Alpro Pharmacy, Malaysia’s largest prescription pharmacy chain, is using Zebra’s mobile
computing and RFID solutions to digitalise its manual inventory management system to advance with its fast-growing business.
The first stage of digitalisation was to equip Alpro Pharmacy’s front-line workers with Zebra’s TC21 touch computers to replace their manual inventory management system using pen and paper.
The mobile devices were introduced to assist with all inventory management tasks from receiving goods at Alpro Pharmacy’s distribution centre to picking goods for its retail stores and e-commerce orders, among others.
The solution has since enhanced Alpro Pharmacy’s efficiency by approximately 80% and improved its overall accuracy through reducing human errors.
Alpro Pharmacy estimates that the digitalisation has improved its business capacity by five-fold and has helped meet increased orders with its existing workforce. This improved experience for customers across both online and offline channels.
The mobile devices also come with Zebra Mobility DNA (including Enterprise Home Screen and StageNow) which is a suite of enterprise solutions designed to help maximise mobile user productivity and minimise IT complexities over the lifespan of a Zebra device.
Alpro Pharmacy then introduced the RFD40 UHF RFID sleds, which seamlessly transformed their existing mobile devices into an advanced RFID solution. This is used for verification purposes when loading inventories at its distribution center onto its delivery trucks, and for the confirmation of goods received at its retail stores.
“Our shift from manual methods to Zebra mobile devices has improved our order fulfilment efficiency and enhanced our business capacity dramatically,” said Wong Siew Piin, director of operations management at Alpro Pharmacy.
“When we added the RFD40 sleds to the equation, it seamlessly transformed our existing mobile computers into a cost-effective RFID solution that enabled us with even greater visibility and accuracy,” said Wong.
Also, Alpro Pharmacy worked closely with Zebra PartnerConnect reseller, Inchz IoT, to implement and deploy the solution. In turn, Inchz IoT worked with Zebra to fully understand the business challenges faced by Alpro Pharmacy before recommending a tailored solution to cater to its needs.
Christanto Suryadarma, Southeast Asia sales VP at Zebra Technologies Asia Pacific, said that investment in the right technology will be crucial in achieving business agility and resilience.
“With more visibility and control over their operations, implementing technology-led solutions can help more retailers like Alpro Pharmacy effectively overcome today’s challenges and prepare for any future disruptions,” he said.
