Thoughts of experts about Supply Chain Management in 2019:
- Robots will dominate the WMS software market
Little by little, we will see the capabilities of Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) and Wearhouse Management Systems (WMS) which will evolve to become more cost-effective and accessible to business in mid-market. These two systems will help warehouses managers to optimise their process making their jobs more efficiently. AMRs boost the picking loading but do not handle the process, like scheduling trucks during loading and put-away, as humans do.
Moreover, many eCommerce warehouses also have portions of the traditional warehouse and picking processes. So, while AMRs might invade the WMS market, they won't finish it. We may see a more significant effort by WMS companies to make sure their systems can work with AMR systems in 2019, and also a greater focus on automation, directed to a small section of the market that would have to make a chose between the two products.
- Cloud SCM solutions will keep gaining acceptance
Outside parties were once seen as a thread, as they could log on to manufacturers’ software and had absolute control over the work and security in their enterprises. However, vendors proved they were trustworthy business partners, assuring real benefits when Cloud is deployed.
The benefits of the Cloud are speed, low-cost, the lifecycle of the software that guarantees a Cloud environment which goes along with the best practices of the product designer. The investment of a SCM Cloud solutions should be customised to your business's exact processes and requirements, meaning to configure it to support your vital goals. Configuring will gain traction in the coming years whilst distribution cycle becomes short. Configurability means a flexible enough software to cope capacity crunch and the increasing of truck-driver shortage; predictions are that it could go well into 2019, or even longer,
The consequences will be the rising demand and the costs of transportation when hiring more drivers; so, creating more efficient processes is the first approach to consider. This critical situation might bring functional carrier SCM systems in the future, which help businesses find the cheapest and the most efficient tools.
- Distributed Inventory in the future
“Fast and cheap” is what customers demand. The only way to do it is to distribute the inventory to reduce the cost of the Last Mile (a term used in SCM and transportation planning to describe the allocation of goods from a transportation hub to a final destination with more warehouses, that should function as points of inventory flow. Enterprises need a software robust enough to rely on Data Analytics app to accomplish it.
Nowadays, we are watching the rise of a tool most distributors apply called Distributed Inventory Flow Forecasting (DIFF,) which will become even more widespread in the coming years because with this tool you can forecast the flow of items to increase order-fulfilment rate while reducing inventory levels.
· The need for Strong Security Measures
Security challenges are going to grow especially in the supply chains. In today’s digital era, manufacturing trade information is stolen remotely through cyber attacks, becoming the main problem to solve, although it is complicated to afford complete guaranty security. Who are at higher risk? It includes small-to-medium-sized businesses that have fewer resources to prevent such attacks.
We’ll see manufacturing software retailers strengthening and augmenting further security procedures to their products, like tools which recognise image or voices, as well as an emphasis on sourcing and procurement tools, which is where many companies are at risk. Cybercrime within all Supply Chain software may escalate shortly when Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) are deployed in your processes; as a result, security measures must be your priority number one.
· Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things
At present, eCommerce is disturbing the panorama of online shopping, making it imperative that interested parties know the status of every resource. The IoT in the SCM technology will grow the most in 2019. ,So what are the causes behind this growth?
They are the availability of cheap-trustworthy sensors, access to the Internet, data larger-storage capacity in the AI process capabilities to direct a productivity increase in the distribution and Supply Chain industry; the new resources to develop their supply networks, cut down costs, reduction of time, and money spent while finding opportunities to create revenues. AI can analyse current patterns of operations to predict the possible results of tomorrow’s settings, and to balance the supply with the forecasted demand.
To sum it up: Next year will bring both new challenges and technologies to businesses working in the Supply Chain. Enterprises will have more options when it comes to WMS solutions and automated robots. Next, the capacity crunch will likely continue beyond 2019, forcing companies to find more ways to cut costs and avoid scaring off customers with rising prices. The Cloud will be the answer to these matters. New technology will likely become popular to help implement distributed inventory.
The need for security within the SC will likely continue to be number one priority into 2019, as the introduction of AI and IoT growth demands. To accomplish it businesses may benefit from adopting an SCM software solution. Choose the right one that better fits your business, now!
Dave Food
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