Hozelock Builds Flexible, Dynamic Business with Warehouse Management System from RedPrairie


Melbourne Australia - Leading UK and European garden products manufacturer Hozelock has chosen Warehouse Management from RedPrairie to manage its distribution centre near Birmingham. With its broad application suite and industry-leading functionality, Warehouse Management meets 95% of Hozelock's needs out of the box and gives the company a robust, scalable, technology platform for future growth. RedPrairie's solution also supports the mix of narrow aisle, pushback racking and wide aisle storage facilities used at the distribution centre from a single system and manages truck movements intelligently to optimise operating efficiency.

Hozelock chose RedPrairie for its flexible solution suite that provides advanced capabilities from standard functionality and integrates with the company's MFG/PRO ERP back office. "We needed to replace our warehouse management solution as the hardware was being de-supported," says Terry Bennett, Director of Logistics at Hozelock. "RedPrairie's Warehouse Management solution had no constraints in terms of functionality and reference visits to existing customers convinced us that it was a better fit for our needs than the alternatives we evaluated."

After a 13-week implementation in the raw materials warehouse and subsequent roll out to the finished goods division of the distribution centre, Warehouse Management is now used by up to 60 warehouse managers, operatives and forklift drivers simultaneously. Warehouse Management now controls the movement of all bulk pallet shipments of raw materials or finished goods from arrival to despatch in real time.

Easy configuration of Warehouse Management means that managers can adapt the RF screen to suit their job requirements. In addition, managers are able to interrogate data on stock levels, throughput and performance at the warehouse and extract reports from the system faster and more easily. "Warehouse Management offers us flexibility to make adaptations that will optimise working practices," says Terry Bennett. " We are taking advantage of this to enhance our efficiency."

Hozelock is confident that the breadth and scope of Warehouse Management, with its configurable rules engine and intelligent workflow capability, will enable it to meet most future needs from standard functionality. This will reduce the need for customisations in the future while enabling the company to achieve ever-higher levels of efficiency.

"We are delighted that Hozelock has chosen Warehouse Management as the platform for its business," comments RedPrairie International Managing Director and President, Martin Hiscox. "RedPrairie's flexible solutions have put us at the forefront of the industry for many years. Warehouse Management empowers users with best-practice functionality that provides sustainable, long-term competitive advantage through increased productivity and lower cost of ownership.

Forthcoming RedPrairie Group Conferences: October 16 - 17, 2007 - London; May 2008 - Miami Florida. Keynote customer speaker Neil Ashworth from Tesco.com.

About Hozelock

Founded in 1959, Hozelock manufactures high quality garden products for customers all over the world. Its products are sold through major multiple retailers, independent garden centres and aquatics specialists in more than 60 countries worldwide. The company is a leading European player in its sector and has a significant share of the UK market.

All Topics