1. Choose a project manager for your organization.
A plan for who will manage the new project while also running the current operation must be developed by company executives. As identified by our project teams, this is an important component of successfully managing a project in a live environment. If you have a different project manager every day or week, for example, the implementation is more likely to be shaky.

The reason for this is simple. Because these project managers have simply run out of time to complete their projects. They are unable to devote the necessary time to interacting with suppliers and internal partners on the new project, as they have committed to do. As a result, we strongly advise our clients to carefully consider who they will appoint to oversee the new project, ensuring that they will have the time necessary to devote to it rather than to the day-to-day operations of the company.

The amount of experience that company leaders have in implementing an automated warehouse or production system is just as important as deciding who will be in charge of a project. as well as the specifics of how the equipment contributes to the achievement of the business's goals, are critical to the project's overall success.

For your company, the project manager should have a strong operations background as well as a thorough understanding of the functionality of the equipment that will be implemented.

Bring in your software expert as a second opinion
Projects in which a client's warehouse management system (WMS) or enterprise resource planning Conveyor belt communicates with an automated warehouse or manufacturing process are commonplace. In the event that your Overhead Monorail Conveyor and the automated solution require an interface, it is critical to identify a point of contact on your project team who will serve as the point of contact. Your Vertical Carousels expert will have more time to collaborate with your integrator on interface communication testing before any cutovers. Any debugging efforts between software experts on the client's side and those on the integrator's team can be streamlined as a result of this arrangement.

3. Check out your integrator's background and qualifications.
Planning is the most important aspect of any retrofit project, if you haven't noticed by now. Having a plan for who will be in charge of the project is critical to its success. What level of expertise do they have, and do they have a team ready to assist you in any specialized areas such as software development, control systems, or maintenance?

The success of your chosen integrator will be increased if you consider the points listed above; however, the integrator must also be prepared and complete their homework.

To ensure that your operation runs smoothly, they should also go over the installation sequence with you. Defining when and where new equipment can be delivered, as well as how much time is required to make changes to your system during each cutover window, are two good examples of this. For many operations, defining how the operation will function after each cutover transformation will be the most critical element of the planning effort, especially when the transformation spans multiple cutovers.

Whether or not your integrator has a solid game plan for making the changes to your system is a good indicator of whether or not you have chosen the right one. You will know you are working with true professionals if your integrator provides detailed drawings of each phase of the transformation and has planned for contingencies in the event that they encounter unforeseen problems.