Voice and WMS Special technology report
Stephen Gerrard, vice president, marketing & strategic planning
critical. “It must work with minimal errors or repeats in noisy environments,” he said. “And it must take into account the language and accent of the speaker; i.e., train the system to recognise the worker, not train the worker to speak to the system.” Another key
differentiator for Voice-based systems, according to Adams, is their capability to easily integrate with the ERP/WMS. Binder’s view is that there are two main differentiators. First, there are untrained/trained systems, available from Zetes. Secondly there is the thin client approach which aids the Voice dialogues and flow control being completed by the WMS systems. “This creates a very flexible software architecture,” he said.
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Masoji highlights the benefits of ruggedised industrial computers
way as it doesn’t see how it can support a system that it has not developed itself. “But we always give the IT department a big input into how the final solution should work and make them as independent from us as is possible,” he added.
Make or break What might be the next
Warehouses are dynamic work environments where managers continually look for ways to improve business processes. Configurable software enables enterprises to control the cost of change far more effectively, whilst making it possible to evolve the use of Voice within the operation.”
designed specifically to operate reliably in harsh environmental conditions. He also makes the point that WLAN/mobile infrastructures can extend the accessibility of these solutions to areas where non-industrialised units can prove less proficient. As an example, he explains that a PC with a fanless design and IP protection rating can be used in a wider range of temperatures – hot and cold – and are suitable for moving between indoor and outdoor conditions.
Harper considers that some Voice manufacturers offer ‘open’ Voice systems where the manufacturer sells the customer the Voice hardware, the software and give them some training on how to create their own Voice ‘task’. This, he says, can be appealing to some companies where the IT department wants to develop all the systems they deploy. However he points out that Dematic doesn’t work this
www.logisticsit.com – Stephen Gerrard, Voxware.
innovations/developments to look out for in the world of Voice-directed systems and WMS software in the near future? Harper believes that the next year or two will make or break the SaaS model of warehouse management system delivery. He added that we are likely to see Voice driving more warehouse processes, and the next couple of years should prove whether or not Voice can deliver an acceptable ROI for back-of-store processes in the retail business. Clark makes the point that the number of business-to- consumer shipments is growing in the UK, with an increasing focus on service levels. “Many WMS companies are now offering carrier
integration, but this technology will be required much earlier in the buying cycle, even before the checkout, ” he said.
Vennemann sees further developments taking place in business process optimisation, to support the ever changing and increasingly complex business environment of Vanderlande’s customers. In addition, he believes WMS product development will continue to focus on modular, configurable system solutions, created from standard building blocks. “Vanderlande will continue to develop such solutions,” he said. “For our customers, this means faster implementation,
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lower costs and best-of-breed solutions.”
Gerrard comments that, increasingly, Voxware is seeing demand for Voice to be integrated with other modes of data collection to maximise worker performance. “This requires software that can easily be used to create Voice and multimodal workflows,” he said. Binder points out that to reduce the level of hardware investment required Zetes sees a trend towards implementing more server driven systems, whereby the role of hardware is more limited than it has been in the past. From topVOX’s perspective, Finken envisages that with its Voice system the entire closed process chain – from order placement and handling in the warehouse site to transportation and delivery – will be accompanied by topSpeech-Lydia.
Double-digit gains According to Adams, Vocollect has a bold vision for the warehouse and distribution centre market. This includes the belief that companies will expand their use of Voice-directed solutions beyond picking to workflows such as cycle-counting, receiving, loading, put-away, replenishment, put-to-store and more. “This number is growing, as executives continue to recognise the impact that Voice can bring to their logistics operations,” he said.
Stanhope observes that complementary functionality is being added to Voice solutions such as barcode scanning, data presentation on screen, and increasingly Voice is being used on a handheld or vehicle mounted terminal. And, like Adams, he foresees a greater move towards the Voice-centric warehouse, with Voice being used not only for picking but also for other disciplines such as goods-in, putaway, picking, replenishment, through to despatch.
Some SaaS WMS vendors even include Voice in their overall package, bringing the best of both worlds together for their clients.”
– Gavin Clark, Snapfulfil. December 2011
MANUFACTURING &LOGISTICS
IT 35
Gavin Clark, commercial manager
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