The Android Backstage of Mercado Libre Warehouses
Article Summary
Victor Oliveira from Mercado Libre reveals how they ditched traditional Android architecture to scale their warehouse operations across Latin America. The problem? Too many duplicate screens, too much boilerplate, and business rules changing faster than they could deploy.
Mercado Libre built Mercury WMS, an Android app powering their logistics operation across Latin America. As warehouse flows multiplied, their MVP architecture created massive code duplication. Each new feature meant copying entire activity stacks just to change a button or text field.
Key Takeaways
- Replaced dozens of duplicate activities with single server driven UI architecture
- Created Flan DSL using JSON to build Android UIs without platform knowledge
- Eliminated Play Store dependency for 24/7 warehouse device operations
- Changed UI elements server side without waiting for app adoption cycles
Server Driven UI let Mercado Libre scale their warehouse app from a few flows to dozens while reducing boilerplate and enabling instant updates without app deployments.
About This Article
Mercury WMS devices couldn't sync with Google Play Store because warehouse shifts use shared devices without individual user accounts. This blocked the normal app update process for internal logistics operations.
Victor Oliveira's team switched to Server-Driven UI architecture. The server now sends UI elements and business logic as JSON, so they can change texts, images, and flow parameters without deploying updates through the Play Store.
Mercury teams can now update warehouse flows, UI elements, and business rules on the server side in real-time. They don't have to wait for app adoption cycles anymore, which keeps Mercado Libre's Latin American logistics network running 24/7.