How to improve the information management of warehouse?

Improve the informatization level of warehouse management

I. Warehouse management

In recent years, an important feature of the development of logistics industry is to pursue "zero inventory" as the highest goal. "Zero inventory" means that the storage quantity of one or several items in the warehouse storage form is very low, even "zero", that is, the concept of not maintaining inventory. If it does not exist in the form of inventory, it can avoid a series of problems of warehouse inventory, such as the cost of warehouse construction and management, the cost of inventory maintenance, storage, loading and unloading, handling and so on. , as well as the problem of inventory occupying liquidity and inventory aging, loss and deterioration. Although from the current situation of enterprise logistics, "zero inventory" is still an ideal model in the whole social reproduction process, which can not become a reality, enterprises can save more costs by continuously reducing inventory. In this process, the informationization of warehousing is very important.

(A) the status quo of warehouse management information. As the joint of all links in logistics, warehousing involves warehousing, sorting, in-stock, inventory, out-of-stock, replenishment and other links, and the amount of information circulating is very large, including the types, quantitative uses, storage locations, inventory status and so on. Therefore, using information technology, the products are labeled with unique identification labels when they come off the production line, and the products are put into storage through radio frequency technology, data communication technology, bar code technology and scanning technology, so that the collected data can be automatically imported into standardized and networked databases. Warehouse information networking has become a very necessary means to improve the efficiency of enterprise logistics operation. At present, some enterprises are gradually promoting the unification of communication laws and regulations and the standardization of bills to meet the needs of electronic data processing. In the stage of material storage and transportation, by applying radio frequency data communication, bar code technology, scanning technology and data acquisition technology to warehouse stackers, automatic guided vehicles, conveyor belts and other transportation equipment, an automated warehouse was initially formed, with higher material circulation efficiency and stronger reliability.

(II) Functions and Requirements of Information in Warehouse Management The enterprise warehouse information system is considered as an interactive system of personnel, equipment and processes for warehouse managers to plan, operate and control and provide relevant information.

1. Quality requirements of warehousing information

There are three main points to reflect the quality of information. The first is the availability of information needed to make the best decision; The second is the accuracy of information; The third is the effectiveness of communication methods.

2. Availability of information

Warehouse managers do not always get the information they need when they need to make decisions. The most common reason for this situation may be that many managers are not sure what information they need, so it is difficult to conceptualize their information needs and express them in language. This situation is like some customers don't fully understand their own needs or it is difficult to express their needs. Another reason why warehouse managers can't get the information they need is that employees who collect information only provide managers with information that they think is important or cheap and easy to get. In many cases, this is far from its real requirements. Warehouse managers need to know more about information systems, technology and management. In addition, after a comprehensive understanding of warehouse management and business, information system managers can also benefit a lot, which shows that managers in these two fields need to be trained to better understand each other's requirements and capabilities.

3. Accuracy of information

Warehouse managers usually get less information than they expected, which will lead them to make suboptimal management decisions. Many companies adopt cost calculation and management control systems developed in completely different companies and competitive environments several years ago, so it often happens that logistics managers only make suboptimal decisions. Many of these systems can't correctly reflect the production and cost information, thus providing warehouse managers with the information they need to make the best decision.

4. Effectiveness of information exchange

Information must be effectively conveyed to be useful to managers. This requires information exchange in the recipient's language, otherwise, it is difficult for the recipient to understand the information obtained. Moreover, the receiver sometimes ignores unexpected information and hinders the exchange of information. We call this situation selective absorption of information. Finally, information exchange will only happen when the information is valuable to people and directly related to the decisions that the receiver needs to make. In short, only when the recipients know what they can or want to know, and what they will do with the obtained information, can they communicate effectively. If information publishers ignore any of these problems, information exchange will become difficult.

Second, the information management of logistics

The main information technologies in logistics management include bar code, EDI and portable data.

Input, laser scanning, optical disk storage, artificial intelligence (AI)/ expert system, online computer, radio frequency, etc.

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) is the product of the combination of information technology and new ideas of enterprise management, which meets the requirements of flat and flexible organizational structure, supply chain management, knowledge management and global diversification. The introduction of ERP should combine the specific conditions and requirements of enterprises, correctly select and customize new consulting tools, and bring the best economic benefits to enterprises. In the knowledge economy society, it is more and more urgent for enterprises to effectively manage knowledge and information. Enterprise management is entering a new era. Facing the ever-changing market competition, enterprises must be required to make quick and agile responses to adapt to the ever-changing customer needs and establish their own competitive advantages. The requirements of this era have given birth to the combination of information technology and management. We should use information management to continuously promote the development of modern logistics in order to reduce the cost of enterprises and improve their efficiency.

Third, improve the information level of warehouse management and realize "zero inventory" of enterprises.

Developed countries all emphasize logistics informatization, especially warehousing informatization with "zero inventory" as the core. Its experience is as follows: bar code technology and radio frequency identification technology (RFID) are widely used to improve the efficiency and accuracy of information collection, and Internet-based electronic data interchange technology (WebEDI) is used to transmit information inside and outside the enterprise, so as to realize paperless business processing such as order entry, processing, tracking and settlement, and warehouse management system (WMS) and transportation management system (TMS) are widely used to improve transportation and warehousing efficiency; Through information sharing with suppliers and customers, the transparency of supply chain can be realized, and supply chain management technologies such as JIT, CPFR, VMI and SMI can be used to realize collaborative commerce among supply chain partners, so as to "replace inventory with information", reduce the total logistics cost of supply chain and improve the competitiveness of supply chain; By purchasing auxiliary materials online, online sales exceed inventory, and by conducting warehousing and transportation transactions through electronic logistics service providers, logistics costs can be reduced by means of e-commerce.

According to the data provided by China Storage Association, only 39% of logistics enterprises in China have logistics information systems, which shows that the informatization level of China's logistics supply market is low and cannot meet the requirements of customers. At present, the scale of China's logistics market is growing at an annual rate of 30%, and the market demand for logistics information systems will accelerate. According to relevant surveys, 60% of enterprises still need to realize standardized information collection, transmission, storage and sharing, and establish a mechanism that depends on information and data for decision-making and control. It is urgent to apply information technology, speed up the process of warehousing informatization, continuously optimize the process and move towards "zero inventory".