Canary Islands electric equipment distributor DIELCA goes digital with Easy WMS

DIELCA: Expertise in the electrical sector

Since 1982, DIELCA (Distribuidora Eléctrica Canaria, S.A.) has leveraged its extensive experience distributing electrical equipment, lighting, telecommunications products and renewable energy solutions throughout the Canary Islands. The company has a workforce of more than 100 employees, operates an extensive branch network across the archipelago and its business is built around close customer relationships.

DIELCA’s steady growth has made managing its more than 6,300 SKUs increasingly more demanding. The distributor of electrical equipment, lighting, telecommunications products and renewable energy solutions has digitalised its logistics facility in El Sebadal, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, with Easy WMS. The warehouse management system enables the company to provide service tailored to evolving customer needs.

Mecalux’s solution connects with DIELCA’s Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central ERP software to synchronise all product information. “We now have tighter control over our stock. We know exactly how much inventory is on hand and, crucially, where every item is stored at any given time,” says CEO Enrique Hernández.

Greater control over every SKU

DIELCA receives multiple pallets every day, which warehouse operators identify using RF devices. Easy WMS closely tracks the electrical equipment SKUs and determines where to store them. Stock is organised by brand, product series and demand level, then slotted in Mecalux selective pallet racking and reel and coil storage racking.

By identifying every item upon arrival, the company keeps its inventory continuously up to date. Easy WMS provides complete, real-time visibility into every SKU.

The software also guides operators through order fulfilment. “Our industry features products that are very similar. One cable may differ from another only in gauge or colour, and some circuit breakers vary only by amperage. Without guidance, it’s easy to grab the wrong SKU,” says Hernández. Easy WMS directs operators to the exact location of every product, reducing the risk of picking errors.

Service comes first

Speed is a defining feature of this Canary Islands company’s logistics operation. Most transactions take place at the counter. Customers arrive at DIELCA’s point of sale in El Sebadal Business Park and request the products they need; a picker then prepares their order in the warehouse at the back of the facility.

Previously, sales staff had to remember the requested items, walk to the storage area, collect them and return to serve the customer. With Easy WMS, they enter orders directly into the system and can continue assisting the customer while another operator prepares the items. “Our priority is always to deliver the best possible service. Technology reorganises our work and helps each person focus on the tasks that add the most value,” says Hernández.

From its modern facility in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, the company also distributes products to other electrical supply stores on the island and delivers directly to customers’ homes. In addition, DIELCA is introducing a click-and-collect option so users can buy online and pick up their orders at a designated point. “These services require a highly organised logistics operation. “Easy WMS gives us the capability to respond confidently to our customers’ changing needs,” says Hernández.

Digitalisation continues

Deploying Easy WMS at the Las Palmas de Gran Canaria warehouse is the first stage of a broader project. DIELCA plans to gradually extend Mecalux’s software to its other logistics facilities in Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote. From these sites, it supplies more than 1,500 clients throughout the archipelago. “The experience we’re gaining at this first site will give us a much stronger foundation for deployment at our other warehouses,” says Hernández.

Easy WMS provides us with tighter control over our stock. We know exactly how much inventory is on hand and where every item is stored.