Alvin & Company is a leading USA supplier of drafting tools and drawing supplies. Alvin selected TransLution™ Software to assist them with an end-to-end WMS solution and to replace their legacy scanning system.

There are multiple phases planned but the first phase represented a significant step in the transition for Alvin.

Firstly, purchase orders are received. Alvin has a two-stage receiving process and after the scanning is done, a second person views the scanned data on a grid and authorises the receipt to SYSPRO.

Items are then assembled into kits using SYSPRO jobs. Items are picked for a job and a job issue is done to assign the raw material to the job. Once complete, a job receipt of the finished kit is posted to SYSPRO.

TransLution™ is used to print box labels for all kits. Kits are packed for a specific order, meaning that each SYSPRO job is linked to an order. This allows the box labels generated at the job receipt stage to show information about their corresponding job/sales order and when picking, pickers are directed to the correct boxes.

Sales orders at Alvin are picked to totes. There are various tote sizes and TransLution™ looks at the dimensions and volumes of items before allocating an order to a tote. The goal is to fit the whole order into one tote. Users can also pick multiple orders simultaneously, but generally all the orders they pick would be of the same tote type.

While the packing process used by Alvin is fairly standard, the process was modified to show the customer logo when the packing slip is printed.

Packing labels are printed at the end of the packing process and show the contents of the box on the label. In effect, these box labels serve as form of packing slip that are attached to the box so they can’t get lost.

Alvin has a dedicated shipping station. TransLution™ is integrated to FedEx, UPS and USPS for small parcels and FedEx for LTL for pallets. As part of the integration process, TransLution™ reads back tracking numbers and freight costs. The shipping cost are sent to the Dispatch Note as a freight line and the tracking number appears as a reference on the Dispatch Note.

Using TransLution™ Software, Alvin had their highest single-day billing in history. During the busy season before schools and colleges start in September, Alvin usually hires temporary staff to assist with the additional volumes. This last year they found that new staff could learn to use TransLution™ with almost no training and immediately become productive. Alvin was delighted at how easy it was to get temps to a point of productivity.

For the second phase, Alvin & Company intends to implement and EDI process for advance shipping notice (ASN) to their customers.

About Alvin & Company

Alvin has been the professional’s choice for drafting tools and drawing supplies for over half a century. Since 1950, they have brought quality and value to customers. Their tools help bridge the gap between ideas and innovations, and they are known for our wide selection of high-quality tools at a fair price.  More about Alvin & Company

About TransLution™ Software

TransLution™ Software was developed to assist manufacturing, warehousing and distribution companies to better manage their business processes and stock handling. The TransLution™ product is particularly focussed on robust integration to customers’ existing ERP, accounting and stock management software for a wide range of transactions. TransLution™ is distributed in Africa by Afrisoft Africa (Pty) Ltd and in Europe by K3 SYSPRO.