Interactive Systems, Inc.

WMS/AIM - Automation Integration Manager

WMS/AIM (Automation Integration Module) is a software system designed to optimize today’s complex warehouse operations by providing time-critical interfaces and tracking/decision logic to automated handling equipment.

The strength of WMS/AIM is its ability to maximize material handling equipment efficiency while accurately directing and tracking materials movement. Cartons, totes, and units are tracked and communicated to the material handling systems to direct product movement. Sortation decision logic is user-controlled through setup of criteria by divert and includes option for carrier, ship-to, bill-to, and SKU.

WMS/AIM supports conveyors, sorters, tilt trays, A-frames, pick-to-light, put-to-light, carousels, scales, AS/RS, and AGVs.  Supporting a complete complement of on-line functions, WMS/AIM monitors materials movement status and detects and reports problems, which may disrupt operations. The Intelligent Shutdown function supports beeper alert to minimize operational downtime.

WMS/AIM works best in tandem with the Exeter WMS (Warehouse Management System) to create a fully integrated warehouse automation system.

WMS supports on-the-floor, point-of-work task management and WMS/AIM provides the automation control to sort and move material according to WMS requirements.  WMS/AIM operates seamlessly with WMS and maintains a real-time interface for data exchange.

To ensure no interruption in communications performance, WMS/AIM operates on the dedicated SCO UNIX PC server. The material handling system interface may be network (sockets over TCP/IP, FTP, NFS) or serial communications (asynchronous lines).

Some benefits and features of WMS/AIM are:

• Maximize efficiency of sortation equipment

• Time-critical material handling interfaces

• Logical carton/tote/unit tracking

• Carton/tote/parcel sortation

• Receiving

• Packing

• Pick & pass

• Shipping

• Load leveling by lane

• User lane criteria

• Repack unit sortation

• Inventory allocation

• Carton contents

• Dynamic chute assignment

• Gridlock management

• Scales, weight tolerance checking

• Interface to automated pick/put/pass

• Wave open/close/ reconciliation

• High performance supporting fast data rates

• High availability architecture

• Easy to expand

• Network (TCP/IP sockets)/serial connectivity options

• Extensive problem and event logging

• Intelligent shutdown with beeper alert

• System security