Unlike our old WMS, which we’d built specific developments around, we now have access to a regular stream of new features. And we’re fully equipped to adapt quickly as our customers’ needs evolve.
The project at a glance
V33, a manufacturer of paints and wood protection and renovation products, has rolled out Reflex WMS at four warehouses, located in France, Poland, and the UK, as it looks to harmonize its omnichannel logistics processes while factoring in the specific features of each site. Since deploying the application, V33 has achieved substantial productivity gains of up to 25%.
Context and objectives
V33 is a French manufacturer of paints and wood protection and renovation products sold under several brands: V33, Libéron, Cecil Professionnel, Hypnotik, and Plastor. The company has six subsidiaries, operating in Italy, Switzerland, Spain and Portugal, Belgium, the UK, and Poland.
V33 delivers its products to home-improvement chain logistics warehouses, stores, and professionals, as well as to retail customers via e-commerce websites. It has two warehouses in France—a fully owned 22,000 sq. m facility and a second 4,500 sq. m site, which is outsourced—plus three local logistics platforms, located in Italy (3,000 sq. m, outsourced), Poland (3,100 sq. m), and the UK (2,500 sq. m). Together, these sites distribute thousands of different products across around 30 countries.
In 2019, V33 decided to switch to a new WMS, with three aims in mind:
- Optimize and harmonize its omnichannel logistics processes while factoring in the specific features of each site
- Adopt a scalable application that could manage its processes out of the box, avoiding the need for specific developments
- Boost the productivity of its logistics teams
Solution
After launching a tender and assessing three potential applications, V33 opted for Hardis Group’s WMS because it met the company’s immediate needs and because the associated roadmap aligned with its future priorities.
V33 developed a core model to standardize logistics processes in France, Poland, and the UK, as well as to support and accelerate multi-site deployments. The migration was completed in 2021 for the company’s two main warehouses in France, which together handle 15,000 separate products, 600 orders, and 20,000 order lines each day. The warehouse in Poland, which manages 1,200 products and 100 orders per day, switched to the new system in June 2022, while the UK site, which handles 600 items and 30 daily orders, migrated in June 2023. The company’s Italian warehouse was excluded from the project because its logistics provider already had an efficient, off-the-shelf WMS.
The warehouse management software is connected to the ERP system and to TDI’s Exlabel application, which handles labels and transport documents. Around 30% of orders are subject to the ADR or the IMDG Code, which govern the international carriage of dangerous goods by road and sea respectively.
- Substantial productivity gains: 15% in France, 20% in Poland, and 25% in the UK
- A scalable WMS system that meets V33’s requirements out of the box
- Ability to adapt quickly as customers’ needs evolve