Revolutionising logistics with automation: A deep dive into Maersk's operations transformation
March 5, 2024
In the logistics industry, you’ve surely heard about A.P. Moller - Maersk. The company stands as a global leader, yet faced significant challenges during their UK expansions. These challenges included managing multiple warehouse management systems (WMS) and addressing daily operational issues like stock discrepancies and a lack of visibility. Dexory, a robotics and data intelligence technology company, entered the scene to help Maersk on their journey to optimise their warehouse operations, offering innovative solutions to overcome these hurdles.
Addressing WMS challenges
Fergus, Commercial Lead at Maersk, recently sheds light on the hurdles encountered in our webinar, particularly in managing data across multiple warehouse management systems (WMS) and locations, especially when customers bring their own WMS onboard. Fergus acknowledges the complexity of managing multiple WMS systems, citing different outputs and formats as significant challenges. This multiplicity of systems created a complexity in gaining real visibility within the warehouse and obtaining relevant information for decision-making.
By getting a full understanding and visibility over your warehouse, you also ensure that employees spend time on meaningful tasks rather than navigating through disparate data sources.
Data intelligence platforms such as DexoryView can provide businesses with the ability to integrate multiple systems into one solution. In this instance, DexoryView acted as a unified platform, allowing Maersk to manage warehouses seamlessly. The result was not just visibility for individual customers but an overarching view of the entire site, offering trends, analysis, and insights crucial for informed decision-making.
Real-time data: Enhancing stock visibility and analytical abilities
In our recent webinar, the discussion shifts to the significance of real-time data in the warehouse. Real-time data, in Maersk's context, means more than just knowing the right stock is in the right place at the right time. It involves obtaining insights, identifying pain points, and optimising operations through visual outputs that streamline decision-making.
Real-time data enables immediate responsiveness to changing conditions, facilitating agile decision-making to address inefficiencies or disruptions promptly. This approach provides up-to-the-minute information on inventory levels and order statuses, ensuring transparency and trust in the supply chain.
Access to predictive data: Anticipate your warehouse needs
Creating a consolidated platform that serves as a single source of truth becomes an anchor for adding substantial value. It extends beyond the immediate knowledge of stock locations, offering insights into warehouse occupancy, trends, and the historical evolution of warehouse performance over time. This centralised view sets the stage for advanced analytics and strategic decision-making.
DexoryView's impact reaches beyond the present moment, providing analytical abilities and historical insights. It offers more than just directions; it predicts future scenarios. Understanding how trends have evolved over time allows Maersk to make data-driven decisions, optimise operations, and anticipate future needs.
Transforming Maersk’s logistics operations
Alongside the challenges of Maersk's expansion efforts, the company encountered ongoing resource challenges involving time-consuming, labour-intensive, and error-prone stock checks. Additionally, there was a search to enhance safety and compliance within the warehouses. For detailed insights into how these challenges were addressed, playback our joint webinar with Fergus, Commercial Lead at Maersk and Andrei Danescu, CEO and Co-founder of Dexory.