V33 is using Hardis Group’s warehouse management system to manage its logistics platforms. Major productivity gains were recorded following the deployment of the application at four warehouses, located in France, Poland, and the United Kingdom.
Grenoble, March 6, 2024 – Hardis Group, a consulting and IT services company, Salesforce pure player, and logistics software publisher, announces that V33, a manufacturer of paints and wood renovation products, has deployed its warehouse management system across almost all of its logistics platforms. A core model was developed in order to harmonize the company’s omnichannel distribution processes and speed up the roll-out of the application at its depots, while factoring in the specific features of each site.
Five warehouses in Europe serving around 30 countries
V33 is a French manufacturer of paints and wood protection and renovation products sold under several brands: V33, Libéron, Cecil Professionnel, Hypnotik, and Plastor. The company, which is headquartered in Domblans, eastern France, has six subsidiaries operating in Italy, Switzerland, Spain and Portugal, Belgium, the UK, and Poland. Together, they market and distribute thousands of different products across around 30 countries.
V33 delivers its products to home-improvement chain logistics warehouses, stores, and professionals, as well as to retail customers via e-commerce websites. It has two warehouses in France—a fully owned 22,000 sq. m facility and a second 4,500 sq. m site, which is outsourced—plus three local logistics platforms, located in Italy (3,000 sq. m, outsourced), Poland (approx. 3,100 sq. m), and the UK (approx. 2,500 sq. m).
Migrating omnichannel flows to a new WMS
In 2019, as part of efforts to set up efficient omnichannel logistics processes, V33 decided to draw up a new logistics master plan and completely overhaul its logistics organization and flows. On the IT side, the firm opted to switch to a new ERP system and a new warehouse management system to better cater to the needs of its BtoB and e-commerce distribution channels. After sending out a set of specifications to three potential suppliers, V33 ultimately chose Hardis Group’s WMS to manage its logistics platforms. “Most of our flows were aligned with the tool’s standard features and we were impressed by the roadmap we were shown,” said Frédéric Dubois, Logistics Manager at V33.
Core model supports multi-site and multi-country deployment
During the functional analysis phase, a core model was developed to speed up deployment across V33’s various logistics warehouses, located in France, the UK, and Poland. “Our old WMS had scalability constraints because we’d built a lot of specific developments around the application,” said Dubois. “That’s why we decided to align our processes with the standard features in Hardis Group’s WMS, to avoid falling into the same trap again. When developing the core model, we naturally consulted our subsidiaries extensively about their flows to make sure it would cater to their particularities, but without having to build specific developments.”
Major productivity gains
The migration was completed in 2021 for the company’s two warehouses in France, which together handle around 15,000 separate products, 600 orders, and 20,000 order lines each day. As well as supplying the firm’s warehouses in Italy, Poland, and the UK, the French sites also deliver to customers in France, Switzerland, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, and other countries, as well as to some customers in Italy. The warehouse management system is connected to TDI’s Exlabel application, which handles labels and transport documents. Around 30% of orders (by volume) are also subject to either the ADR or the IMDG Code, which govern the international carriage of dangerous goods by road and sea respectively. After rolling out Hardis Group’s WMS, V33 recorded productivity gains of around 15% at the two sites.
V33’s Polish subsidiary delivers to customers in Poland, Romania, Lithuania, Croatia, and Hungary. Its warehouse, which manages 1,200 products and 100 orders per day, switched to the new system in June 2022, achieving productivity gains of close to 20%. The firm’s UK-based warehouse, which serves the British and Irish markets, and manages 600 products and 30 orders per day, completed the migration in June 2023. “At our UK site, we’ve achieved productivity gains in the region of 25%,” said Dubois.
The company’s Italian warehouse was excluded from the migration because its logistics provider already had an efficient, off-the-shelf WMS.
“Unlike our old WMS, which we’d built specific developments around, we now have access to a regular stream of new features” said Dubois. “And we’re fully equipped to adapt quickly as our customers’ needs evolve."