Back in the late 1960s, the phrase, “It’s 10 o’clock, do you know where your children are” emerged as a popular opening line to nightly news broadcasts. While technology now makes it easier to know where your children are at any given time, it’s also technology that results in the new version of that question.

At any given time, do you know where your data are?

Inventory and warehouse management systems are all about knowing what you have and where. But for that knowledge to be truly useful, it needs to relate to something else. Simply knowing how many widgets are in your warehouse doesn’t help a customer who’s trying to place a rush order and doesn’t get a notice that the product is out of stock. Fortunately, avoiding these sorts of errors is simple, solved by integrating your warehouse management system with your ERP solution.

There are many benefits of integrating inventory management software into an existing ERP solution for any warehouse management system, including saving time, avoiding data entry errors, simplifying implementation, and consolidating data into a single database.

It’s advantageous to fully integrate a database directly with your existing ERP system. In a fully integrated system, any transaction posted to the warehouse management system will then post to your accounting system in real time. There are no delays, and no manual transfer of data.

Would you like more information on how a warehouse management system can dramatically improve your inventory control process? Download our whitepaper: A Guide to Investing in an Inventory Management System.

3 Benefits of an Integrated Warehouse Management System

Let’s take a closer look at the three benefits of fully integrating your ERP system with your warehouse and inventory management solution.

1. Eliminate Redundancies

Any time multiple databases store the same information, there’s always the possibility that you’ll need to reconcile that data.

Problems can arise when there are discrepancies between the inventory numbers in your ERP system and those in the Warehouse Management System (WMS). How do you know which system has the most accurate data? If there are data discrepancies, then you have employees who risk making important business decisions based on inaccurate data.

You can eliminate this pitfall by fully integrating the systems. Instead, transactions are processed in the warehouse, validated by the inventory management system, and then updated directly into the ERP system.

With only one set of data to keep reconciled, you’ll never have to worry about inventory discrepancies. In addition, everyone who depends on that data will always have access to the most up-to-date and accurate information.

2. Get Only What You Need

In scenarios that have two or more separate databases, you usually have to process all transactions through standalone systems with their own databases. In order to accomplish your business needs, you’ll have to purchase large, expensive software packages that likely have far more features and complexity than you need. However, if the warehouse management system is integrated directly with the ERP data, you can implement only the specific modules you need.

By integrating the same data across the board, you have increased flexibility to interact with the data from any point in the organization.

3. Simple, Easy-To-Use Interface

When using separate databases, employees will need to learn entirely new systems to maintain inventory. Instead, by integrating data into one database, you can leverage your investment in your existing ERP expertise, while also benefiting from the efficiency provided by inventory management. There’s no need to learn new interfaces, data structures, or reporting.

A fully-integrated warehouse management system that’s seamlessly integrated with your existing ERP system avoids wasting time learning a completely new system or reconciling different databases. It will also help you avoid the costs of purchasing and maintaining two new software systems or paying for modules that your organization doesn’t even need.

If it’s time to integrate so that you know where your data are at any given time, then it’s also time to contact PositiveVision. For more than 15 years, our business software services have been saving businesses money while reducing inefficiencies and growing revenue. Let us show you how best to leverage your warehouse management systems for the most efficient data processes.