The demand for Warehouse Management Systems (WMS) in the Benelux has been rising sharply in recent years. Wholesalers are venturing into WMS for the first time, while logistics service providers are replacing their existing systems with modern, more flexible packages.
The independent selection portal wms-software.eu has compared market developments in WMS over the past twenty years. This shows that there has been significant investment in these systems in recent years. Whereas the emphasis was traditionally on cost savings and error reduction, digitalisation and flexibility are now the main drivers behind such investment.
Wholesalers start catching up
Jeroen van den Berg of wms-software.eu observes that anno 2018, there are still companies that are purchasing a WMS for the first time. In the early days of the Warehouse Management System, wholesalers showed little interest. Unlike today, e-commerce was still in its infancy. With the popularity of online shopping, interest in WMS is also growing. Wholesalers have started a race to catch up and are plunging into new WMS packages.
Replacing old WMS
Meanwhile, logistics service providers are replacing their existing systems with a modern package. According to Van den Berg, these are "flexible, quick to implement and move with the times".
Demand for WMS continues
The selection portal expects the demand for WMS packages to continue in the coming years. Products are also orienting towards a new WMS. From retail, demand remains low. "Possibly their cash positions do not allow such investments. Moreover, due to their dominant position in the chain, they can, for the time being, quite easily put the 'pain' on other parties in the chain," says Van den Berg.
