Gartner: Magic Quadrant for Warehouse Management Systems
Gartner defines a warehouse management system (WMS) as a software application that manages the operations of a warehouse or distribution center (DC). WMS application functionality includes capabilities such as receiving, put-away, stock locator, inventory management, cycle counting, task interleaving, wave planning, order allocation, order picking, replenishment, packing, shipping, labor management and automated material-handling equipment interfaces (see "Stratifying WMS: A Multilevel View"; note: this document has been archived; some of its content may not reflect current conditions). Radio frequency (RF) systems, used in conjunction with bar codes and possibly RFID, provide the foundation of a WMS, delivering accurate information in real time. We include integrated functionality, such as voice picking, parcel manifesting, value-added services, light manufacturing/kitting and third-party logistics (3PL) billing, as components of a WMS evaluation. This is because many buyers now demand that these components be included in a large number of WMS engagements.
Oracle (E-Business Suite WMS)
Oracle provides an expansive portfolio of business applications, in addition to its deep roots in operating technologies, such as database management systems. The company offers WMS capabilities in several of its solutions, such as Oracle's JD Edwards EnterpriseOne and Oracle Retail (formerly Retek). There are also WMS capabilities provided as part of Oracle Warehouse Management, which is the product evaluated in this research.
Oracle Warehouse Management is a mature yet continuing-to-evolve offering, with over 600 customers worldwide, Gartner estimates. The solution now offers a choice in deployment approach. It can be provided as a seamlessly integrated extension to Oracle's E-Business Suite (EBS) for customers looking for an integrated ERP and WMS, or it can be deployed stand-alone in a distributed WMS environment. Although not part of this research, Oracle's other WMS offerings might be viable alternatives for customers looking for reasonable WMS capabilities integrated with either a strong midmarket ERP system or a suite of retail applications.
SAP (SCM EWM)
SAP continues to offer two distinct WMS solutions, but its primary focus going forward is on SCM EWM, its newest WMS offering, which is the solution evaluated here. SAP ERP Warehouse Management (ERP WM) is a very mature and extensively implemented WMS — Gartner estimates it has over 5,000 customers — but it is not the vendor's strategic WMS platform. This offering had been covered in previous Magic Quadrants, but because SAP now focuses new customer engagements primarily on SCM EWM, it is no longer covered.
SCM EWM was built from inception on SAP NetWeaver to take advantage of SOA and a model-driven architecture common to many of SAP's newest solutions. SCM EWM broadens and deepens the vendor's WMS functionality. Furthermore, SCM EWM is not a new application, since it has been commercially available for over six years now. Initially, demand and live implementations were limited. Over the last two years, however, SAP has been more aggressive in selling and implementing SCM EWM, as well as growing its ecosystem of partners. It now has over 100 named live customers, 200 deployments and over 100 implementations in progress.
