Case Study Coop E-Commerce Warehouse

software wamas

A Highly Efficient E-Commerce Warehouse Created in 14 Days

With the support of SSI SCHAEFER, the Swiss retail company Coop set up and commissioned an e-commerce warehouse in the town of Altishofen within the space of just two weeks to allow it to process a surge in online orders in good time. SSI SCHAEFER equipped the new facility with its WAMAS® logistics software.

Implementation of the warehouse management software WAMAS® in an e-commerce warehouse

While traditionally rooted in brick and mortar retail, Coop recorded a sharp rise in orders via the online shop Coop.ch during the lockdown of spring 2020. Faced with this unforeseeable spike in demand, the logistics structures reached the limits of their capacity. A quick solution therefore had to be found to create more storage space and offer customers additional delivery time slots.

Coop initiated a twin-pillar strategy. First, an assortment of products was defined that would keep an average Swiss household supplied with basic goods. These products would then be handled via a 6,000 square meter warehouse leased at short notice, equipped with a new IT and logistics infrastructure, and connected to the Coop network, all within the space of 14 days. WAMAS® was implemented in partnership with SSI SCHAEFER. At the same time, more than 100 pickers were trained to operate the logistics software, which has been used since commissioning to manage the rapid processing of online orders efficiently via 300 pick-up locations with multiple placement. The extremely user-friendly WAMAS® user interface also ensured that staff could learn the system quickly.

Coop has relied on the software expertise of SSI SCHAEFER for its warehouse management since 2001. The retail and wholesale company uses a uniform warehouse management (WMS) solution at all its locations to optimize performance and harmonize logistics processes. Another advantage of WAMAS® is the increased transparency of all stocks and transactions with complete traceability. The integrated software standard, tailor-made for Coop, as well as trust in the partner's know-how built up over the course of a 20-year collaboration, proved decisive in overcoming even unplanned events:

"Setting up a warehouse from scratch and putting it into operation in just 14 days is only possible with dependable partners, and a team where everyone knows what to do, and if you can fully rely on each other," says Martin Nyfeler, Head of IT Pro. WW Logistics/SCM, Coop, underlining the successful collaboration with SSI SCHAEFER.

Flexibility, responsiveness, and the ability to put ideas into practice are always elementary success factors, but in challenging times they are downright essential. While seasonal fluctuations in demand can be cushioned by precise advance planning over several months, a pandemic event calls for ad-hoc measures to maintain supply chains. These can only be implemented effectively with the support of a long-standing software partner like SSI SCHAEFER, who understands both the industry and the customer's specific needs, and is fully familiar with the processes. At the same time, the new e-commerce warehouse in Altishofen which has been implemented within a very short time for Coop – a retail company that has also become a successful online retailer – is tangible proof that the material handling specialist has again lived up to its promise to deliver flexibility and speed plus security and stability in every situation.

Blog: The Supreme Discipline of E-Commerce: Intralogistics Solutions for Food Retail

Freshness, timeliness, and service quality are the challenges of the food retailing industry in the classic, stationary retail trade. Due to the changing consumption patterns and the online boom in the food retail industry, new logistics challenges arise, which can only be met with state-of-the-art software.

Read more in our blog
Blog WAMAS

SSI SCHAEFER Listed in the 2021 Gartner Magic Quadrant for WMS

The renowned US research and advisory company Gartner, Inc., lists SSI SCHAEFER with its software WAMAS® in the "Magic Quadrant for Warehouse Management Systems".

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose

Läs mer
WAMAS WMS - Gartner
Har du några frågor eller funderingar?