Case study · Third-party logistics
A distribution centre that runs on waves, not paper
High-volume warehouses need wave picking, license plates and mobile devices that guide every movement. This is how we implemented advanced warehouse management in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management for a distribution centre shipping thousands of orders a day.
Project overview
Advanced warehouse management on D365 SCM.
- Industry
- Logistics & distribution
- Client
- Confidential
- Solution
- Warehouse management system
- Platform
- D365 SCM WMS
- Timeline
- 6–10 months
- Team
- 5 people
- Devices
- Warehouse Management mobile app
- Carriers
- Label and manifest integration
- Volume
- Thousands of lines per day
Expected business outcomes
What the client set out to achieve
Accuracy, throughput and labour visibility are the measures.
-
99.5%+
Pick accuracy target
Every pick confirmed by scanning location, item and license plate.
Target level; depends on labelling and process discipline
-
15–30%
Higher lines picked per hour
Waves and optimised pick paths reduce walking.
Target range; depends on layout
-
Live
Work queue visibility
Supervisors see open work by zone and assign labour.
From mobile device activity
Business challenges
How the warehouse ran before
The warehouse outgrew the basic inventory module.
Receiving
Pallets received against paper and put away wherever there is space.
Picking
Order-by-order picking with printed lists.
Packing
Packing slips and carrier labels from separate tools.
Labour
Supervisors can't see what work is outstanding.
Peaks
Seasonal peaks handled with overtime and temporary staff who learn on paper.
Proposed solution
What the WMS build covers
Standard advanced warehouse management, configured for the site.
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Inbound
Receiving with license plates, quality checks and directed putaway.
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Location directives
Rules that decide where stock is stored and picked from.
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Wave planning
Orders grouped into waves by carrier, zone and cut-off.
-
Mobile work
Guided picking, replenishment and counting on handheld devices.
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Packing and shipping
Pack stations, carrier labels and shipping manifests.
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Labour and KPIs
Work queues, productivity and accuracy per zone.
Project requirements
What the client asked us for
The request was capacity: shipping more with the same space and people. The design starts with the physical layout and flows, then maps them to location and work rules.
Peak season is planned for from the start, including how temporary staff learn the devices in minutes.
What the project had to deliver
- 01Directed putaway and picking
- 02Wave planning around carrier cut-offs
- 03Integrated packing and labels
- 04Live labour visibility
Key challenges & considerations
What made it harder, and what we did
-
Complex location directives
What we did
Location directives were tested with real order volumes before go-live and adjusted where picks were inefficient.
-
Carrier-specific requirements
What we did
Carrier requirements were configured per carrier, including labels and manifests.
-
Go-live timing away from peak season
What we did
Go-live was scheduled in a quiet period, well clear of peak season.
-
Legacy racking without labels
What we did
All racking was labelled and verified by scanning before cut-over.
What we watched for
- Map the physical flow first
- Test location directives with real volumes
- Never go live in peak
- Train temporary staff on devices, not paper
Development process
Layout first, then rules
The physical warehouse drives the configuration.
-
Site analysis
Layout, flows and volumes analysed with operations.
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Configuration
Locations, directives, work templates and waves built.
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Devices and carriers
Mobile app and carrier integrations tested.
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Conference room pilots
Full-day simulations of receiving to shipping.
-
Go-live
Go-live outside peak with on-site support.
Technology stack
Dynamics 365 WMS
Microsoft's warehouse management with carrier integrations.
WMS
- D365 SCM advanced warehousing
- Wave processing
- Location directives
Mobile
- Warehouse Management mobile app
- Rugged devices
Shipping
- Carrier integration
- Label printing
Reporting
- Warehouse workspaces
- Power BI
Quality assurance & deployment
Rehearsed until cut-over was routine
Finance and supply chain systems cannot be tested in production. Processes were proved end to end in test environments, and the cut-over was rehearsed until it held no surprises.
- End-to-end process tests across finance and operations
- Automated regression tests for standard and extended processes
- Data migration rehearsals, reconciled entity by entity
- User acceptance testing by business process owners
- Performance tests at real transaction volumes
Deployment
- 01Conference room pilotsFull-day simulations of receiving to shipping.
- 02Go-liveGo-live outside peak with on-site support.
- 03Rehearsed cut-overA timed cut-over plan, rehearsed at least twice, with a go or no-go decision by the business.
- 04Hypercare and warrantyOn-site or remote support through the first period close, and six months of free bug fixing.
Final deliverables
Throughput without chaos
Every movement is directed and confirmed on a device, waves release work in time for carrier cut-offs, and supervisors see the work queue live.
Peak season becomes a planning exercise rather than a crisis.
- Directed, scanned movements
- Wave-based picking
- Integrated shipping
- Live labour visibility
Handed over to the client
- 01Configured Dynamics 365Production and test environments
- 02Extensions and integrationsSource code and documentation
- 03Migrated dataReconciled entity by entity
- 04Process documentation and trainingBy business process
- 05Six-month warrantyFree bug fixing after delivery
Success metrics
How success is measured
| Measure | Outcome | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|
| Pick accuracy target | 99.5%+ | Target level; depends on labelling and process discipline |
| Higher lines picked per hour | 15–30% | Target range; depends on layout |
| Work queue visibility | Live | From mobile device activity |
Verified reviews
What clients say about our Dynamics work
Verified reviews from our clients on the same kind of work, published on Clutch.
-
Custom Software Development
Web-Based Coupon App Development
The work produced by the team was of exceptional quality.
Jon Thies
CTO, Model Rocket Feb 2022 – Mar 2023
-
Custom Software Development
Mobile & Web Platform Development & Design
Silver Scintilla was responsive, respectful, and enjoyable to work with, quickly addressing any questions or requests.
DeShawn Brown
CEO & Founder, Lithios Jun 2021 – Nov 2022
-
Custom Software Development
Web-Based HRM System Development
Silver Scintilla provided the best solution with scalable functionality, personalized features, and robust security.
Suheb Khan
Director, Collaborative Insight Technologies Jul 2020 – Jun 2022
Related
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