Western States operates five manufacturing and distribution locations in Wisconsin, Ohio, Kentucky and Minnesota, and was an early adopter of Irista's client/server WMS. Originally installed in 1996, the system is used to track finished goods inventory received from production. Interfaced with a UPS rating system, the WMS directs operators to fulfillment of customer orders using pick by label and radio frequency (RF) bar code scanning picking strategies.
iristaWarehouse 8.5 will enable Western States to perform more efficient order filling by utilizing advanced features such as wave planning, cluster picking and shipment consolidation. Key features to Western States is the system's enhanced flexibility to automatically generate replenishments and the ability to better prioritize work loads through advanced task management. Complimenting the efficiencies gained in the warehouse are the improvements to shipping and transportation activities. Using the capabilities of an integrated transport management system will permit the company to select the best carriers based on overall cost and customer specifications.
"Western States Envelope has experienced considerable growth since 1996," says Tom Rewolinski, Western States' senior vice president of finance and operations. "The efficiencies we've gained throughout our operation have enabled us to successfully expand our business while keeping a cap on headcount. The flexibility of the Irista application allowed us to deploy it across all of our facilities using internal resources."
