category: Warehousing

Uniform Apparel Company Turns to Fulco Fulfillment to Reinvent Their Inventory Management

Fulco Fulfillment, Inc. (FFI) partnered with a rapidly expanding uniform apparel company that was quickly outgrowing their fulfillment and storage areas. They were looking for a 3PL partner that could handle their increasing sales and changing environment and needed a warehousing solution to assist with their supply meeting demand.

Faced with the dilemma that their previous fulfillment provider abruptly shut their doors and went out of business, they found FFI while looking for a suitable 3PL partner to handle their warehousing and fulfillment needs. Owners Jennifer Marcello and Tony Rossi visited the uniform apparel company’s current warehouse to review the current situation. They immediately noted the challenges ahead of them, that would be required to effectively organize the inventory. A lot of work needed to be done before being able to pick and pack orders. To properly manage an accurate inventory for our new client, we would need to work together.

Searching for a Smart Warehousing Solution

To begin, the uniform apparel company’s physical inventory was transferred to FFI’s facility which was then sorted, separated, re-labeled, counted, and placed in picking stations for order fulfillment. As time went by and demand for the apparel grew, so did the varieties and styles on their website.

Seeing the Need for Inventory Management

With all of the new varieties and styles of uniforms on their website and an increase in orders, the company saw that they were outgrowing their basic inventory management system which involved receiving a daily file upload for orders to be completed and shipped out. Working with the client, FFI implemented an API integration with their ecommerce system for real time inventory management.

Building Efficiencies to Accommodate Growth

FFI quickly saw the need to scale our client’s warehouse picking areas to accommodate their growth. With the use of a time study, FFI measured the length of time it took employees to pick orders of various sizes and complexities. Keeping the importance of prioritizing the quickest moving items in the front, over the next five weeks FFI reorganized the majority of warehouse inventory by moving our customer’s entire SKU (stock-keeping unit) list into a dedicated area. In addition, we reviewed the receiving process step by step looking to revamp the way that items came into the warehouse to further help streamline the process.

The Result: A Revamped Warehouse and Inventory Management System

After consolidating inventories into a singular location, FFI saw measured improvements of 14%-18% efficiency increase in our client’s pick rates. Our suggestions to the client on revamping the receiving of their inventory also saw a radical time improvement.

The inventory management ecommerce API integration works seamlessly and provides an interface for client access to live inventory numbers whenever they need them. The integration transmits orders via an automatic order import to FFI’s order management system (OMS) and seamlessly returns tracking information and does an inventory sync. We helped our client automate time-consuming and redundant tasks by replacing error prone manual processes.

With FFI’s help, the client benefitted from a streamlined order fulfillment and management system that helped get orders out faster and built a future-proof system that can scale as the company increases its sales and product offerings.

Need Help Streamlining Your Inventory Management? Contact Fulco Fulfillment Today!

At Fulco Fulfillment Inc., we are always looking for ways to work smarter and more efficiently when it comes to services like warehouse and inventory management. Call Fulco Fulfillment at 973-361-1700 to schedule your free consultation and get things moving with your company’s warehouse and inventory management.

Fulfillment and Inventory Control

In order to prevent a kit backorder situation, a major manufacturer and Fulco Fulfillment Inc. (FFI) worked together to set-up an automatic reorder system.

The FFI order management system allowed us to set minimums for each kit, kitting supplies and component of each kit. When inventory levels reach the minimum level an automatic reorder notification is generated. The notification goes to the appropriate printer or supplier of each component creating an automatic reorder. Kits remain stocked at all times and never fall to zero.

FFI created a web shopping cart for wholesalers in the field to order kits. To keep the customer’s wholesalers informed, FFI set the system to automatically generate email notifications for order confirmations and order shipments. Order shipment emails also include a tracking number.

FFI Tackles Warehousing and EDI Challenges

A large manufacturer of office supplies needed to provide a major U.S. retailer with ongoing product replenishment, with heavier shipments during back-to-school season. Economical storage rates and a flexible workforce were the main reasons FFI was chosen as this manufacturer’s fulfillment partner. But the retail customer required specialized EDI integration and shipping documentation. Although FFI provides EDI services as needed, in this case the most practical approach was to use the existing EDI structure. The challenge: how to maintain security for both the supplier and the retailer while sharing network and software resources.

FFI systems staff worked with our customer to develop a plan that protected each network while allowing effective communication. Orders would originate at the manufacturer, be securely transmitted to FFI for picking and packing, then would be transmitted back to the originating system for EDI documentation. FFI personnel would generate all EDI documents and ensure compliance with all packaging requirements. The result was a system that was transparent to the retailer, yet allowed our customer  to concentrate on its core business. FFI provided 99.7% performance on accuracy and on-time delivery despite seasonal volume fluctuations. EDI documents were created and transmitted seamlessly, prompting commendations from the retailer for flawless performance at FFI.