Congebec's disparate warehouses relied on data manually entered by operations clerks. Picking and shipping errors occurred, and Congebec did not have up-to-date inventory information in its main offices. Also, the company's customers were demanding more advanced information systems, such as EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) and access to live inventory reports through the Internet.

Congebec partnered with Ceritar technologies (Boucherville, Quebec) to install a MWS (warehouse management system) in all of its warehouses. The WMS enabled the company to offer detailed invoicing and Internet-accessible inventory reports. Congebec found it still needed real-time capabilities, though, so it integrated Psion Teklogix (Mississaugua, Ontario) 7030 radio frequency (RF) handheld terminals into a new warehouse it was building in the Montreal area. The RF handhelds added the live data capability that Congebec's customers required.