Sound warehouse management is essential for a reliable supply chain and to prevent shortages and holdups. It is the primary factor which makes a company’s product and services more trustworthy for its customer. ProCat, a US-based Distribution Technology Provider Company is offering flexibility in warehouse management, so the products flow efficiently through the system.
An Ingenious Leader
Steve Stomel, CEO of ProCat Distribution grew up in the distribution industry, and has gathered deep expertise working in the shoes of his customers and understanding the challenges they face. He always had a strong interest in technology and how it could be used to improve distribution operations. Steve founded ProCat Distribution Technologies in 2001 with a mission to make distribution centers more efficient and productive through the use of technology. Under his leadership, the ProCat organization has adhered to the unwavering guiding principle that the customer is always right. Over the past two decades, ProCat has helped hundreds of small to mid-sized warehouses across the United States implement hands-free barcode scanning software.
Well Defined Solution
ProCat has learned that it can be a lengthy process for companies to decide whether or not to implement technology for their distribution center. Companies may not have the capital or there may be concerns about how intrusive the installation of a new system will be to ongoing operations. ProCat’s solutions are designed using a flexible, modular architecture. ProCat software modules build upon the PickRight solution, a barcode scanning platform that works together with other ProCat modules to provide comprehensive, end-to-end warehouse management. PickRight addresses the critical order picking function in the warehouse and is generally the first solution ProCat customers adopt. Implementing PickRight is fast and easy because it does not require a WMS and works with all ERP systems.
PickRight is hands-free barcode scanning software for distribution centers. Companies nationwide are benefitting from the immediacy and accuracy of PickRight. The easy to use and easy to learn solution incorporates a wrist worn display screen and ring scanner. It has proven to achieve 99.9% order accuracy and a 90% reduction in customer claims. PickRight seamlessly integrates with all ERP systems and allows for realtime label printing. There are no additional charges for software updates or for support from the U.S.-based help desk. The PickRight real-time reporting suite consists of over 70 reports that provide insights and visibility into operations and helps enhance management capabilities. Reports can be accessed from any computer on the company’s network. PickRight displays real-time pick rates for each employee after each order is picked. Employees always know exactly how they are performing against the expected pick rate for their picking area. The PickRight solution supports zone picking, team picking, batch picking, and wave picking, as well as multiple languages. Because PickRight was designed to allow pickers to cube totes, companies find they ship as much as 20% fewer containers, a huge benefit to companies looking to reduce transportation costs. A broad assortment of real-time label printing options is another major differentiator that sets ProCat apart from other solution providers.
Food and beverage companies nationwide are benefitting from the immediacy and accuracy of PickRight and the special functionality it holds for these industries. PickRight allows food companies to validate expiration dates and capture temperatures. Product catch weights and production lots can also be captured. This information can be automatically extracted from GS1 barcodes during the picking process using the PickRight barcode scanning technology. The company’s technology has been particularly helpful to food companies needing to comply with the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) enhanced record keeping requirements.
Easy to Procure
ProCat offers a leasing option for smaller operations that have 6 or less order pickers as a way for these companies to experience the benefits of the technology with a very small capital investment. While large companies may adopt expensive robotics, small to mid-sized companies will be able to benefit from ProCat’s cost effective solutions. The future will be warehouses without paper and ProCat is helping to make paperless warehouses a reality for its customers.
The full suite of ProCat solutions is categorized into track and trace solutions, outbound logistics, and complimentary solutions. Each solution improves accuracy and productivity of the key functions in distribution centers including the receiving picking and shipping functions.
ProCat recently launched four new solutions to further benefit distribution centers. PalletRight is a solution that builds logical pallets based on a delivery date and truck route. StageRight, is a solution for merging repack containers on the loading dock. IncentRight, is a simple and straight forward system to incent workers and achieve additional productivity gains. TrackRight, is a data mart that holds aggregated data from ReceiveRight, PickRight, and ShipRight for two years. TrackRight allows for long term data storage and reporting for use in support of product recalls and regulatory audits.
Visionary Approach
Looking forward, ProCat Distribution Technologies plans to continue to enhance their solutions and cater to the convenience, foodservice, beverage, spirits, electrical, and hardware industries. ProCat is always interested in exploring opportunities in industries where they can provide value to companies looking to enhance their operations.
