Due to the nature of firearm manufacturing, meeting complex compliance requirements for shipping was critical. When their existing shipping solution could not accommodate the necessary exception handling and rules configurations, Wilson Combat turned to their NetSuite implementation partner for recommendations.
After viewing demonstrations of RF-SMART Shipping’s capabilities, it was clear the Built-for-NetSuite system could address Wilson Combat's unique needs where others fell short. RF-SMART Shipping's ability to leverage data and workflows within NetSuite, along with its configurable rules engine, made it the ideal partner to streamline their fulfillment alongside NetSuite. This strategic choice helped propel their business to new heights of productivity and regulatory compliance.
Wilson Combat ships a variety of custom firearms and accessories from their 12,000 square foot warehouse located in Berryville, Arkansas. “After implementing our previous shipping solution, we saw a 70% decrease in the shipments we were able to get out the door during the Christmas season,” said Ron Colby, Wilson Combat’s Logistics Manager.
Due to its multi-step process, Wilson Combat’s previous shipping solution took a long time to ship a single order. Frequent glitches in the system wasted significant time and resources at the shipping station. “Our previous shipping solution struggled to keep up with our high shipping volume,” said Ron. “Errors in the shipping process would eliminate over half our productivity, forcing us to restart entire orders from scratch.” With the busy season approaching, it was clear a change was needed to efficiently support their order volumes.
Shipping firearms poses strict regulatory requirements that Wilson Combat’s previous solution could not adequately support. “Each firearm shipment must have an adult signature for release, but our previous shipping solution could not reliably pass this information to carriers,” said Ron.
Integrating with their preferred vendors also proved difficult without configurable rules. “We had no controls or configurability with our previous solution - it was extremely hard to modify anything,” said Ron. Meeting compliance posed daily challenges without a flexible solution.
Wilson Combat selected RF-SMART Shipping for its powerful rules engine and support for complex shipping needs. The Wilson Combat team was impressed by RF-SMART’s ability to handle the special rules and requirements for their business and eliminate decision-making for their shippers.
The Wilson Combat team felt supported by the RF-SMART Shipping implementation team and their thorough understanding of Wilson Combat’s unique business challenges. “They helped me set up shipping statuses, workstations, carrier rules, and box dimensions optimized for our warehouse,” said Ron.
Armed with RF-SMART Shipping, Wilson Combat saw vast gains across key metrics. Ron reported the average package processing time for the shipping team decreased by over 50%.
Their top packer saw an increase of 33% more packages out the door in their eight-hour shift. Errors have been eliminated and any issues are quickly resolved with RF-SMART Shipping’s responsive customer support.
Wilson Combat is also using RF-SMART Shipping’s Order Consolidation feature, which allows them to combine multiple orders into one box, saving both Wilson Combat and their customers money. RF-SMART Shipping has given Ron the time to focus on strategic initiatives rather than manual workarounds. “The warehouse staff prefers the ease of use and speed of RF-SMART compared to our previous solution,” said Ron.
Moving forward, Wilson Combat will continue refining shipping rules configuration – and they know that if they need support, the RF-SMART team has their back. Wilson Combat has achieved gains in efficiency, visibility, and compliance. With RF-SMART Shipping, Wilson Combat has found a flexible solution that can meet their complex shipping needs. They look forward to ongoing innovation and optimization with RF-SMART to further scale operations. “RF-SMART has proven itself as a long-term, scalable partner that can grow alongside our thriving business,” said Ron.