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A Closer Look Smart Warehousing TECSYS helps dealers turn their warehouse into a competitive weapon. By Joanne Costin Visual Logistics delivers visual cues and images to workers directly on their RF unit or handheld computers. Parts go in. Parts go out. It���s so routine that Improve Order Accuracy and Reduce Labor perhaps you���ve overlooked the opportunity that exists in In a traditional dealer warehouse, orders are usually filled the box you call your warehouse. When customers are one at a time. In a technologically advanced warehouse, waiting for parts, time is critical. But how do you ensure multiple orders are filled at one time, and items are customers have what they need without driving up inven- sorted into totes as they are picked up. The technology tory and personnel costs? knows where everything is, and keeps an adequate supply TECSYS provides the answer with a warehouse available. ���The TECSYS system is the brains for everything management solution that raises the bar on service while that goes on in a facility,��� explained Colosino. In addition reducing costs. It���s your same warehouse, only smarter to controlling where the people will go, it also controls and more efficient. the equipment, such as conveyors, carousels and hand ���For construction equipment dealers, the warehouse is held devices used by parts personnel to find parts and a pretty strategic box,��� said Robert Colosino, vice presitrack the movement of parts through the system. dent of business development for TECSYS. ���If you get the The system is smart. Programmed into the database are wrong part, you lose customers. If it takes too long to get the sizes and dimensions of every item in the warehouse. the part, you lose customers. If it costs you too much to ���This ensures you will never have a cart that is too small or get the part, you may go out of business.��� too big,��� said Colosino. Several important features of the The nearly 30-year-old company provides warehousing system improve order accuracy over traditional warehousing. solutions for many industries, but has been focused on For example, TECSYS uses its patent pending Visual construction equipment dealers for the past 10 years. Logistics to process parts picking faster and more accu���We look for the industries where the functioning of rately than with text-based technology. Visual instructions warehousing is a strategic advantage to your organizaon tablets or RF devices eliminate the need to read and tion,��� said Colosino. There is no doubt construction interpret text, thus reducing search time. Colosino says equipment distribution fits that criteria. When expensive visual logistics helps operators quickly determine what machinery goes down, dealer response time is critical. For an ���each��� is. For example, is an ���each��� five boxes of 50 many customers, dealer support is the most important screws or five screws? consideration when purchasing. ���Visual cues help ensure that parts personnel get it TECSYS has earned the business of 16 Caterpillar right every time,��� said Colosino. Similarly, voice cues can dealers including Milton CAT, Cleveland Brothers, Fabick be used to improve accuracy. TECSYS��� software ensures CAT, and Riggs CAT. In addition, they have provided that when the parts person gets to the conveyor, the warehouse management software for Mitsubishi, Honda, right part is waiting. The system has a 99 percent accuCardinal Health and DB Schenker. racy rate and can sort manually, as described above, or TECSYS provides the software that instructs people and automatically, utilizing labels and a machine to sort boxes. machinery where to go and what to do. In addition, it The ability to handle more orders with fewer people is the provides a wide range of data collection options to suit end result. Cleveland Brothers installed the TECSYS system the needs of the user ��� from simple bar code printing in its new centralized warehouse and was able to reduce the to radio frequency (RF) data collection and signaturelabor by 40 percent, despite increasing the number of parts capture systems over wide area networks. It does not in the warehouse as well as the number of daily orders. manufacture the conveyors, sorters, and bins that also ���The biggest gain is that we don���t have to administracan be part of a technologically advanced warehouse. tively manage our orders,��� said Darlene Pursley, product 66 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | January 2013 66_A Closer Look_KP.indd 66 12/21/12 3:25 PM