Dedicated solution brings inventory security and profit protection to IT distributor
Axis partnership with EET Group results in powerful security and business intelligence solution to provide site-wide protection with full visibility of order processing.
Due to rapid growth requiring better security provision for increasing volumes of stock, IT distributor EET Group implemented a security solution that would improve its defences. With better security in place at its logistics centre, located in Ballerup, Denmark, the group then experimented with video-driven insights which have resulted in the business driving-up picking accuracy across all orders to 99.8%.
EET Group operates in 24 markets across Europe, carrying over 1,100 brands and serving more than 31,000 customers annually. In addition to the group’s logistics centre, satellite warehouses located in France, Spain, UK and Norway provide a wide range of devices and components, including surveillance and security devices. With a long-standing relationship with Axis already in place as a distribution partner, EET Group naturally chose Axis for its robust, reliable solutions to improve defences both inside and out.
“Our vision is to be the preferred and most efficient value-added niche IT distributor in the European market with the strongest assortment and the deepest know-how within our lines of business”, explained Bo Ørbjerg, Business Line Director, Surveillance & Security at EET Group. “In such a fast-paced environment, we can’t have eyes everywhere, so when looking to employ a solution that we could trust to protect the business and its valuable stock, Axis was our primary choice.”
A total of 30 existing cameras were replaced with 130 Axis cameras, employing onboard analytics and feeding into a third-party video management (VMS) system. This allows management and security teams to have visibility across the busy operations floor as well as around the external perimeter of the building, where features such as Axis Lightfinder enable excellent image quality even in low light and adverse weather conditions.
The solution for EET Group provides cutting-edge security while also supporting profit protection teams with powerful business intelligence derived from video data.
Expanding the solution with intelligent track and trace
In addition to security, EET Group was able to experiment with the system’s ability to monitor existing processes and procedures with the intention of using video data to help with staff training sessions and to look at ways to boost productivity. The realisation that the security system could be used to capture high-quality video from across the warehouse floor led to its use in supporting the entire operation. This resulted in the implementation of a full track-and-trace solution. Using Axis cameras, EET Group could now capture and store video data about every order for profit protection purposes.
Bo Ørbjerg explains: “Axis cameras provide us with incredibly sharp images of each order as it is picked and packed. This data can be date-stamped and stored, together with an order number, for retrieval at a later date. If a situation arises, such as a customer dispute about a missing or damaged item, we can retrieve the footage and analyse it to determine what has happened. The cameras can follow our goods right up until the point that they are prepared for dispatch, so we can effectively track their entire journey across the warehouse. The solution offers complete visibility of each and every order we process.”
From a profit-protection perspective this has been invaluable for the business. Where a claim is genuine, for example, relating to the receipt of damaged goods, the corresponding video can be a powerful tool to aid staff learning about the need for better packaging. This element of the solution has also been invaluable for monitoring inbound goods. And with trucks arriving around the clock, full of pallets carrying all manner of goods, video documentation ensures that missing or damaged items are quickly spotted and reported. Even if goods have already been signed for, high-quality video of a pallet being unwrapped and packages being opened provides irrefutable evidence about the state in which each item has been received.
Video data to support business growth
To meet unprecedented demand the company also installed an autostore system; a robot capable of picking items from rack upon rack of components and peripherals and presenting them ready for teams to begin picking and packing. This greatly increases the speed and capability of order processing teams, enabling them to accelerate their activity from one hundred orders to thousands per day and night operation. The solution from Axis ably keeps pace, logging key order information while ensuring the premises and its goods remain safe and secure.
In such a fast-paced environment, we can’t have eyes everywhere, so when looking to employ a solution that we could trust to protect the business and its valuable stock, Axis was our primary choice.
The placement of products within the warehouse has even been altered, based on camera-driven intelligence about the movement of operatives around the site. Now, less walking time is required between zones to further increase productivity, making tasks more achievable within tight deadlines and boosting staff morale.
Niklas Hansson, Distribution Account Manager, Axis Communications, commented: “The solution for EET Group provides cutting-edge security while also supporting profit protection teams with powerful business intelligence derived from video data. We look forward to continuing to work closely with the EET Group team and take pride in their decision to move from being solely an Axis distribution partner to implementing our solutions for their own requirements.”
EET Group currently works with 1,100 active brands to stock 1.2 million products and parts, with 1.1 million deliveries made every year. Thanks to the security provision around the site they have experienced no major security-related incidents, while on the operations side, the video-driven insights have resulted in the business driving-up picking accuracy across all orders to 99.8%. With better visibility and tighter controls, EET Group is in a prime position to continue to represent exceptional value for their customers.
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