Integrated material flows in the Smart Factory

At this year’s Digital Factory, a leading international trade show for integrated processes and IT solutions which will take place as part of the Hannover Messe from April 23 to 27, 2018, the viastore group will be presenting innovative Industry 4.0 solutions. These link the material flows in logistics and production, thereby ensuring a higher level of transparency and greater efficiency along the supply chain. This contributes significantly to the success of manufacturing companies. At the 120-square-meter exhibition stand, visitors can become acquainted with future-oriented technologies and experience them live in action.

Digitalization is in full swing, bringing in its wake a profound transformation in all areas of society – both in private and professional everyday life. According to the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs, 20 billion devices and machines are already connected via the Internet to date. By 2030, this figure will have grown to around half a trillion. As a result, traditional business models must change accordingly and many companies have already recognized this fact. A survey by PwC shows that more than 90 percent of industrial companies in Germany are investing in digital factories, in which people, machines and processes are interlinked with each other via state-of-the-art information and communication technology. This development – known as Industry 4.0 – creates the conditions for intelligent value chains that reduce production and logistics costs and lead to greater flexibility.

Optimizing the supply chain through intelligent software
International intralogistics specialist viastore is playing an active role in shaping this transformation as a pioneer in innovative Industry 4.0 technologies. The family-owned company, which was originally a manufacturer of scales and cranes, has undergone a major transformation over the past 125 years from metal-cutting manufacturer to digital-tech company. Over five generations it developed from a locksmith’s shop and a manufacturer of machinery and equipment to a system integrator and software house. Today, viastore is a leading provider of systems and software for warehouse management and integrated automated material flows in logistics and industrial production. ?The right IT is the basis for efficient processes in the Smart Factory,? says Dr. Harald Göbel, COO of viastore SOFTWARE.

Integrated material flows in production and logistics provide the highest possible transparency
In Hall 7, Stand A40 at Hannover Messe's Digital Factory, scheduled to take place from April 23 to 27, viastore will be showcasing an array of available solutions including the added value they offer. The focus will be on the latest version of the company’s warehouse management system, viadat. This WMS supports all the tasks posed by intralogistics developments such as Industry 4.0 and is just as suitable for complex logistics centers with high turnover rates as it is for conventional, manually or forklift-operated systems. The software is intuitive to use and impresses users with more than 2,500 logistics functions in its standard version – which viastore extends and adapts to suit customer-specific requirements. ?We connect material flows across traditional boundaries by effectively integrating logistics and production via warehouse management systems and manufacturing execution systems,? explains Dr. Harald Göbel. ?This creates the prerequisites for efficient processes and maximum transparency along the supply chain,? he adds.