Web Order Fulfillment System Wins Prestigious Microsoft Retail Logistics Award

Contact:
Ann Barker
Email: annbarker@scandata.com
Phone: 614-766-6622 x237

For Immediate Release

Fifth Award for ScanData Systems

(July 17, 2001) Microsoft® named ScanData’s web order fulfillment system, WFS-Outlook, as Best Retail Headquarters- Logistics application as part of the 2001 Retail & Hospitality Application Developer (RAD) Awards. This prestigious award is given to application developers who make the best use of Microsoft technology to provide business benefits to customers in the retail industry. This is the fifth Microsoft RAD award presented to ScanData Systems, a Dublin, Ohio-based developer of warehouse management systems.

ScanData’s web order fulfillment system, WFS-Outlook, enables retailers moving to web-based fulfillment to maximize their existing store-based distribution processes while leveraging web-site based order entry. This package takes advantage of established operational infrastructures and executes both web and store-based distribution without disrupting the existing operational flow of the warehouse. Highly scaleable, the system can process a thousand, or hundreds of thousands of shipments daily providing the accuracy to ensure savings of up to 90% by reducing customer service costs related to received orders and shipping.

Winners were chosen by an independent panel of experts from the retail and distribution industry based on their ability to show quantifiable business benefits, best use of Microsoft Technology, ease of adoption, and best integration/ exploitation of internet technology. “We are honored that industry experts presented ScanData with its fifth RAD award. These awards speak to ScanData’s ability to provide quality distribution solutions for the retail industry and are further indicative of our position in the marketplace,” said John Dalton, CEO of ScanData Systems.

Award-winning functionality, how it works

 Consolidating Orders – Outbound orders are consolidated into “master” order groupings and sent to the existing warehouse management system to drive picking. Since the order pick file mimics a store-based order, the fulfillment process continues as it always has with no additional labor and without a new set of picking parameters.

 De-Consolidating Orders -Once product is picked, operators are directed to separate picked items into order-based containers. Pack lists and exceptions documents are printed.

 Packing and Accuracy Validation -After goods are picked and deconsolidated, packers create and pack shippable units, verify order accuracy through use of bar codes, and automatically update order statuses. Operators verify order carton content, generate invoices, gift cards, and/ or pricing tickets and print carrier compliant shipping labels.

 Compliant Shipping- Industry and carrier compliant paperwork and electronic manifests are generated. Status information regarding order/ shipment is shared across the enterprise.

Retailers Maximize ROI and Existing Infrastructures

Highly configurable and powered by Microsoft technology, WFS-Outlook enables traditional store-based retailers to effectively utilize existing distribution infrastructure to fulfill web orders by -

 Consolidating web-based orders so that they can be fulfilled in the same manner as store-based orders maximizing order processing order time

 Interfacing with the web store front and existing WMS system for enterprise data sharing

 Solving the complexities of B2C shipping including order verification, pack list generation, parcel carrier compliance and ship order status

 Providing true scalability working with diverse ranges of shipment volume

About ScanData Systems

ScanData Systems, a Microsoft® Certified Partner and five-time Microsoft RAD award winner, provides Windows-based e-fulfillment and manifest systems for high volume and small parcel shippers. Manufacturers, traditional brick & mortar retailers, e-commerce companies and catalog/ fulfillment houses have implemented ScanData’s products into some of the most intense distribution environments across North America. Additional company information can be found at www.scandata.com. More information regarding the Microsoft RAD awards can be found at www.microsoft.com/business/retail.