Features

Ongoing WMS is a standardized software with many features developed to suit the needs of logistics intensive companies. All features are included in the monthly fee, and many of them can be adjusted to your processes. Here we list the general features of Ongoing WMS which suits every company with a warehouse. Follow this link to read more about our features targeted to Logistics Providers.

Ongoing WMS mobile warehouse scanning application

Mobile warehouse application with scanning

Ongoing WMS includes a powerful mobile warehouse application, which is called Ongoing WMS Scanning.

The scanning application is developed using web technology which gives you the following benefits:

It can be used on Android and Apple devices.
No need to install or update an app. It is always up to date.
Reachable from everywhere.

Ongoing WMS Scanning includes processes developed to cover the most common requirements when using hand-held units in a warehouse. Processes include inbound, putaway, movements, refill, pick, pack, stock taking and many more.

The scanning processes are comprehensive by default, but it is still easy to adjust to your needs.

Ongoing WMS supports all types of barcodes and QR codes. Including GS1 and HIBC. It also supports RFID tags.

Handle batch, expiry date, serial number, lot number, pallet ID and many more data types.

Read more about the details of Ongoing WMS Scanning here.

Ongoing WMS has great usability on all screens. Tablets, PCs, Mac and phones.

Easy to learn and flexibility to grow with

It is quick to get started with the service. Our customers - and their customers and partners - think it's an easy-to-use software that is intuitive and easy to learn. Here are some key usability features:

Cloud-based web application. Reach it from anywhere and spend no time or money on installation. It just works.
Multi-site. One software, multiple warehouses, anywhere.
Multi-client. Manage multiple companies in the same warehouse. Ideal for 3PL, fulfillment businesses or company groups.
The core of the softwareis the ability to use it for several different logistics flows. This makes it ideal for companies which sell through different channels (omnichannel) or both B2C and B2B.
Configuration on user level. Administrators, warehouse workers and customer support staff all have different expectations. Adapt the software to the needs of different user groups. Read more about the different access levels here.
Multi language. Several different languages available. Each user can use their own language.
Customized user logins
Extensive rights management. Improve your security using different access rights.

Order handling

Ongoing WMS has an extensive set of order handling capabilities for most use cases. There are structured processes for sales orders, purchase orders and many other processes which helps you to scale your operations and work efficiently. Many of the processes can also be performed ad-hoc.

Inbound delivery with or without inbound order. Read more about the details of receiving goods here.
Outbound delivery. Read more about how to pick orders here.
Multi-order picking or batch order picking enables warehouse workers to efficiently pick several orders at once using for example a picking cart. Learn how to pick several orders using a pick order in Ongoing WMS.
Support for partial delivery means that you can ship only parts of the order and create a backorder for the remaining quantity. This is configurable on both order line and inventory level. Read more about partial deliveries in Ongoing WMS here.
Make sure the right items are packed using in extra pack control where items are scanned. Finish by printing lists and labels automatically. Read more about how to perform pack control on one or many orders here.
Consolidated shipments enable you to send multiple orders in the same shipment. Learn how you can do this to a single receiver or using split shipments here.
Using return orders enables you to advise the warehouse about on incoming consumer return in advance. It also enables you to use the return order as a blueprint for the return. Introduction to returns in Ongoing WMS | Ongoing WMS (ongoingwarehouse.com).
Standard or customized picking algorithms. FIFO, FEFO, LIFO, prioritize full pallets among others. Learn more about manual or automatic allocation here.
Location suggestions at inbound deliveries helps you place the items at the right location.
Working with inbound shipments helps you bundle incoming goods over different purchase orders.
Cross-docking enables you to immediately ship incoming items onto several sales orders. Learn more about our scanning process for cross-docking here.
Goods operation orders helps you to create a structured quality control process. Read more about how to create and execute your goods operation orders here.

Inventory and goods management

Ongoing WMS was built from the ground to have complete traceability of your inventory. All transactions are traceable on inventory level with full support for expiry dates, batches and serial numbers. There are also many structured processes to manage your inventory such as inventory tasks and movement orders.

Stock taking assignments
Move assignments
Refill assignments
Lock stock location
Lock goods by goods status
Dynamical and fixed picking locations
Track & trace. Complete traceability under and after the fulfillment process.
Expiry date
Batch
Serial number

Production and kitting

Are you performing simple production in the warehouse or are you putting different articles together in kits when picking the order?

Ongoing WMS has built in support for kit articles in all stages of the warehousing process, from reception to outbound.

An extensive production order module is also included for consuming inventory and producing items towards inventory.

With structure articles you can create kits of one or many articles. These can be used on a purchase order, at inbound and on a sales order. Read more about using structure articles in Ongoing WMS here.
Stock levels are calculated for each kit based on the underlying quantity for each contained article.
With the production order module, you can create a structured process for ordering production work from the warehouse. Read more about the production module in Ongoing WMS here.
Work efficiently when producing the items ordered on a production order. Create structured processes for refilling your production location, for consuming the items and for producing. Use scanning to make sure that you always produce the right items, even with temporary workers. Read more about the production scanning in Ongoing WMS here.
Manually or automatically allocate stock to the production order.
When producing a production order, the stock balance increases for produced articles and down for production material. You can also track the items through the process, including full support for serial, batch and expiry dates.

Data, statistics and monitoring

Getting an overview of the warehouse can be hard. Ongoing WMS provides extensive ways for you to work with your warehousing data, calculate statistics and monitor your warehouse.

Large number of statistics views. Among other things; number of orders and number of purchase orders, stock turnover, invoicing among others.
Large number of pre-made Excel and PDF reports. Possibility to order custom made reports from your customer representative at Ongoing WMS.
Export everything from the software using simple Excel export features.
Display a dashboard in your warehouse with your key performance indicators and other important measures. Select from a set of pre-made screens or order specific modifications from Ongoing's consultants.

Generating and printing reports, documents and labels

Many documents are still needed in the warehouse even though we strive to minimize printouts. Ongoing WMS has extensive support for generating and printing reports, documents and labels at the right printer and at the right time.

Ongoing WMS includes Ongoing Printer Service which provides capabilities for efficient printings in the warehouse. The printer service helps you to route the printings to the right printer and print them on-demand when they are needed. No longer any need for sorting labels and delivery notes. Read more about automatic printing in Ongoing WMS here.

A large set of reports for different purposes are included by default. We can also write custom reports for your needs. The included reports:

Picking list
Delivery note
Return form
Warehouse location label
Inventory lists
GS1 pallet label
Location label
Waybill
Transfer list
Article label
...and many more

Ongoing WMS also fetches labels for the different carriers via the delivery software integration to help you efficiently print those. You may also upload documents manually or via API to use in the warehouse.

All data can be exported to Excel.

Customer communication

Warehouse customer login. If you are a 3PL, a fulfillment provider or a company group. It can be useful to provide login access for the company that owns the goods. This login provides the following features among others.

Real time information
Place order
Place purchase order
Customer register
Order status
Stock balance
Historical stock balance
Track and trace
Mobile-friendly

Login for Resellers
Customer notification and summary emails.

Integrations

To create highly efficient logistics flows, you can connect Ongoing WMS with other systems, such as Enterprise Resource Planning, ecommerce or delivery management systems. The purpose of an integration is to reduce the amount of manual labor, reduce lead times, and reduce the risk of errors. Read more about our integrations here.

Connect your other IT systems via APIs.
- REST API and SOAP API for connecting order, purchasing and product information among others.
- Connect your automation equipment using the Automation API.
- React immediately to changes using webhooks.

Ecosystem of ready-made integrations

Ecommerce platforms
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems
Delivery Management Software
Transport planning systems
Customs management systems
Purchasing and inventory management software

Book a demo

Ongoing WMS used on a laptop and a mobile phone

Benefits of using Ongoing WMS

Read full article

What is a WMS?

WMS stands for Warehouse Management System and is a software application that aims to simplify the warehousing and logistics operations of a company. The WMS allows you to see what items are in the warehouse, their quantity, and where they are located. You can also see and create orders for which items are to be picked, packed, and shipped to the customer. In this way, warehouse workers can log in to the software and know which items to pick, when to pick them and where to send them. A WMS is often integrated with related systems like ecommerce platforms (the software for online retailers) ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning software for business processes such as accounting, management, etc), and transport systems, all of which simplify and automate the warehouse processes. Overall, a WMS can be said to increase traceability, minimize errors, and increase efficiency in a warehouse.

Who needs a WMS?

The businesses most in need of a WMS are those with logistics-intensive operations. For logistics companies such as third-party logistic providers (3PL) who mostly provide warehouse outsourcing, take care of order picking, shipping, and more for their customers, the WMS has a business-critical role in the operation. For ecommerce and some other logistics-intensive businesses, a WMS is also crucial for operational efficiency. Initially, it is possible to manage warehouse operations manually without a WMS. But as the business becomes more complex and the warehouse grows, a WMS can be a gamechanger.

What types of WMSs are there?

Small-sized companies with minimal warehouse operation can manage their stock balances in an Excel sheet or similar. Other companies with smaller warehouse operations often manage their warehouse in the ERP’s WMS module, which tends to have the most basic functions. Some companies specialize solely in WMS which have considerably more functionality in comparison to an ERP. Most commonly, the WMS is cloud-based, which is a great advantage as it can be easily accessed at any location via any web browser.

Depending on the needs of the company, different solutions are chosen for its warehouse. An important thing to consider is whether you have unique needs and need a tailor-made solution or whether a standard solution is enough. When a standard solution is applied, the customer uses the existing features of the WMS which for most companies, does the job. A customized solution, on the other hand, allows customers to adopt the WMS to their unique requirements. However, a customized WMS might be very resource and time-intensive as the customer needs to finance tailored features of the WMS to their specific needs.

In summary, the easiest thing to do for most companies is to find a WMS that is standardized and cloud-based. This is because it is very quick to get up and running and no large investment is needed.

What should you expect from a full-scale WMS?

In addition to a WMS being cloud-based, many providers use the Software as a Service (SaaS) model, which comes with a lot of benefits. For example the customer pays a monthly fee to use the system. This means it is cheaper and you do not have to invest heavily to get started.

Depending on the warehousing business, different features are important. For example, for a 3PL logistics provider, it is important to be able to manage several different goods owners (the owners of the goods in the third-party operated warehouse) in the software, while an ecommerce business may have a greater focus on picking goods quickly and efficiently. A common way to pick efficiently is to use barcode scanning which the WMS should support.

It is also important that the WMS provider has a well-developed API (an Application Programming Interface enabling different software to communicate with each other), which makes it easy for other parties to integrate with the software. If the WMS provider has a modern API, a third party can easily integrate with it, whereas if there is no API or a poor one, a lot of extra time and effort is required. What it means to integrate a WMS is further explained in the following section.

What does it mean to use an integrated WMS?

Perhaps the most important thing about a WMS is that it has integrations with other systems such as ecommerce platforms, ERP systems, transport systems, and automation solutions such as robotic storage, conveyor belts, and storage lifts. Having integrated systems means a seamless exchange of information that removes a lot of manual work.

A good way to find a WMS can be to visit for example your ecommerce platform/transport- and ERP system's website to see which WMSs they are integrated with.

Summary

A WMS increases traceability, minimizes errors, and increases efficiency in a warehouse. The most important characteristics of a WMS are that it is web-based, SaaS, and has modern APIs and a wide range of integrations to related systems.

Read more about our WMS

Read full article

Book a demo