UNIMER is a merchandise management system developed by Urudata Software to meet the needs of UNILAM, a leading company in the national retail industry.
Previously, the company managed its incoming and outgoing merchandise controls manually—a process that was demanding in terms of time and resources and did not ensure the maintenance of a real-time updated stock.
Technical Data Sheet
- Client: UNILAM – retail.
UNILAM is comprised of several brands:
- GUAPA: Women’s apparel
- Lucce: Pajamas and underwear
- Grecco: Men’s apparel
- Pappolino: Children’s apparel
- Paprika: Home goods
- Size/Location: Multiple branches throughout the country
- Main Objectives: Automate the merchandise management process, facilitating the maintenance of real-time stock, providing real-time information, generating metrics and reports, and tracking shipments and product deliveries.
OBJECTIVES AND CHALLENGES
Before implementing the solution, the client:
- Carried out manual controls for incoming and outgoing merchandise.
- The merchandise receiving process took hours, as each received item had to be manually marked on a list.
- Suffered delays in carrying out the controls and updating the stock.
- Had an outdated stock of merchandise, with unreliable and non-current information.
- Had limited visibility and traceability of stock movements.
- Encountered problems tracking the merchandise and knowing its status and location in a timely manner.
Client objectives:
- Obtain reliable, real-time information on all stock movements (receptions, transfers, returns).
- Automate the controls. Accurately update the stock received by each branch. Ensure traceability of the information. Have the ability to track shipments and deliveries.
- Generate metrics and reports from the gathered information.
THE SOLUTION
- The process transitioned from manual merchandise control to automated control through the scanning of item labels, significantly reducing the time required for this task.
- Once the control is confirmed, the stock of the merchandise actually received is updated in SAP, allowing for knowledge of the real stock received and a more expedited stock update process.
- Manual transfers and returns are replaced by system-based processes. This generates records of these movements, enabling tracking of their status and automatically updating the corresponding stock increases and decreases at the various locations the merchandise passes through until reaching its final destination.
- Toda la información es trazable, generando registros de qué usuario realiza cada movimiento, la fecha, hora, sucursal de origen, sucursal de destino; y en los casos en los que el movimiento pasa por diferentes sucursales, se registra toda la información cada vez que ingresa y sale de una sucursal.
RESULTS ACHIEVED
- The automation of the merchandise management process resulted in substantial time savings. For new merchandise reception, the process reduced from taking hours or even days to being completed in minutes. Time spent correcting entered stock is also saved, as is the time required to generate reports, thanks to the reporting module included in the system.
- Additionally, the system helped identify areas for improvement in the shipment and reception process that had previously gone unnoticed.