Smooth release upgrade at Georg Ebeling Spedition GmbH with PROLAG World

For 20 years, Georg Ebeling Spedition GmbH in the Hanover region has successfully relied on CIM GmbH’s PROLAG World warehouse management software. As one of Germany’s leading logistics service providers, Ebeling offers transportation, warehousing, and distribution services. A fleet of around 150 company-owned trucks and 120,000 pallet positions across 60,000 square meters of warehouse space provide highly flexible and dynamic storage capacity, complemented by the rental and leasing of additional space as well as different types of warehouses, including block and high-bay warehouses. On an average day, the company handles around 15,000 warehouse movements.

Initial situation

After two decades of successful collaboration, Ebeling faced a comprehensive release upgrade: New user interfaces and the PROLAG Go Android mobile app were to be introduced, while the number of warehouses, owners, and corresponding data continued to grow. Another challenge was that the individual warehouse areas are operated for different owners, each with their own ERP systems, meaning that PROLAG World has to interface with multiple host systems. Implementing a project of this scale while day-to-day operations continued, without jeopardizing the level of service Ebeling’s customers were accustomed to, was the key challenge.

Goals

The main focus of the project was to modernize warehouse management and upgrade to the current PROLAG World version. Additional goals included:

• Closing existing security vulnerabilities
• Deploying the PROLAG Go Android mobile app on all data collection devices
• Maintaining the usual flexibility when implementing individual customer requirements
• Standardizing processes and reducing customer-specific customizations

Implementation

Together with the CIM project team, Ebeling chose a structured approach: Instead of transferring the existing custom solutions to the new version on a one-to-one basis, customer-specific customizations in interfaces and printing were consistently replaced with standard functionality. This was made possible by implementing the required interface specifications through configuration in the new PROLAG World version — without complex custom programming.

At the same time, the PROLAG Go Android app was rolled out to all mobile devices in the warehouse, replacing the previous data collection solution. Integration testing and commissioning proceeded exceptionally smoothly, with only minimal rework required — a clear indication of the careful preparation on both sides.

„In this project, exemplary upfront organization among all parties involved, was turned into first-class execution.“

Outcome

The release upgrade was successfully completed, and the new PROLAG World version is now in productive operation:

• The current version of PROLAG World has been installed and is in productive operation.
• Existing security vulnerabilities were closed with the new PROLAG World version.
• PROLAG Go is running on all mobile data collection devices in the warehouse.
• Individual interface requirements can still be implemented flexibly through configuration — without any programming effort.
• Customer-specific customizations for interfaces and print outputs were replaced with standard functions, significantly simplifying maintenance and future updates.

As a result, Ebeling now benefits from transparent processes clearly separated by goods owner and a quick overview of the entire warehouse. With real-time transactions through PROLAG Go as well as the management of best-before dates and batches, both Ebeling and its customers have full visibility at all times - right through to the “transparent warehouse operator,” where customers can independently view information about their inventory in PROLAG World.

Conclusion

All defined goals were achieved: The release upgrade has been completed, the security vulnerabilities have been closed, the PROLAG Go mobile app is in use, and Ebeling has achieved significantly greater standardization without sacrificing flexibility. Integration testing and commissioning proceeded exceptionally smoothly, with hardly any significant rework required - a testament to how effectively preparation and implementation came together in this project.