As the supply chain continues to digitize, warehouse operations are increasing in complexity. Warehouse operators are investing in mobility solutions to improve warehouse operations, especially to help warehouse workers deliver faster and smarter. With devices such as smartphones or tablets, warehouse workers can access inventory information, track shipments, update order status, and perform other tasks on the go. Then there are purpose-built rugged devices and tablets and mobile computers, all adding to the variety of endpoints in warehousing.
However, managing diverse endpoints can be an overwhelming experience for IT departments, regardless of the fleet size. To be successful, warehousing businesses need an effective unified endpoint management (UEM) solution that can deliver industry-specific benefits.
In this blog, let’s break down all the major benefits that warehouses can reap via a UEM solution and its intrinsic features.
Equip the Workforce with Shared Devices
Frontline workers often rely on shared devices to access information, scan barcodes, and communicate across departments. UEM allows warehouse operators to configure devices so that they can be easily shared among multiple employees. That’s the crux of shared device management. For example, warehouse managers can use the same device as their frontline workers to sign in and access customer information.
After completing the required tasks and shifts, workers can sign out of the device. The device will then be immediately available for the next frontline worker. Warehouse IT personnel can also set a custom message as an alert five minutes prior to the end of a worker shift. Admins also have the option to clear app data every time a worker logs out of a device.
In addition, a UEM solution can help schedule dynamic policy applications on shared devices. Companies can configure shared devices with multiple policies and profiles—with different app settings and restrictions.
Remote Troubleshooting
Businesses see more advantages in spreading their warehouses among several locations. Running multiple warehouses means the inventory can reach customers fast, lower financial risks related to delays, and fewer bottlenecks in the packaging and shipping process. Additionally, optimizing warehouse distribution contributes to the ROI of WMS by improving inventory turnover rates, hence maximizing operational efficiency and profitability.
However, tackling the most common device issues remotely becomes a herculean task. If there is a problem with the device, a worker cannot physically walk the device back to the IT department located miles away from the warehouse location. With UEM, IT can access mobile devices remotely and assist users in real time to troubleshoot device issues. This, in turn, leads to minimum device downtime and higher productivity.
A UEM solution is not merely about remote troubleshooting and support. IT admins can monitor device health—battery level, performance, memory—to proactively identify and prevent potential device downtime. This makes troubleshooting and end-user support easier and reduces on-site support costs for organizations.
Geofencing & Location Tracking
A UEM solution offers capabilities that help companies keep an eye on their device fleet and perform administrative functions remotely. Warehouse managers can get the current device location by configuring location tracking on all devices and endpoints.
Additionally, the geofencing feature allows companies to set limits or areas for devices within warehouses. Geofencing enables location-specific restrictions on company-owned devices used in warehouses, ensuring they don’t leave the premises and adhere to company policies.
The logistics industry requires a massive number of mobile devices to support day-to-day operations. As one would expect, warehousing follows the same demand. There are chances that companies may need to keep an eye on hundreds of devices at once, which might be difficult irrespective of team size. A UEM solution provides an eagle eye for the location of all managed devices on a single, centralized dashboard.
Manage In-house Applications
As the number of devices and endpoints used in a warehouse for various purposes increases, managing their apps becomes complicated. One of the key benefits of a UEM solution is that it can manage custom-built or third-party apps specific to warehouses.
Silent installation is another valuable feature when distributing applications. It takes place with no end-user interaction. This means admins can create a repository of approved applications—private or corporate—on the device management console and install them on the device fleet by pre-approving user permissions.
With a UEM solution, warehouses can exert complete control over company-owned devices, including the ability to blacklist or whitelist apps. This capability ensures harmful or non-productive apps stay away from devices, which leads to two prime benefits—device security and workforce efficiency. Coupled with modern material handling technology, these solutions streamline both physical and digital workflows, enhancing overall productivity.
Lockdown Devices in Kiosk Mode
Many UEM solutions offer a kiosk mode feature that limits the usage of enrolled and managed devices. Workers can access only a specific list of apps and websites when devices are locked down in a multi-app kiosk mode. For certain workers, depending on the use case, the device can also be locked into a single-app mode.
Kiosk mode ensures devices are used only for a dedicated purpose and workers use these devices for desired tasks only. Another advantage of kiosk mode is that it improves the device lifecycle as the usage is limited.
Concentric Security
Devices used in warehouses are home to some highly sensitive data that needs tight protection measures. While UEM is by no means a cybersecurity tool, it still provides a lot of security capabilities that act as the first line of defense for devices and data. One of the critical components is the ability to set and apply a passcode policy for all managed devices. The policy includes parameters like password complexity, expiration, history, allowed wrong attempts, and more.
Warehouse admins can disable factory reset on company devices to safeguard sensitive information. To further improve security, in case a device is lost or stolen, IT can remotely lock devices to prevent any unauthorized usage. Device management takes data protection further by providing a remote wipe feature that allows IT staff to delete data on a lost mobile device.
Custom Branding
A UEM solution helps customize a device launcher’s look and feel, including app icons, wallpaper, and lock screen, as per the warehouse branding elements (like color and logo). With this feature, consistent branding and user experience can be delivered across devices. All the custom branding elements can be deployed to devices with a single or just a few clicks on the UEM dashboard.
Choose Scalefusion UEM to Manage Warehouse Endpoints
Enterprise mobile devices and other endpoints have now become an important part of warehouse operations. With a UEM solution like Scalefusion, warehouses and their admins can monitor an entire fleet of devices from a central console, no matter their location. Scalefusion provides a robust set of features that support multiple types of endpoints (including rugged devices, vehicle-mount computers, etc.) and operating systems.
Reach our experts to schedule a demo and find the difference Scalefusion UEM can make in your warehouse operations. Sign up and start your 14-day free trial today!
