Food and beverage companies looking to improve warehouse operations will often consider implementing at least one of the most common warehouse systems—warehouse management systems (WMS), warehouse control systems (WCS) or warehouse execution systems (WES).
In order to determine which system best meets your company’s needs, it is important to understand the purpose and functionality of each solution.
Warehouse management systems defined
A WMS is a highly specialized business application that controls the flow of inventory into, within and out of a company’s warehouse, distribution center (DC) or multiple facilities. A WMS enables multiple, important warehouse functions, including the ability to verify receipts, put away inventory, replenish inventory to a forward pick location, complete cycle counts, hard allocate inventory to an order (to be picked), consolidate orders on a dock, create pack slips and more.