Sona Enterprises Finds Accellos Warehouse Management System (WMS) Software Implementation Fast, Easy

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado – July 11, 2013 – Accellos, a leading provider of supply chain execution software solutions, has issued a case study of AccellosOne Warehouse Management System (WMS) customer Sona Enterprises, a wholesale/distribution company. The Santa Fe Springs, California based company was running an out-of-date software version that ultimately prevented them from taking advantage of features available in newer versions. Following a pain-free upgrade, Sona Enterprises was able to reap the benefits of new software features and an improved user interface. One major result of the upgrade is the company’s ability to streamline the overall warehouse experience both for handheld and desktop users.

Company

Still family-owned and operated, Sona Enterprises sources all of its products through some 20 suppliers; most in China but supplemented by others in India and Pakistan. These suppliers conduct frequent purchasing trips to restock depleted and/or fast-moving items. They also use this time to explore opportunities to add new items to inventory.

As a stocking distributor, Sona takes ownership of the merchandise. The company maintains upwards of 90 percent of its products in inventory. Sona routinely accommodates walk-in and drive-up customers and fulfills less urgent orders through parcel carriers. Sona teams regularly attend events intended to broaden the company’s marketing scope, among them general merchandise shows and variety store expositions.

Situation

Before implementation of the new software, the Sona warehouse staff put merchandise wherever there was space available; with no logic involved other than the well-developed memories of individual workers. Trouble was, unless the person who put the goods away was the one detailed to pick them, time taken to locate items could become excessive.

Solution

AccellosOne WMS is a scalable and flexible real-time warehouse management software system that streamlines operations and inventory management through the use of automated paper-free processes, and radio frequency (RF) communications. With these technologies, it tracks stock into, out of, and within warehouses, streamlining and verifying processes with each movement.

Results

While no metrics were taken before or after implementation of the software, several factors stand out, Patel says that: merchandise can be picked within an hour of arrival, versus weeks or even months; new personnel require only minimal training vs. a previous multi-month learning curve; no guesswork about product location; picking and putaway are faster, more efficient; even short two warehouse workers, Sona experienced no picking/putaway delays; the warehouse handles more orders per day with fewer fulfillment or shipping errors; better product awareness: easy view of what turns fast/slow and why; better order tracking/easy view of return rates; and stock levels are kept current, enabling better purchasing decisions.

“The Accellos team was really good …Accellos was the right size company for us to work with. They had the capabilities and resources needed to get the software installed quickly as well as to support us once the solution was running” says Sudeep Patel, Sona’s Information Technology expert, “… the warehouse is well organized and our pickers work fast and error-free by following instructions on their handheld screens. The software is definitely having a major effect on Sona’s business.”

”Sona Enterprises is a great example of an organization growing into the need for WMS and adopting WMS for the first time,” said Chad Collins, General Manager and CMO at Accellos. “Unlike other WMS software providers that focus on the replacement market, Accellos’ exclusive focus on small and medium sized business makes us uniquely positioned to help companies implement WMS for the first time.”

The full case study is available at: http://www.accellos.com/casestudies/sona-enterprises/

About Accellos

Accellos is a global provider of software solutions specifically designed for the unique needs of logistics service providers and midsized businesses. Over 3,000 companies trust Accellos to be the technology backbone of their global supply chains. Accellos provides solutions for warehouse management systems (WMS), third party logistics (3PL), fleet management, transportation management systems (TMS), trading partner integration (EDI), automated barcode data collection, parcel shipping, transportation optimization and supply chain business intelligence. Accellos solutions are built on the AccellosOne platform, a modern technology platform featuring a user-friendly interface and simplified technical administration. For more information, email info@accellos.com or visit www.accellos.com.