“The logistics audit carried out at ZEZ SILKO by colleagues from the Chamber of Logistics Auditors clearly showed the need to introduce a controlled storage system. A leading Czech manufacturer of power capacitors and compensation equipment therefore approached us to implement our SALSOWMS into its processes,” explains Petr Novotný from SALSO.

The system, developed by logistics specialists from Zlín, has contributed to a significant transformation in the field of warehouse management and has brought fundamental changes in the management of purchasing, storage of materials, production and dispatch.

The basis for success is a complete inventory

A key success factor was adapting SALSOWMS to work seamlessly on top of the existing Vision ERP system. “The first step was therefore to move to structured controlled storage instead of conventional record keeping. This included a complete initial inventory and barcoding of all items,” Novotný describes the start of the implementation.

“ZEZ SILKO, s.r.o. has been using the SALSO system since 2019. During this time, we have been looking for a solution for sophisticated warehouse management. Our ERP system did not yet include this functionality. The SALSOWMS software impressed us right at the first demonstration meeting. It is user-friendly and, thanks to the excellent approach of the consultants (programmers), it was no problem to connect it to the company’s ERP system,” adds Radek Krejčí, IT manager at ZEZ SILKO.

Innovative solutions for warehouse processes

In the first stage, ZEZ SILKO handled the dispatch of material from the central warehouse and transfer to individual intermediate production warehouses based on the production plan. “This ensured that materials were transferred to the production intermediate warehouses in divisible and editable quantities. Dispensing to production is already automatic from the intermediate warehouses. It is linked to the reporting of work and is proportionally issued based on the number of reported operations and unit consumption according to the technological regulation,” says Radek Krejčí, adding that in the second stage they needed to manage dispatch orders, record individual packages and, if necessary, record the serial numbers of the products in these packages.

Thanks to the implementation of SALSOWMS, the company has gained a number of modern features that have significantly streamlined warehouse processes:

  • Electronic receipt of orders from the ERP system
  • Automatic printing of labels on receipt of material
  • Warehouse map with barcodes for efficient inventory management
  • Handy warehouses in production for quick material availability
  • Material movement tracking using barcode readers

“We have been implementing sophisticated picking processes for shipping. The system is able to respect parameters such as FIFO and specific customer requirements, such as one batch per pallet,” explains Novotný.

Material blocking function

The material blocking system is also an important part of the solution. “Some materials have to be quarantined before entering production for temperature stabilisation or quality control. In such cases, the system automatically alerts the warehouseman that he cannot handle the material yet,” explains Novotný.

Successful implementation and further development

Implementation included thorough on-site training of all staff. “We stayed with the company during the pilot launch to ensure a smooth transition. Today, the company is able to add new warehouse locations, set up warehouse maps and add workstations on its own,” says Novotný of the project’s success.

The modernisation continued even after the basic implementation: ‘We switched to new versions of the system with Android-based readers, which significantly increased the flexibility of the entire solution. Our customers can now gradually switch to new devices according to their capabilities,” adds Novotný.

Implementation results

The project presented a number of challenges, especially during the transition to the new system and during the initial inventory. However, thanks to the excellent cooperation with the IT team at ZEZ SILKO, all obstacles were overcome. “Today, the entire process from material receipt to storage to dispatch is fully managed, with the ability to track every item. In addition, thanks to the integration with ERP Vision, the system automatically sends the dispatch data, which significantly facilitates the creation of documentation for transport,” concludes Novotný.

Radek Krejčí summarizes the benefits of SALSOWMS implementation as follows:

  • Order in the central warehouse (dispatch to production only from intermediate warehouses).
  • Acceleration of inventories managed by SalsoWMS
  • Records of packaging and serial numbers for dispatch orders (this was not technically possible until then).
  • Increased productivity of logistics staff.
  • In 2018, sales in our company were 281,700 thous. With 6 employees in logistics.
  • In 2023, the sale was 431,600 thousand. CZK with 7 workers in logistics.
  • This is an increase in sales of approximately 53% with an increase of one employee.

The success of the implementation is also confirmed by the fact that ZEZ SILKO was able to independently expand the system to the new hall, which testifies to the well-managed training and intuitiveness of the entire solution.