Manhattan Active WMS Standardization for a Leading Retail Grocery Chain
A Manhattan Active WMS Case Study
Customer Overview
ITOrizon partnered with a major Retail/Grocery chain, generating $14.4B in revenue, to implement a comprehensive Common Template design across their existing Manhattan Active system environment. This standardization effort enhanced their core Manhattan Active WMS (MAWM), Labor Management System (LMS), Supply Chain Intelligence (SCI), and Slotting systems.
Project Challenges
Customer has 25+ DCs running in legacy WMS. First DC is NOT Part of global template – lot of efficiency concerns – SDN rollout and certification concerns led them to rethink the WMS modernization strategy they reached out to ITOrizon with below expectations.
The client operated a high-volume Distribution Center (DC) that required a complex, non-disruptive transition to the new global process leveraging the common template.
Key challenges included
1. Operational Continuity:
The DC had established SOPs and a large volume of transactions, demanding a production deployment with limited operations downtime and a zero-disruption Go-Live.
2. Project Timeline:
A critical challenge was staying within the strict project timeline for configuration, testing, and deployment.
3. Reporting Deficiency:
A lack of standardized reports for operational use complicated the process of defining requirements for the new SCI reporting suite.
Project Objective
Template Implementation:
Implement the latest Common Template design to the existing MA Active system (MAWM, LMS, SCI & Slotting).
Standardization & Documentation:
Create and update Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs / SPTAs), re-train associates, and standardize a suite of SCI reports to meet operational needs.
Configuration Governance:
Tracking all configuration changes made within each of the DC’s environments to ensure a smooth Cutover and Go-Live. Developing a plan to Deploy in advance keeping the project within the timeline.
Solution Delivered by ITOrizon
ITOrizon leveraged its deep domain expertise in WMS, LMS, SCI, and Slotting to deliver a successful implementation. The team provided 24/7 onsite support covering all DC shifts to manage the complex transition. The comprehensive solutions included:
Global Business Requirement
Gather overall warehouse process requirements through the standard questionnaire and local DC / product specific requirements were gathered to consolidate and identify the global requirement definitions
Global Solution Template
Over 700+ Requirements collected which spanned WMS, LMS, SCI and Slotting functional areas for the common template design meant to capture 80% Common requirements and 20% Site specific requirements for DCs in scope for the Modernization initiative.
Configuration and Documentation
Thorough documentation of the Business Requirements Document (BRD) and Configuration Playbook was completed. Existing, unneeded configuration in the production environment was cleaned up to ease long-term maintenance.
Custom SCI Reporting
The team gathered Common Template requirements from stakeholders for SCI Dashboards, Inbound/Outbound reports, Labor Management reports, and KPI reports. They then designed, developed, and validated the SCI reports to track key DC operational metrics.
Extension Support and Testing
Provided complete life cycle support for E2E extensions (features not supported in base MAWM), including requirements gathering, testing, configuration, deployment, and post-go-live support. ITOrizon developed and executed a comprehensive list of System Test cases, which minimized production issues during Go-Live.
Understanding the DCs flow and ensuring all edge cases were thoroughly tested to minimize disruptions and allow the project to stay within the timeline.
Training and Deployment
Developed a suitable deployment strategy for the limited available downtime. The team supported the creation of SOPs/SPTAs adhering to the new Common Template design and seeded data for training associates.
Project Outcome and Customer Benefits
The successful template implementation resulted in immediate system stability and significant performance improvements.
Key Benefits Achieved:
- Global Business Process Adoption – & Accelerated Operational Efficiency
- Increased Throughput: A 10% increase in case count shipped by the DC was achieved.
- Reduced Cancellations: A significant reduction in Order quantity cancellation was reported.
- Stability Post-Go-Live: System stability was proven through a limited number of issues reported during hypercare.
- Seamless Transition: Achieved a Zero-Disruption transition during Go-live.
- Global Business Process Adoption – Re-trained associates using the updated SOP/SPTA, resulting in reduced user errors.
- Data-Driven Decisions: Developed a standardized suite of reports for Inbound, Outbound, and Labor management, providing supervisors with necessary insights to act on operational progress.
ITOrizon Inc., a global end-to-end IT supply chain ecosystem service leader based in Atlanta, with offshore locations in India and Dubai, has been helping clients ensure success for more than 10 years. We maximize the value of existing ecosystem investments while outpacing the competition with a human-first service delivery client experience. Industry analysts such as Gartner, ISG, and ARC Advisory have recognized us for our high-performance services team, built to scale and delivering strategic advisory, implementation/integration, digital transformation, and managed support services.
