WMS Market Overview 2009

WMS Market Overview 2009
A report on the current
events on the WMS market
WMS Market Overview 2009
2
List of Abbreviations
IT
PLC
RFID
WMS
WOLF
----
-
Information Technology
Programmable logic control
Radio-frequency Identification
Warehouse management system
Warehouse Management Systems Online Finder
Index of Figures
Figure 1: 2008 forecast for the WMS market ...........................................................................6
Figure 2: 2009 forecast for the WMS market ...........................................................................6
Figure 3: Target price segments of WMS vendors...................................................................7
Figure 4: Contact points of sustainable logistics ....................................................................10
Figure 5: Production supply with Milk Run .............................................................................13
Index of Tables
Table 1: List of participants in the study...................................................................................3
Table 2: WMS vendors according to number of new clients ....................................................5
Table 3: Sales arguments of the WMS vendors (multiple entries possible) .............................7
Table 4: Scope of supply of the WMS vendors ........................................................................8
Table 5: Significant development trends in the near past and future .......................................9
WMS Market Overview 2009
3
Aberle Automation GmbH & Co. KG PMS-L
Aldata Retail Solutions GmbH G.O.L.D. Stock
CIM GmbH Logistik-Systeme PROLAG® World
Coglas GmbH Coglas
Dr. Thomas + Partner GmbH & Co. KG TWS
GIGATON GmbH
EDV- und Netzwerkberatung LogoS C/S
inconso AG inconsoWMS
InnoLOG GmbH MoTIS® LSV
ISA - Innovative System Solution
for Automation ISASTORE
LinogistiX GmbH myWMS LOS
prismat GmbH SAP EWM
S&P Computersysteme GmbH SuPCIS-L
Salomon Automation GmbH WAMAS
SALT Solutions GmbH SAP EWM / LES TRM
STILL GmbH MMS.i
TEAM Partner für Technologie und angewandte
Methoden der Informationsverarbeitung GmbH ProStore®
TGW Systems Integration GmbH CI_WMS
Vanderlande Industries
Logistics Software GmbH VISION ™
XELOG AG XELOG LagerSuite
Table 1: List of participants in the study
WMS Market Overview 2009
4
Market Overview
Logistical processing is an essential competitive
edge against other suppliers on
markets which are steadily becoming more
homogeneous. Regardless of whether the
order is placed with regional suppliers or
on the global market – the requirements
stay the same:
“A fast, perfect, on-time delivery.”
Efficiency in handling of complex processes
can only be achieved by support of a
sound IT system - a warehouse management
system.
The development of warehouse management
systems has achieved a relatively
high maturity. Back in the early days, individual
systems were programmed, today
the market offers modular standard systems.
These systems can be customized
appropriately to the customers’ needs and
can be expanded if necessary.
Despite the modular structure of the systems,
their adaptability and a high coverage
of the functions, differences exist between
the single systems:
Software vendors partly focus on specific
industries or on specific functional areas so
that individual functionalities are developed
differently by the vendors.
WOLF: The WMS Online Finder
Use the WMS search tool for free online
In co-operation with the SCG (SCG – The Supply Chain Group AG), the IWL AG conducts an
analysis of the WMS market regularly. In this report, we would like to present a summary of the
analysis results for German-speaking Europe. Our free online search tool WOLF (WMS Online
Finder) helps you quickly carry out a pre-selection of warehouse management systems that best
matches your demands. Detailed information on all participating WMS suppliers can be found
online at:
www.wmsfinder.com
www.iwl.de
www.the-scg.com
In the SCG WMS Finder, vendors are listed who rated their market position and target group in a
questionnaire as a part of our study.
WMS Market Overview 2009
5
Vendor Product
Total clients
Installations
New clients
WMS 2008
New installations
2008
inconso AG inconsoWMS 280 310 30 30
GIGATON GmbH EDV- und Netzwerkberatung LogoS C/S 250 350 20 25
prismat GmbH SAP EWM 80 100 20 20
Coglas GmbH Coglas 93 130 10 15
InnoLOG GmbH MoTIS® LSV 80 150 10 12
Aberle Automation GmbH & Co. KG PMS-L 100 100 10 10
Dr. Thomas + Partner GmbH & Co. KG TWS 39 62 9 14
TGW Systems Integration GmbH CI_WMS 270 290 9 9
ISA - Innovative System Solution for Automation ISASTORE 150 325 8 32
Salomon Automation GmbH WAMAS 202 411 8 18
SALT Solutions GmbH SAP EWM / LES TRM 49 78 8 14
CIM GmbH Logistik-Systeme PROLAG® World 79 n/a. 8 n/a.
S&P Computersysteme GmbH SuPCIS-L 81 110 7 12
XELOG AG XELOG LagerSuite 78 128 6 15
STILL GmbH MMS.i 105 115 6 8
TEAM Partner für Technologie und angewandte
Methoden der Informationsverarbeitung GmbH ProStore® 80 85 5 6
LinogistiX GmbH myWMS LOS 5 5 5 5
Aldata Retail Solutions GmbH G.O.L.D. Stock 80 150 4 7
Vanderlande Industries Logistics Software GmbH VISION ™ 55 63 n/a. n/a.
Table 2: WMS vendors according to number of new clients
WMS Market Overview 2009
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Developments on the WMS Market
In the study for the WMS market conducted
by the U.S. American ARC Advisory
Group in 2008, an average annual
growth of 7.6% until 2012 was still forecasted.
But the results of the current study
from spring 2009 turned out very different:
The figures for 2008 have been corrected
and a decline of 2.4% has been detected.
A further decline of 3.6% will have to be
faced in 2009. A reversal of the current
trend will be expected no earlier than 2010
when a slight increase of a 2.2% average
annual growth is forecasted.
On the European market, the amount of
new clients appeared to grow steadily. But
by 2009 at the latest, remarkable increases
in sales can only be achieved by market
consolidations.
How can this change be explained?
The current economical situation is an essential,
obvious fact, which is mirrored in
the WMS market.
Many WMS vendors have lived on existing
projects in the first months of the crisis.
Despite the still existing need of improvement
of many systems, companies have
held back IT investments or even frozen
projects which have already been started.
The amount of new installations is also
declining. The main reason is the much
slower growth of companies to a size and
thereby a level of logistical complexity
which would require the application of a
WMS.
0
200
400
600
800
2,000
1,800
1,600
1,400
1,200
1,000
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
Mill. US$
Figure 1: 2008 forecast for the WMS market
Source: ARC Advisory Group
0
200
400
600
800
1,600
1,400
1,200
1,000
2008
2013
2009
2010
2011
2012
Mill. US$
Figure 2: 2009 forecast for the WMS market
Source: ARC Advisory Group
WMS Market Overview 2009
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Success Factors
Each vendor and each warehouse management
system has its own strengths.
Based on this background, the sales arguments
of the vendors differ. The arguments
in Table 3 were provided as options;
the vendors were asked to concentrate on
a maximum of four arguments.
The range between the weighted arguments
is not very high. But a look at the
vendors’ interest in the particular arguments
reveals considerable differences.
The orientation of the software to specific
functionalities (e.g. industry specifics, connection
to other systems) takes the focus
of attention. This is hardly surprising:
unique selling propositions of the software
go along with distinguishing themselves
from the competition.
A significant change can be seen under
“Continuity of vendor and system”. This
argument has considerably less importance
attached to it than the preceding
year. Also, the argument “Best price” is
losing more interest: only one-third of the
vendors are merely interested in winning a
contract based on price (already before the
bidding process has started).
Figure 3 shows the target price segments
of the WMS vendors.
Success Factors Focus
2008 2009
Interest
2008 2009
1. Special functionalities 22% 28% 85% 94%
2. Quick and simple implementation 17% 15% 70% 67%
3. Integration, modular structure 13% 15% 60% 61%
4. Partnership 11% 12% 50% 50%
5. Latest technology 11% 12% 50% 50%
6. Continuity of vendor and system 18% 10% 70% 44%
7. Best price 9% 8% 40% 33%
Table 3: Sales arguments of the WMS vendors (multiple entries possible)
Figure 3: Target price segments of WMS vendors
20k-100k €
26%
100k-250k €
41%
250k-500k €
22%
>500k €
7%
< 20k €
4%
WMS Market Overview 2009
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Current Scope of Supply
A common trend in the building industry for
years has found its way into logistics -
general contractors (also see Table 4).
This development is driven by the wishes
of clients to have less contact persons and
to hand over responsibility regarding coordination
with different vendors.
Besides warehouse management systems,
the WMS vendors are especially interested
in offering picking subsystems and storage
technology as well as going into cooperation
with subcontractors.
It is not surprising that the offer of storage
technology squeezes the cooperation with
subcontractors out of the third place. Everybody
who has observed the market over
the past years can recognize that more
and more vendors of storage technology
have merged with WMS vendors or have
integrated them into their concern.
This new structure enables a systembased
high integration, especially on all
communication paths between the warehouse
management system and materialhandling
engineering components.
But a too close cooperation also carries the
risk of disadvantages: Especially the flexibility
to other technical system solutions is
severely limited.
Although there is the possibility to get storage
technology and the warehouse management
system from a single source, potential
buyers should consider the following
aspects: