E-Commerce Trends Drive Demand For Mobility Solutions In Distribution

By Christine Kern, contributing writer

Nearly 90 percent of distribution centers are poised to add voice direction technology over the next five years, and demand is driving the need to improve accuracy and workflow process in order to provide better service, according to a new mobility study from Honeywell.

While the rise of e-commerce provides more consumer options and flexibility, it also poses significant challenges to distribution centers trying to keep up with the demand. Customers are increasingly demanding faster and more accurate delivery of their orders, which means that distribution centers must respond accordingly. The Honeywell survey polled hundreds of IT decision-makers in the United States, United Kingdom, France, and Germany and found that the need for increased order fulfillment accuracy and improved customer service requests are driving the adoption of mobile solutions by distribution centers. Currently, nearly two-thirds of distribution centers support omnichannel distribution, with data capture and asset tracking systems that allow them to fulfill orders both from retailers and from consumers purchasing online.

The study also found that distribution centers lose an average of $400,000 a year on picking errors, demonstrating the need for better practices. Technologies that can help reduce picking errors, and thus improve accuracy and reduce costs, include mobile computers, printers and scanners with more reliable data capture technology, and wireless headsets with voice direction to improve workers’ accuracy and speed.

The survey found that using voice direction can actually add one hour of productive time per worker each month. It also found that 87 percent of U.S. respondents plan to transition to voice solutions at some point over the next five years. The survey also found that almost one-quarter of distribution center workers globally do not speak the local language, making technology solutions that support multiple languages and facilitate rapid onboarding and training of new workers crucial.