Order picking process is vital to supply chain and logistics. Be it a discrete manufacturer, retailer or a distributor, etc… Every business involving inventory and an effective picking and packing process in the warehouse. Considering the time and capital required, order picking is undoubtedly the most costly process in any typical warehouse. After deploying a modern, dynamic and scalable warehouse management system, order picking automation plays a great role in customer satisfaction – and in the supply chain performance improvement.
Logistics and warehouse operations management is necessary for route optimization and order fulfillment. The key areas of interest for any organization with inventory of any type and size include material procurement and handling, sorting, picking, packing, container terminal operations, and demand forecast for sustainable logistics.
For effective fulfillment, warehouse layout design, storage methods, automated tools and equipment, order collection, route selection and optimization, picking and sorting zones, etc., have substantial potential to consider.
New technologies and warehouse picking and packing software provide unique solutions to optimize and improve your order picking and packing process by eliminating wasted steps.
Order Picking Process:
Simply defined, it is the process of pulling different inventory items from your storage facility to fulfill the customer order. Essentially, these are finished goods in your warehouse which you received from your manufacturing plant, or in case you are not a manufacturer but only a distributor. In any scenario, warehouse management and order picking should be properly monitored. You need to bridge the gap between order picking strategy and execution.
In some cases, the order picking procedure is quite simple and straightforward – often with small inventories and limited number of products – that supervisors and workers require minimum training. In other situations where you need to deal with a big inventory with dozens of raw and finished goods, order packing is entirely automated using warehouse order picking software, robots, conveyors, voice-enabled technologies, and even ASRS (automated storage and retrieval systems). In this case, your workforce does not need to set foot on the warehouse floor until a grave problem hits the ground.
Types of Picking in Warehouse:
Before setting up the plan for improved efficiencies within your order picking process, you should know the types of order picking – select the right method for your business needs.
Wave Picking:
This method is best to support supervisors and labor through a warehouse control system which supports the planning and optimization of the daily workflow of your distribution center or warehouse facility. Wave picking involves short-interval scheduling wherein one picker chooses a single order and targets one SKU at a time or collects products matching several orders. Customer orders are grouped according to the similar shipping schedules.
Zone Picking:
In this method, different zones are assigned to different order pickers. Pickers will work in their zones only as an in charge of that particular section. He can pull items from the assigned section only to fill the incoming client orders. If he needs an item from some other section or zone, though it happens seldom, he needs to contact the picker of that particular zone. On the other hand, the box may keep on moving through various zones and sections until the order gets complete, often along the conveyor belt.
Piece Picking:
Another name for this order picking method is picker-to-part in which an authorized order picker collects the items necessary to complete a single order. It is the simplest of all methods, without defining the zones; a picker is provided with an order list and a container or box and asked to move around the warehouse to collect the required items. Following the most efficient and quick routes to different zones/sections, he pulls each item, but this is not the most efficient way of order picking.
Pick-to-Box:
Again, without sending an employee around the warehouse, the picking areas are organized in a way that picking stations are directly connected to the automated conveyors. All an order picker needs to do is to fill the containers with required items from his designated station and the container will move to other picking stations until all items are collected for order fulfillment.
Sorting Systems:
In this method, order pickers do not need to move around the warehouse because the items are brought to him via automated sorting systems. The commonly used systems include automated conveyors, robotic shuttles, etc. You can call it goods-to-person picking that will add a great agility and speed in your order picking process of any scale. Sorting systems replace the traditional, labor-intensive and slow order picking model and are best to quickly keep up with the fast-changing consumer demands and order fulfillment expectations.
Now, as you know different order picking methods, you need to take appropriate measures for improved efficiency of your order picking process to keep your customers happy along with a strengthened bottom line.
Here’s how you can improve order picking within the warehouse.
- Minimize the workers contact with items:
Touch the required items once and only pickers should be allowed to deal with them. Prevent errors by picking the items into shipping cartons. Avoid using tote or else you may need to replace or repack the same item being damaged due to mishandling. - Plan and implement multiple storage strategies:
Consider different strategies to gain tremendous efficiency within your warehouse. For instance, you can reduce congestion and accidents, avoid product damage, and improve retrieval items and storage intensity through slotting. Regularly review and revise your storage strategies to align order picking practices with seasonal customer demand. - Group together your SKUs for matching orders:
You can boost the picking efficiency by grouping together all the SKUs that fulfills the majority of your orders. Apply 80/20 rule for order picking and fulfillment, which means aligning 20% of the SKUs in one zone within the warehouse that completes 80% of the received orders. This cuts down the picker’s efforts and travel time. Properly design this area to accommodate high-volume picking activities. - Consider automation for more accurate picks:
Automated tools and systems for material handling and order fulfillment help eliminate walk time and reduce manual picking fatigue. An order management system makes the picking process faster than expected and with fewer errors. Reduce the extensive travel time of the employees by adding automated workstations to pick and move the items without fatigue.
MWI Solutions provides automated material handling, warehouse management and order fulfillment systems to reduce wasted steps in order picking – improving productivity and boosting ROI.
One thought on “Order Picking Process in Warehouse”
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