According to a study conducted by the Food Marketing Institute, Arlington, Va., and Grocery Manufacturers Association, Washington, D.C., one recall can cost a company $10 million, not including lost sales profits and a tarnished brand reputation.
However, connecting a warehouse execution system (WES) to external systems both upstream and downstream in the supply chain allows companies to respond to such problems within the manufacturing process more quickly, often preventing contaminated or malfunctioning products from ever leaving the facility.