Digital Transformation as an Enabler for Process Optimization: The Smart Warehouse Case Study at Fincantieri

The current industrial landscape is increasingly driven by the principles of Industry 4.0, prompting manufacturing companies to undertake a thorough review of their logistics processes. Especially in a complex sector such as shipbuilding, an efficient supply chain is a critical success factor. To this end, this paper analyzes the impact of digital transformation on warehouse processes, illustrating how warehouse operations are being reshaped through the “Smart Warehouse” case study implemented at one of Fincantieri’s shipyards. The objective is to demonstrate how the evolution of management systems, made possible by the integration of a Warehouse Management System (WMS) with a multiplatform application interface, acts as an enabler for logistics optimization. This architecture simplifies task management for employees and guides the physical execution of tasks by operators, while simultaneously facilitating performance monitoring. Using the Business Process Reengineering methodology, traditional processes are compared with the new digitized workflows, demonstrating how this implementation yields tangible benefits such as a reduction in paper documents, real-time data gathering, end-to-end visibility and consequent process optimization. The study also seeks to integrate logistics processes with emerging technologies, exploring the potential of Artificial Intelligence. Finally, the thesis proposes ways to improve warehouse management by evaluating new approaches to material allocation in order to maximize responsiveness and overall efficiency on the site.