Tempe, AZ May 22, 2002 Optum, a provider of supply chain execution software, today rolled out the latest release of its flagship warehouse management system (WMS), offering a browser-based user interface for monitoring, managing and synchronizing fulfillment processes within individual warehouses and across distribution networks.
The new application, MOVE 7I, is Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE) compliant, Internet-enabled and boasts a new graphical user interface, which Optum said gives the solution a "zero-footprint client" that facilitates use, implementations and upgrades.
Murray Bower, chief information officer at current Optum WMS customer Systemax, a manufacturer and distributor of private label and name-brand computer and industrial products, agreed that the new solution's use of browser-based technology offered an appealing upgrade path. "The 'zero-footprint client' in MOVE 7i will have a significant impact on IT organizations, fundamentally changing how companies implement, deploy and maintain these critical supply chain applications," Bower predicted.
Primary among the system's major upgrades is MOVE 7i Visibility, a new product that provides companies a centralized view of order, inventory and fulfillment activity at each distribution center, helping them to maximize the efficiency of their supply chains. For example, logistics managers can now look across multiple facilities to direct a supplier shipment to the optimal location based on actual need, while customer service representatives can ensure inventory availability at order inception to set realistic delivery expectations.
Other component in MOVE 7i include Yard Manager, which enables company's to schedule and prioritize the arrival of inbound shipments to ensure personnel, space and equipment are optimally utilized; Labor, which uses real-time data from MOVE 7i WMS to plan inbound and outbound workloads based upon available resources in the distribution center and reports productivity, order fill rate and product velocity; and Alerts, which monitors events across MOVE 7i, providing notification via e-mail, pager or fax to, for example, customers when their shipments have left the warehouse, suppliers when their shipments have been received, or a warehouse supervisor when an order slated for pickup has fallen behind.
