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VOICE


technology


Opinion


What are some of the characteristics of ‘change-friendly’ Voice software? Among other things, look for:


• Portability. Companies usually don’t think about changing hardware when initially rolling out a Voice solution, but it’s worth it to consider what could happen when you do. Portable software can be moved to a different device and operate exactly the same as before – without changing a line of code and without paying for a new software licence.


incremental improvements can deliver the quickest and biggest positive return.


Yet too often, Voice solutions are designed only with today’s operation in mind. The emphasis is on creating just the right voice- enabled process to optimise the way workers fulfil orders today. Prior to deployment, great emphasis is placed on development methodologies where specifications are ‘frozen’ before the solution can be created.


Our experience at Voxware is that – almost regardless of how many hours are spent in an attempt to specify the perfect solution – customers very often will think of an even better way to leverage Voice technology after they have gained some practical experience with it. What happens when they approach their Voice vendor with the desired improvement is quite revealing.


Bespoke Voice solutions are not designed for change. That’s why they place such an emphasis on ‘getting the specs nailed down’ up front. Anyone who has purchased bespoke software knows that change is usually an expensive undertaking: the code must be opened up again, designs altered, programming written, debugging done, testing accomplished, and redeployment effected. Sometimes the cost of a change can approach the original cost of deployment – something mystifying to logistics executives and devastating to long-term cost control.


At the end of the day, organisations with a rigid voice solution actually have an incentive to not change the operation – it’s a way to avoid further expense. But presiding over inflexibility is antithetical to the way leading warehouse managers tend to operate – and it can lead to a loss of competitiveness.


Avoiding the high cost of change


While one can’t know the specifics of future changes when they are not yet on the drawing board, it is nevertheless possible to anticipate certain changes and plan for them in advance. Some of those changes could include:


• Refreshing hardware in the future to a new mobility device, perhaps one from a different manufacturer.


• Modifying product handling processes for greater efficiency during order fulfilment or to support new inventory that cannot be handled using current processes.


• Updating the WMS to take advantage of newly-offered features which may impact the way order fulfilment happens.


In all of these areas, change can be either inhibited or facilitated by software. By itself, hardware cannot be flexible or effect change. The key to long term cost control of Voice picking lies in the software.


• Configurability. As noted, bespoke Voice solutions are rigid and resistant to change. But configurable Voice solutions are designed with change in mind. It’s pretty easy to find out how a vendor goes about creating the Voice solution you are buying. The tools and techniques used will give you an indication of the future cost of change – even when you can’t know in advance the specifics of those changes.


Configurable solutions dramatically reduce the cost of change because they eliminate coding. This also makes turnaround faster, and reduces the ‘specification angst’ that often accompanies voice projects.


Voice solutions are associated with best in class operations because they provide rapid ROI while improving service levels. But smart enterprises are increasingly looking beyond the initial payback equation to consider their need for flexibility in the future. The right Voice software provides them with the tools they need to manage long-term costs and thus maximise ROI. 


Most Voice solutions are not portable. When an enterprise wants to move to a new device, it may discover ‘ROI killers’ such as the desired unit requiring different software to be created, which entails a programming project and maybe new licences.


Asking about portability before the Voice system is first deployed enables evaluators to identify one downstream cost that can be managed in advance, long before the need arises.


32


MANUFACTURING &LOGISTICS


IT July 2011


www.logisticsit.com


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