Times are exciting in the "voice market," if only because there are so many choices for a customer. The key thing is look at voice as something that gives the customer control in the warehouse, says Hayden. And a solution does that if it can "adapt scale and grow" with the customer's needs. Clearly, the latter will evolve over time, so the solution must be able to conform to the new requirements.
Hayden says the four factors to consider when choosing a voice system for the warehouse or DC are units, recognition, application and integration.
Unit refers to selecting the right hardware for the job. With the complexity and service variety in today's warehouse, properly matching units with tasks is critical.
Voice recognition, around for 25 years or so, has the ability to be almost 100-percent accurate. It's important to investigate all available products to ensure you buy the right ones.
Voice application has grown in importance as systems have been developed solely for certain functions, such as different types of picking: batch, single, cluster, whatever.
Integration refers to the ability to work with a centralized system, and it's a capability that can't be overstated, says Hayden. To be able to get information to all parties timely and accurately is critically important.
Whether one's operation is built around a WMS, warehouse control system or some kind of legacy system, Hayden says keeping those four factors top of mind should guarantee a successful implementation. And if you work with a vendor that has a history of innovation, you probably won't have any difficulties with scalability when your company grows in size.
