Warehouse Management Modernization
This case study represents a representative engagement based on our methodology. Client details are anonymized.
Key Results
Order accuracy improved from 94% to 99.7%
Same-day fulfillment enabled for 3 markets
Inventory carrying costs reduced by 18%
Architecture scales to 20+ warehouses
The Challenge
A regional distributor with 8 warehouses ran on a legacy WMS that could not support same-day fulfillment or real-time inventory visibility. Order accuracy was 94% and customer complaints were rising.
The legacy system, implemented over a decade ago, relied on batch processing for inventory updates — meaning that the system's view of available stock was always 4-6 hours behind reality. This lag caused frequent overselling, mispicks, and shipping delays that drove the 6% error rate.
Warehouse workers used paper-based pick sheets, with no barcode scanning or location-directed picking. Wave planning was done manually by shift supervisors, leading to inefficient pick paths and throughput bottlenecks during peak periods. The system had no integration with carrier APIs, requiring manual entry of shipping details into each carrier's portal.
With major customers demanding same-day fulfillment and threatening to switch to competitors that could deliver it, the distributor faced an urgent need to modernize their warehouse operations.
Solution Architecture
We designed a modern warehouse management architecture with four interconnected components:
First, a Real-Time Inventory Engine replacing batch processing with event-driven updates. Every inventory movement — receipt, pick, pack, ship, adjustment — triggers an immediate update across all systems. Barcode and RFID scanning at key process points ensures accuracy and provides location-level visibility.
Second, an Intelligent Wave Planning System that optimizes pick waves based on order priority, item location, picker capacity, and carrier cutoff times. The algorithm groups orders to minimize travel distance within the warehouse and ensures same-day orders are prioritized into early waves.
Third, a Multi-Warehouse Orchestration Layer that provides a central control plane for inventory allocation across all 8 facilities. When an order comes in, the system determines the optimal fulfillment location based on stock availability, shipping distance, and carrier capacity.
Fourth, a Carrier Integration Hub connecting to major carrier APIs (UPS, FedEx, regional carriers) for automated rate shopping, label generation, and tracking updates. This eliminated manual data entry and enabled real-time delivery visibility for customers.
Implementation Timeline
The modernization was executed in three phases over 10 months:
Phase 1 — Architecture and Pilot (Months 1-3): Detailed process mapping across all 8 warehouses, system architecture design, and pilot deployment at the highest-volume facility. The pilot included barcode scanning infrastructure, the real-time inventory engine, and basic wave planning.
Phase 2 — Rollout and Integration (Months 4-7): Phased deployment across remaining 7 warehouses with 2-week implementation sprints per facility. Carrier API integration and the multi-warehouse orchestration layer went live during this phase.
Phase 3 — Optimization (Months 8-10): Advanced wave planning algorithms, same-day fulfillment workflow deployment for 3 key markets, and performance tuning based on operational data. Worker training programs and process refinement completed the rollout.
Results & Impact
The warehouse modernization delivered immediate and measurable results:
Order accuracy improved from 94% to 99.7% through barcode scanning, location-directed picking, and real-time inventory visibility. Customer complaints related to order errors dropped by 92%, and return processing costs decreased proportionally.
Same-day fulfillment capability was enabled for 3 key metropolitan markets, with orders placed before 2 PM guaranteed for same-day shipping. This capability was a decisive factor in retaining two major accounts that had been evaluating competitors.
Inventory carrying costs decreased by 18% through improved visibility and multi-warehouse optimization. The orchestration layer reduced instances of overstocking at one facility while another was understocked, enabling more efficient inventory distribution across the network.
The architecture was designed to scale horizontally, and has been validated to support 20+ warehouse locations without redesign. The platform's API-first design also enabled future integration with customer-facing order tracking portals.