This brief case history featuring Bookazine (Bayonne, NJ) comes courtesy of WMS provider 3i Infotech (Edison, N.J.). It has been selected and edited by the MHM editorial staff for clarity, content and style.
Bookazine (Bayonne, N.J.), a book wholesaler, has completed the implementation of Orion WMS software from 3i Infotech (Edison, N.J.) to manage and control its 125,000 sq.-ft. warehouse and distribution center.
With more than 1.2 million titles and relationships with over 25,000 publishers worldwide, Bookazine managers turned to 3i Infotech when they realized the company could not keep up with the rapidly growing number of titles and customers in its database. With Orion WMS, Bookazine has streamlined its warehouse operations to handle full and partial cartons of books directly from the receiving dock, integrate them with in-line scales to determine best fit in available slots and communicate in real time with its conveyor systems to sort and divert correctly. As a result, Bookazine can optimize its inventory and maximize warehouse productivity through the use of RF bar coding, RFID tagging and handheld data collection devices.
"As our business continued to expand in terms of the number of titles and customers, our current software could not keep pace," says Allan Davis, vice president of distribution for Bookazine. "We looked to Orion WMS to handle the increased volume and still keep up with the demands of the business."
"The rule-based logic of the system allows Bookazine to configure the warehouse to changing conditions," says Al Silon, receiving manager at Bookazine. "The exceptional reporting capabilities and manpower analysis enable us to quickly respond to product availability questions and properly schedule resources."
"In our business, space is at a premium and turnover of book titles is fierce," continues Silon. "We rely heavily on software's inventory control and management to suggest inventory moves to consolidate stock and free up inventory slots for the next shipment of book. As rapidly as consumer tastes change, so do the subjects and titles of books arriving on our inventory docks."
Source: 3i Infotech Inc.
MHMonline.com welcomes relevant, exclusive case histories that explain in specific detail the business benefits that new software and material-handling equipment has provided to specific users. Send submissions to Lisa Kempfer ([email protected]), MHM managing editor. All submissions will be edited for clarity, content and style.
