Future-proof warehouse logistics at König & Meyer
Challenge
New logistics center, new demands
König & Meyer, a leading manufacturer of music accessories based in Wertheim, Germany planned to commission a new logistics center with 7,200 pallet spaces and take the opportunity to introduce new cloud warehouse management software at the same time.
“We didn't want to move to our new logistics center with our old, very manual solution,” explains Björn Brem, project manager at Meyer. The aim was to modernize the logistics processes, make procedures more efficient and - where appropriate - automate them. Improvements focused in particular on reducing picking errors, greater productivity, and smooth bulk shipping to retailers.
The challenge was to find a flexible solution that, in addition to efficiency, also offers a high degree of usability for around 25 warehouse employees. At the same time, we needed to keep to the ambitious schedule for the go-live and redesign numerous processes.
Mobile WMS solution with pick by voice and bulk shipping optimization
A highlight for König & Meyer is the pick by voice technology integrated into the WMS. The picker receives the pick instructions as a voice message, thereby saving paper and keeping both hands free to pick goods. The result: productivity increases and the number of picking errors decreases.
A fully mobile solution for bulk packing, where employees repack almost exclusively from warehouse pallets to shipping pallets, also ensures more efficient processes. The use of permanently installed PCs, printers, or scales was therefore out of the question - instead, König & Meyer uses mobile equipment.
“A large proportion of our deliveries - around 90 to 110 pallets a day - go to retail and wholesale. Therefore, an efficient solution for bulk shipping was particularly important to us,” says project manager Brem. As König & Meyer also sends up to 130 packages to B2B customers every day, the customer solution also includes a classic packing station with carrier connection.
Result
More efficient, less error-prone, data-driven
The warehouse employees who work with the AEB software have also responded well to the solution. In addition, König & Meyer has achieved its goal of reducing picking errors. “This directly benefits our customers,” says Brem.
Björn Brem as well as AEB project manager Dr. Jochen Fuhrmann are very pleased with the cooperation during the project, which has lasted approximately one year, and with the result. “We were able to meet the demanding schedule for the go-live, even though a large number of processes had to be redesigned and supported by the WMS. In the end, a well-thought-out solution emerged, which we were able to implement smoothly thanks to our cooperative collaboration,” summarizes Fuhrmann.
“Right from the start-up phase, we noticed significant progress in terms of picking efficiency, and significantly reduced transport routes in the warehouse.”
Björn Brem, project manager, König & Meyer
