Replace receiving data entry with advance shipping notices (ASN). If suppliers can reliably send the company exact information about the precise contents of each truckload being shipped to the company, it is possible to use each ASN as a receiving document that is en­tered as a receipt as soon as the truckload arrives. This approach works only if suppliers can prove that they can be relied on to send an ASN for every shipment and to detail the contents of each truck­load in the ASN correctly.

• Pick-to-light systems. Under this approach, light sensors are mounted on the front of each bin location in the warehouse (though usually only for small, easily picked items). Each sensor unit is linked to the com­puter system’s picking module and contains a light that illuminates to indicate that picking is required for an order, a liquid crystal display (LCD) readout listing the number of items to be picked, and a button to press to indicate completion of the pick. When a stock picker enters an order number into the system, the bin sensors for those bins containing required picks will light up and their LCDs will show the number of units to pick. When a stock picker has completed picking from a bin, he or she presses the button, and the indicator light shuts off. Related con­trols are described next.
• Assign putaway responsibilities by location. Even the best pick-to­light systems still will result in errors if the materials handling staff is putting goods away in the wrong locations, which causes the pick­to-light system to direct employees to pick the wrong items. To de­tect materials handlers who putaway in the wrong locations, always assign putaway responsibilities by location.
• Assign picking responsibilities by location. Though the pick-to-light system is quite intuitive, some employees are better than others at using the system to accomplish accurate picks. Accordingly, always assign picking responsibilities by location and then use cycle counts to determine count inaccuracies by assigned picker locations.

• Stage received goods for zone putaways. This approach involves set­ting up several portable conveyors at a dock door, each one leading to a separate staging area representing a different putaway zone; the re­ceiving staff then places items on the correct conveyor for a specific putaway zone. Related controls are listed next.

• Identify putaway zones by computer. If a company has thousands of products in stock, it should not rely on the memory of the receiving staff to determine which conveyor to place incoming items on. This problem is exacerbated if the warehouse manager regularly optimizes warehouse locations, which makes it even more difficult to remem­ber where products are stored. The result is inventory piling up in the wrong aisles, which delays their storage as well as their entry into the computer system. To avoid this problem, have the receiving staff enter each part number into the computer as it arrives, so that a nearby computer monitor automatically calls up the correct putaway zone, telling the user which conveyor to place the received item on.
• Record incorrect putaway zones for employee training. If a company relies on employee knowledge of where products are to be stored, then all items sent to the wrong zones should be recorded, so that em­ployees can receive rapid feedback regarding where the inventory was sent and where it should have gone.

• Zone picking. Under this approach, an entire day’s picks are consoli­dated into a single master pick list, which is then sorted by warehouse location. Different pickers are then sent to specific sections of the warehouse with their portions of the master pick list, where they com­plete their share of the picks with much less travel time than would be the case if they were picking for all items on the list. All picked items are then consolidated in a central order breakdown area, where they are broken down to fulfill individual orders. Related controls are described next.
• Record picks at the central picking area. Inventory pickers are much more efficient when they have no data entry responsibilities. Also, since zone picking results in all picked items being sent to a central order breakdown area, these two factors combine to make it highly efficient to have a designated data entry person record all picks in the order breakdown area.
• Have pickers specialize in limited picking areas. Though zone pick­ing is a very efficient process, its main difficulty is that no single em­ployee is responsible for all items to be picked, which makes it difficult to determine who is responsible for missed or incorrect picks. Responsibility can be more closely traced by giving employees specific responsibility for selected areas of the warehouse. This also gives pickers greater knowledge of where products are located and what they look like, resulting in both faster and more accurate pick­ing times.

[tags]warehouse system, advanced warehouse[/tags]

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Tags: advanced warehouse, warehouse system