Warehouse Management System often requires to be flexible to adopt new business processes and procedures. If you have Microsoft Dynamics GP (formerly known as Great Plains Dynamics) as your Corporate ERP system and you have to extend it with WMS add-on - the integration between the two should be reasonably reliable.
One of the best results could be achieved by programming WMS extension in Microsoft Dexterity,
as Dexterity is the platform for original Great Plains user interface and it allows WMS screens, tables and procedures to be integrated with maximal efficiency. Plus Dexterity coded WMS works in the same user security realm as original Dynamics GP. This article is written as highlights in Warehouse Management System and its functionality for Dynamics GP:
1. Purchase Receipts automation. Here you deploy barcode scanners to scan the batch of receipts and upload them via custom WMS interface to match automatically against open Purchase Orders. Methods could include barcode scanner in the batch mode, real time match via wireless barcode scanner or via barcoding server. As additional feature you may decide to print newly received items barcode labels
2. Inventory transfers and cycle count. You need to automate barcode scanner batch transfers upload to Dynamics GP Inventory Transfer screen and logic. Inventory cycle count by its nature is inventory adjustment and logic is similar, but you would need custom WMS logic to feed data into Cycle Count functionality of Dynamics GP Inventory Control module
3. Sales Order fulfillment. You can deploy GP SOP Sales Order line by line fulfillment process and fulfill based on the information uploaded to GP from barcode scanner after warehouse worker comes through picking and packing routine on the warehouse floor
4. Custom WMS extensions. There might be additional requirements, for example your inventory replenishment could be integrated with your POS or Retail Management systems, such as Microsoft RMS, Counterpoint or another generic RMS. This situation is very natural for mid-size retailer, where you receive items in Dynamics GP, print barcode labels and then transfer them over night to Microsoft RMS inventory for direct sale to your retail customers. Retail system could have ecommerce nature, where ecommerce might be B2B or B2C oriented
5. Alternative Corporate ERP for WMS. SAP Business One has similar or comparable set of modules and Warehouse Management System could be designed in SB1 SDK to provide similar to described above functionality
6. WMS as part of broader Supply Chain Management, Logistics, Distribution, Light Discrete Manufacturing, Consignment concept. In Dynamics GP you can trigger some WMS routines from such modules as Purchase Configurator (or sort of automatic inventory replenishment)
7. WMS for Dynamics GP international aspects. Microsoft Dynamics GP is localized (translated to foreign language and made compliant to local legislation) in most of the English speaking countries (USA, Canada, UK, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand), plus in the countries, where English is used as Business language (Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Oceania); it is available in Quebec, Spanish speaking South, Central America and Caribbean. It is also very popular in the countries with Arabic alphabet. We do not recommend GP in countries, where it is not localized: China, Russia, Korea, Japan, Brazil, consider instead SAP Business One with Warehouse Management extension
8. How to get further help? Please, feel free to call us: 1-866-528-0577, 1-630-961-5918 or e-mail us: help@albaspectrum.com
