Five Ways E-Commerce and Warehouse Automation Benefit Your Business

Industrial suppliers have traditionally relied on outdated business practices.

The wholesale distribution sector is undergoing a significant transformation driven by changing consumer preferences, technological innovations, and increasing competition. Currently valued at $48.88 billion, the global wholesale market is projected to reach $61.53 billion by 2027, according to a report from The Business Research Company.

Among the various technological advancements, e-commerce and warehouse automation stand out as two of the most effective solutions for saving time, enhancing customer experiences, and accelerating online growth. When used together, e-commerce and warehouse automation can eliminate repetitive tasks, reduce errors, and free up time for strategic planning.

Industrial suppliers have traditionally relied on outdated business practices. However, companies like anyseals, a full-line wholesale sealing supplier, are modernizing these practices to better meet the evolving needs of their customers. Prompted by the pandemic and a shortage of employees to handle rising demand for products and services, these suppliers are quickly embracing the industry's shift toward e-commerce and warehouse automation.

When implemented thoughtfully with clear objectives and ongoing optimization, e-commerce and warehouse automation can significantly elevate an industrial distribution business in five key ways.

1. Enhanced Operational Efficiency

One of the main advantages of automation is its ability to improve operational efficiency. Tasks that are often time-consuming or error-prone, such as inventory management and order processing, can be streamlined through automation.

Consider a wholesaler of seals that operates an e-commerce business and tracks thousands of inventory items. Manually updating inventory counts after each sale can be tedious and prone to mistakes. However, by utilizing warehouse management automation software, inventory levels can be updated in real time with each purchase. This approach significantly reduces the manual effort required and enhances the accuracy of inventory data.

2. Increased Speed to Market

Warehouse tasks can often be repetitive and time-consuming, but inventory automation technologies, including robots, are revolutionizing warehouse operations. These systems work alongside humans, helping to speed up tasks and allowing workers to focus on higher-level responsibilities.

By investing in automated warehouse systems, companies can significantly increase e-commerce end-to-end throughput, leading to faster order processing and shipment.

For instance, before anyseals implemented its automated warehouse system, AutoStore, the manual picking process could take around 15 minutes per pick. This was due to needing a lift truck to retrieve pallets, locate boxes on those pallets, and bring items to the scale counters. With AutoStore, the average time for a bin to reach its destination is now just eight seconds. In an industry where speed is crucial, warehouse automation technology is essential for maintaining a competitive edge.

3. Higher Customer Satisfaction

As a distributor, customer satisfaction is crucial, as it encourages repeat transactions. When using an e-commerce platform to enhance your business, it's important to view things from the customer's perspective. This means considering the entire customer journey—from discovering products to navigating the site and finding relevant information.

E-commerce platforms like anyseals’ e-Shop solution enable distributors to offer a wide range of products and display real-time inventory numbers. This feature makes it easier for customers to compare prices and find exactly what they need. Distributors expect suppliers to utilize real-time data for shipping and tracking products, managing lead times, and making necessary adjustments.

Automation plays a vital role in providing the transparency that customers demand. By committing to automation, suppliers can build credibility and trust. For example, distributors who handle numerous customer inquiries daily—such as checking inventory availability or tracking orders—can significantly benefit from automated responses. Implementing these automated replies ensures that customers receive timely support and immediate answers to frequently asked questions, regardless of the time of day.

4. Improved Scalability

Simply, e-commerce and warehouse automation facilitate better scalability. As your business expands, managing increased order volumes and customer interactions manually can become increasingly difficult. By automating processes, you can handle this growing workload without significantly increasing operational complexity or costs. When a distributor transitions from regional to national operations, both order volume and customer inquiries are likely to rise. Implementing automated processes, such as order processing, shipping coordination, and customer support, allows the business to manage this increased workload more effectively.

5. Skilled Workplace

Automation significantly reduces the need for manual labor, resulting in considerable cost savings. It also minimizes errors and the need for rework, further driving down operational expenses. A report by Capgemini indicates that automation can lead to operational expenditure savings of up to 60%.

However, growth strategies driven by e-commerce and warehouse automation are designed, executed, and maintained by people. From the front office to the warehouse, the demand for individuals who are adept with technology and technical devices has never been greater, making roles more complex and demanding. The ability to adapt and acquire new skills is crucial, given the rapid pace of technological change.

An encouraging trend within the industrial supplier market is the growing array of career opportunities for technically oriented professionals from various backgrounds. The distribution management industry is increasingly vibrant, attracting a new cohort of skilled individuals. This shift can be largely attributed to the rise of e-commerce and warehouse automation, which play a pivotal role in accelerating this transformation.

Once a company commits to implementing automation, no matter the obstacles, there is no turning back. Pushing ahead is the only way forward. For anyseals, moving forward in its investment in e-commerce and warehouse automation technologies has resulted in realizing numerous benefits and transforming it into a better business. We are proudly boosting past our previous online sales volume—from 40%, already higher than the industry average—to 75% because of the benefits realized through e-commerce and warehouse automation.