaces. Besides, any SAP application is delivered with the built-in bus PI and the adapter of exchange of XIF allowing to be integrated with any external software by means of exchange of packets in the IDoc formats or HTML: external ERP, means of mechanization of a warehouse and weight equipment, mobile applications, management systems for transportation, different hostings, etc.

Project Progress

The warehouse of ALMI in the Moscow region Chekhov) on which the first system implementation was supposed began to work in the summer of 2012. Originally processes were supported by the SAP WM system (Warehouse Management) – the built-in standard application which is introduced into the module SAP ERP - Logistics. The functionality of this solution is limited and did not allow to implement standard settings all required processes. The integrator made significant completions of functionality to ensure functioning of a warehouse for a transient period before implementation of EWM. The project on implementation of EWM began in September, 2012, the start of productive transactions was planned for May, 2013. The project team of the general contractor strengthened by warehouse logistics specialists of TLS company, also the partner of SAP successfully coped with an assigned task, having provided start of a system in the appointed terms. Within the contract it was rendered as well support of work after productive start within a month during which profound training of end users was provided a number of additional tunings and completions of functionality, need for which was designated after start, is made. It should be noted that were provided with standard tools of SAP as migration of a remaining balance from the SAP WM system in the SAP EWM system, and mass loading of the basic data relevant for the SAP EWM system: packaging specifications, warehouse topology. On the configured integration model data on goods and partners were transferred to a warehouse system. Also integration settings provided data exchange between systems regarding transfer of the receipt and issue documents created in ERP at the level of headings and positions: statuses, quantities, dates. Any action in EWM relevant for display on a foreshortening of the plants and the warehouses ERP, automatically was online transferred to a managing system by means of the configured qRFC channel: receipt and material issue, logical postings of transfer (change of a type of a stock – suitable, defects, delay and so forth). All actions in a warehouse connected with acceptance, internal transfers and goods issue were executed by means of RF terminals.

In 5 months on a warehouse complex of ALMI in the city of Chekhov specialists of NORBIT implemented the new warehouse management system SAP EWM. After a month of testing a system was put in commercial operation during which consultants of NORBIT continued to give user support of EWM.

Integration of the new environment of management of a warehouse with a single corporate system of the customer provided instant transfer of basic data on deliveries and calculations, existence of goods in a warehouse and also other parameters for adoption of operational solutions, representatives of the company integrator reported TAdviser.

Synchronous work of information systems and operational data exchange bear important advantages to ALMI. At shipment of goods or product receipt accountant officers and department of planning receive already ready documents processed taking into account origin and purpose of products. Accounting of transactions is instantly displayed in all connected system modules of SAP ERP.

In the spring of 2014 the productive start of the distribution center of ALMI in the city of Smolevichi, the Minsk region, Belarus took place. This implementation was, in fact, replication of the tunings performed for the Russian segment of the company. The warehouse in RB only the little differed from Moscow in topology and processes therefore the project took only three months taking into account one month of support after start.

Result

According to the results of the project the ALMI retail network received powerful IT tools for management of warehouses and service of the growing retail network in Russia and Republic of Belarus. The opportunities put in a system allow to change flexibly an organization structure of a warehouse on demand and also to optimize the entering and proceeding goods flows. At once upon completion of the project performance improvement of work of warehouse personnel and also reduction of intra warehouse movements and increase in location accuracy of goods was mentioned.

If earlier employees of warehouses of ALMI used digital data collection terminals in WMS on basic processes (acceptance, shipment, requests), then, with implementation of more functional solution - RF - the EWM terminal, began to obtain relevant information on location of goods and detailed instructions on assembly of departures, significantly reducing order processing time. The department of planning got fuller access to up-to-date information about the current stock level in warehouses. Thus, the existing warehouse spaces allow the company to service a bigger product flow and to continue opening of new shops without loss of efficiency and expansion of the main warehouse in the city of Chekhov. Besides, using RF – the terminal there was an opportunity to carry out inventory to the companies.

Acceptance

Every portion of the goods of the same name is accepted per unit of processing (EO) which then is subject to placement on storage or to moving to work center for postprocessing (deconsolidation, cross docking). Transfer to ERP of the fact Intake of Material (IM) on a warehouse in integration model can be configured by different methods. For example, to transfer PM on each EO right after acceptance it in EWM. Such option did not suit the Customer as on business process by the responsible for data transmission not the storekeeper with the RF terminal is, and the operator of the workstation who should validate somehow in the system of the acceptance executed by the storekeeper on all delivery, "permit" data transmission in ERP and initiate creation of problems of placement for the accepted EO. The analysis of this requirement pushed to use of other standard opportunity included in integration model: transfer data on PM after completion of warehousing of all positions of delivery in full (in technical terms completion of warehousing is a loss in commodity quanta of the link to number of the entering delivery). The virtual type of the warehouse "GR" which was marked with the "completion of warehousing" indicator was created. After acceptance check accomplishment the operator pressed a certain button, and all EO of this delivery automatically were placed in type of the warehouse "GR" and also at the same moment problems of placement from "GR" in the cells determined by the strategy of search were automatically created.

Processing of weight goods

Weight goods are understood as those goods which account needs to be kept in two parallel units of measure: Boxes and Kilograms. Almost all types of fruit delivered in a standard container, some types of vegetables, cheeses concern them. At the same time the Customer demanded that weighing was carried out only at an acceptance stage by the whole EO, and at a holiday a system had to calculate the weight of the shipped goods at the rate of the average weight of a box or other packaging on specific EO. Thus KG, and in EWM – YaShchK would be the fundamental accounting unit of ERP that essentially would simplify a complete set of orders in a warehouse, warehouse tasks would be created in YaShchK: a system itself would recalculate the requirement expressed in kilograms in quantity of boxes. The present possibility is standard, however the functionality of SAP EWM not completely covered the made demands. The matter is that the same goods (SKU) could come to a warehouse from different suppliers in different calibers of a container, for example, Golden Apples in boxes on 25 or 15 kg. At such strong dispersion to use the standard it was not represented possible as a system "was able" to use only one recalculating unit of measure. With respect thereto completion of a program code regarding working off of creation of problems of selection was executed. The goods were accepted always in a container of real caliber (at the same time a system automatically selected it depending on the entered weight and quantity of boxes, - also completion), and during creation of problems of selection a system analyzed in what container the releasing commodity quantum is packed, substituted relevant unit of measure in a task and rounded their quantity to the next whole value.

For processing of weight goods integration into the weight equipment was also configured. Data from scales got through COM port and were processed by means of an integration bus and the built-in XI adapter. As a result weight for accepted in the EO system automatically appeared on the RF terminal screen, and this value along with the entered quantity of boxes registered in commodity quantum.

Cross docking

A number of suppliers of ALMI network supports work with a flow of EDI on which electronic information exchange regarding requirements is performed. Using this fact, in SAP ERP the functionality of the order according to the summary sheet was configured. Its essence is that requirements of shops for goods of the automatically determined suppliers integrate in the uniform document (one on one supplier). Such order on EDI gets to the supplier, and that ships one delivery including requirements of all shops. Delivery is accepted on a warehouse and is distributed in a floor zone in front of gate by orders of shops. Such approach essentially saves warehouse and transport resources. For its implementation the standard functionality of EWM Flow Through Product Driven integrated with processes of ERP on distribution of the summary order was configured. The summary sheet is transferred to EWM as the entering delivery. After acceptance of delivery to EWM data are transferred to ERP in which they are processed. According to the results of working off the analysis system of the accepted quantities, automatically creates outgoing deliveries from a warehouse (initial orders of shops), at the same time available quantity if it is not enough for all total demand, it can be distributed on shops by different rules. Outgoing deliveries are automatically transferred to EWM where there is a complete set and material issue. At the same time in the specified scheme the complete set comes "from goods" when the picker specifies a product code which it is going to distribute. A system with the configured sequence suggests it to confirm problems of selection on this or that shop, and it, moving a pallet with these goods along a certain route, decomposes goods on EO of completing "tied" to this or that shop.

Also other process, Flow Through Recipient Driven is possible – in this case the complete set of orders occurs "from the receiver": the picker moves from EO of completing tied to this or that shop along accepted from the supplier of EO with goods and gathers on it the necessary goods corresponding to this order.

It is necessary to understand that the choice of the scheme of distribution "on goods" or "from the supplier" depends on a ratio between quantity of the distributed goods items and the number of receivers and also on the delivery schedule by summary orders for a warehouse.

Two-step completing using the wave tool

As it was already told, one of burning issues of a warehouse of network retail is quantity of cells (if the narrow-passage technology which can significantly increase an array of cells of selection is only not used, but many times will reduce the speed of their processing). If it is possible to apply topology with shelf racks, mezzanines, etc. to the goods going small batches to several packagings or even pieces, then for highly wrapped positions leaving in bulk it is necessary to use standard pallet cells. At the same time the quantity of such cells in a warehouse retail are always significantly less than quantity of goods items. This problem and ALMI did not avoid. A part of the range managed to be selected in group of low wrapped goods intended for shops of a small format and to apply to them shelf warehousing (about 1500 SKU): special racks with small cells were mounted, one cell of selection is appropriated to each goods in a system. But the rest of the range which is subject to shipment to all other shops and hypermarkets was wrapped much more actively and required other campaign. Successfully the standard functionality of EWM "Two-Step Picking" (two-step completing) helped to solve this problem.

Its essence is that to goods of a cell of selection are not appointed. When a system sees in a delivery position goods with certain setup attributes, it places such position in the document Wave. For waves it is possible to configure different rules of their formation, setup of automatic start of waves is possible. Also for waves the type "two step" can be selected. At this type the complete set occurs in two stages. On the first step there is a consolidated selection on all positions of a wave: on each goods a system creates total requirement in all orders and creates one problem of selection (or more if it in one store cell of goods is not enough) precisely on all quantity of these goods in a wave. The mono-pallets prepared thus with goods get to work center, the operator starts the second step of a wave, and problems of selection in initial orders by the principle of Product Driven are created (see above). This approach allows not to create in the system of a cell of selection for all goods, and to move down from racks only those goods and in that quantity which are necessary for assembly in the considered pool of orders.

Planned and dynamic replenishment of cells of selection

These are two more schemes of selection. Planned replenishment is relevant for the fixed selection cells when they are appointed to certain goods and can be filled up only by them. In this case for cells the minimum and a maximum is appointed. When overcoming by a minimum stock the problem of replenishment of a cell is created automatically, suggesting to add a cell to a maximum. At the same time in strategy it can be configured to what units of measure it is necessary to round the filled-up quantity. On the example of ALMI: a part of the fixed cells was replenished with the whole packagings, other part – the whole pallets. It is necessary to understand, of course, that values of a minimum and a maximum and setup of rounding should correspond each other and not contradict sensible logic.

Other scheme of replenishment – dynamic. It is implemented on the basis of functionality of EWM "Layout Oriented Storage Control" (management of warehousing on the basis of topology). An essence of this approach in the following. Two types of a warehouse (the storage area, upper tiers of racks, and a selection zone on a floor) integrate in one group, and search of goods happens on group at once, i.e. in both types of warehouses. At the same time if the stock in necessary quantity is already in the "lower" type of a warehouse, then the direct problem of selection is created. If is not present – two connected tasks are created: the first – on the whole EO from the storage area in a selection zone – active, the second – a problem of selection from this EO in the order – expecting. As soon as the first task is carried out by the operator, the second automatically becomes active.

This approach allows to save also cells, goods should not appoint them: on the first step a system will find any free and will suggest to lower only those goods which are necessary now. But this scheme has also the shortcoming: "on a floor" after completion of selection you will find a remaining balance from whole a pallet. A part from these goods can be used in the following set, but there will always be goods which in the following assembly are not necessary and will occupy cells therefore you should release them. Fixed function of "Put back" is for this purpose provided, but for this purpose it is necessary to involve a resource of the operator of the workstation in the standard, besides too someone needs to carry out return tasks. Comparing this scheme to the step completing described higher than two, we can see that in the first case we spend resources for "counting" of necessary goods quantity above, but we bring all goods strictly on the need for orders. In other case we do not spend time for "counting" of goods on the first step, but are forced to return a remaining balance upward.