FITT Increases Value of WMS with Mobile Solution
After implementing Zebra mobile devices to the FITT's SAP warehouse management system, it wanted top-of-the-line mobile devices to support its new practices.
Zebra Success Story: FITT
Overview: Manufacturing and Distribution Challenge
With the implementation of a SAP® WM system at its site in Fara Vicentino, Italy, FITT wanted to update its mobile devices to efficiently trace products along the supply chain, from finished production to dispatch.
Benefits / Outcomes
- Improved product traceability and process visibility along the supply chain
- Greater productivity and efficiency in stock control
- Excellent user feedback about how the devices’ ease of use, scanning range, Wi-Fi connectivity, battery life and processing speeds contributed to greater workflow speeds and efficiency
- Ease of deployment, remote management and ongoing support: an optimal long-term solution and good return on investment (ROI)
- Blueprint system for other FITT sites
Customer
FITT
Vicenza, Italy
Industry
Manufacturing and Distribution
Solutions
About FITT
Headquartered in the province of Vicenza, Italy, FITT is an international leader in the production and development of complete thermoplastic fluid transfer solutions. Its systems, which are at the forefront of technology, design and sustainability, are built for a wide range of sectors, from industrial and construction, infrastructure, irrigation and engineering to gardening and leisure. With over 60% market share, FITT is the European market leader in flexible garden hoses. FITT has almost 1000 employees worldwide working at ten European production sites (seven in Italy), 13 logistics hubs and five subsidiaries. FITT distributes its products to 87 countries and had a turnover of 304 million euros in 2021.
The Challenge
FITT had been using a fleet of ageing mobile devices running unified management solution (UMS) software at its Fara Vicentino site. However, when the decision was taken to migrate its processes to the SAP warehouse management system (WMS), which is already installed in some areas of the business, it started looking for best-in-class mobile devices to support its new processes.
As Loris Gallo, ICT Manager and SAP Migration Project Manager, FITT, explains: “I was looking for flexible, easy-to-use, all-in-one Android™ devices that we could manage remotely. That’s important if we are going to install this solution at other sites. I needed wireless devices with bigger screens to validate finished product confirmations on production lines and give operators increased visibility into finished production. Our previous mobile devices’ screens were too small and they weren’t wirelessly connected. We also needed another mobile device with longrange scanning capabilities, strong Wi-Fi connectivity and clear outdoor readability for use across our extensive storage areas.”
When migrating our departmental systems to SAP WM at our plant in Fara Vicentino, we wanted to deploy best-in-class, flexible and robust hardware to support our new processes. Zebra devices are designed for our environment and were the obvious choice. They are helping us drive productivity and efficiency when it comes to finished products and stock movements. And, following the success of this project, we’re hoping this solution will be the blueprint for our other sites. In fact, we’re just about to deploy a similar system out at our garden division plant in Sandrigo, although we’ll have to make a few tweaks, as each site has its idiosyncrasies.
The Solution
Working in close collaboration with its long-term, locally based Zebra certified partner, which specialises in industrial automation, FITT has now deployed Zebra CC6000 customer concierges and Zebra MC9300 ultra-rugged mobile touch computers at its Fara Vicentino site. The customer concierges are used in the production area for validating finished products. A CC6000 concierge has been deployed on each production line, and the shift manager initialises the order production and assigns the device to the order. At the end of the production line, finished pipes, tubes and conduits are stacked onto a pallet. When the pallet is complete, the operator scans a barcoded label with the CC6000 to validate the products and to cross-check confirmation and production indicators on screen. As the CC6000 is wireless, teams can work more efficiently and flexibly, and the large display allows them to view more information and check whether they have completed actions correctly, giving them greater control over production quality and outcomes. The label is then applied to the pallet, as stock is monitored on a pallet-by-pallet basis rather than by individual products. There are usually around 15,000 pallets in stock at any one time.
The Zebra Difference: Outcome and Benefits
Improving Stock Movement Visibility
FITT aims to dispatch all customer orders within two working days, and circa 6,000 lorry loads leave this facility every year, shipping to 42 European countries. The Zebra MC9300 touch computers are now used across the warehouse and in the 67,000 m² outdoor storage areas to manage stock movements and help front-line workers sustain that fulfilment tempo.
Once a pallet is complete, a forklift driver arrives and scans the pallet barcode to confirm its warehouse destination for put away. Warehouse teams also use the touch computers for order picking and to compile new pallets for dispatch, as customers usually need a wide array of different products (over 700 different SKUs are produced at this site), as well as to check the pallets onto the lorry at one of the ten loading bays.
The Benefit of a Supported Solution and Process Standardisation
FITT developed web-based interfaces and applications used for finished product checks and stock movement monitoring in-house, then ensured integration with FITT’s SAP systems. And the IT team uses SOTI® MobiControl to centrally stage, manage and troubleshoot its devices. FITT also added the Zebra OneCare™ maintenance plan to ensure it received the security patches and firmware and software updates needed to keep the devices working optimally. The plan coverage also ensures damaged devices are repaired in a timely manner.
Holistically, the solution is delivering enhanced productivity and efficiency along FITT’s supply chain, as well as improved product traceability, process flexibility and visibility into order status. End users find the solution altogether more intuitive and easier to use than their previous devices and software, while IT teams can also work more effectively, thanks to the centralised management and standardisation of processes and devices.
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