TRIO Leuchten, one of Germany’s leading specialist providers of decorative home lighting, has transformed its warehouse operations by working with StayLinked partner, Scheffer & Hille, to deploy StayLinked’s terminal emulation (TE) software SmartTE, and Evolve, StayLinked’s no-code technology adoption software platform. The StayLinked solutions have enabled TRIO Leuchten to significantly enhance the productivity, efficiency and accuracy of its order picking processes.
“Like many warehouse operations, we suffered from the number one productivity killer: dropped sessions,” explained Peter Schulte, Head of Logistics for TRIO Leuchten. “With 100 Honeywell mobile devices being used within the picking process, dropped sessions occurred as a result of workers going out of Wi-Fi range or their devices having low battery power. Dropped sessions, for whatever reason, resulted in major disruptions. We needed to eliminate this threat to our productivity.”
Additionally, TRIO Leuchten’s previous TE software did not allow the configuration of mobile devices from a central location, so changing even the smallest setting was a huge and time-consuming task.
Drawing on its extensive experience of successfully providing warehouse solutions and its superior knowledge of StayLinked’s solutions, Scheffer & Hille worked closely with Manuel Nieder, TRIO Leuchten’s Software Developer to replace TRIO Leuchten’s legacy TE solution with StayLinked’s SmartTE software.
“SmartTE and its True Session Persistence is invaluable,” explained Nieder. “Crashed sessions, and all the associated disruptive consequences, are a thing of the past and the ability to configure the SmartTE client from a central location is a big advantage. Both of these features play a vital role in increasing our operational efficiencies.”
Scheffer & Hille was able to show Nieder just how the many SmartTE features opened up endless possibilities to enhance TRIO Leuchten’s warehouse operations. For example, SmartTE allows the implementation of different applications on mobile devices without having to touch the source code of the application.
“In a very short time we have been able to implement application workflow enhancements we previously thought would not be possible,” added Nieder. “We can create graphical interfaces or automate operations with no problems. It is even possible to display images of items within the warehouse, which helps our workers more easily identify items to be picked. A capability I would not normally expect from a TE solution!”
One of the great strengths of StayLinked’s SmartTE is that it enables the deployment of Evolve, StayLinked’s no-code technology adoption software platform. Evolve is fast becoming the enabler for the evolution of warehouse operations through the adoption of new technologies.
Evolve provides the glue that quickly, easily and seamlessly connects new technologies to an existing warehouse management system (WMS) providing a low-risk, low-cost approach to new technology adoption.
Evolve enables the WMS to ‘talk’ the same language as new technologies so that they can be plugged-in to the WMS without the need for costly, disruptive and risky integration. Existing workflows are quickly and easily augmented without the requirement for coding or scripting.
“Evolve was the key element in helping us to meet TRIO Leuchten’s requirement for a solution that enabled it to equip warehouse employees with the ProGlove MARK Display, a wearable scanner with a smart display, enabling order picking to be conducted using both hands,” said Sebastian Finke, Scheffer & Hille’s Managing Director.
From an integrator’s perspective the adoption of a new technology with TRIO Leuchten’s proprietary WMS was potentially fraught with problems including: the stability of the data connection between the ProGlove and its mobile computer, the ease at which the employee could pair the systems, the ability to deliver the necessary data to ProGlove’s display, and the speed at which requested changes could implemented.
“However, having implemented the solution, I can safely say that none of the above was a problem!” stated Finke.
“Using StayLinked’s SmartTE True Session Persistence, Scheffer & Hille has eliminated lost productivity and disruption from dropped sessions. SmartTE has also made it much quicker and easier for us to configure mobile device applications,” added TRIO Leuchten’s Schulte.
“We then asked the Scheffer & Hille team to get the deployment of the ProGlove MARK Displays completed as quickly as possible, and without breaking anything else on the system. Evolve allowed them to do just that! StayLinked’s SmartTE and Evolve have revolutionised our warehouse operations.” concluded Schulte.