Over the years I have seen many mistakes in the way that
many have set up their order picking system. To help you avoid these same
mistakes, we have a short video on the 5 Common Regrets of order picking.
1. Not
maximizing order picking productivity
You will be able to increase order
fulfillment productivity and through put by doing the following:
a.
To increase order picking productivity you want
to cut travel distances as it is the majority of your labor costs (60-70% of
your total paid labor costs)
b.
To reduce the distance traveled by order
pickers, you will need to reduce the stops at pick bays
c.
You should also batch pick when possible. Batch picking is when you pick multiple
orders all in one trip.
By being able to reduce the distance of
walking, you will be able to increase time spent on actual order picking
instead of walking all over the warehouse.
2. Not
being virtually 100% accurate
Many operations believe that they
must pick one order at a time to have error free order picking, but this is
false. There is a better and more
efficient way. If you confirm your picks
throughout the picking process, you can gain the accuracy you want, while
ensuring high pick productivities. How
do you gain virtually 100% picking accuracy?
a.
Pick to Light: Instead, pick to light systems
uses a computer to direct lights at pick locations (on carousels, carton flow
rack, shelving storage, static shelving and batch picking carts, and others) to
indicate the items and quantities to pick. Once order pickers complete
the task indicated by the light modules, they simply push a button to confirm
their picks.
b.
Voice Directed Picking: Order pickers are
directed by voice where to go and what to pick.
Pick verification is done by speaking the SKU identification number for
each pick.
c.
Bar code scanning: Bar code scan systems offer
1) very fast data entry of information and 2) extremely high input
accuracy. This is valuable if you are
handling extremely costly products and/or need 100% order picking
accuracy.
3. Inflexible
order fulfillment system
Many times, order fulfillment systems
were created for the existing needs of today, not tomorrow. With the ever-changing business environment, having
an order picking system that is not easy to change and doesn’t easily adapt to
business needs can be a problem.
a.
Flexible system: you want a system that easily
expands to your business growth.
i.
Add more light modules for your pick to light
system
ii.
Reconfigure your entire system
b.
Multiple Modes of Operation with FastFetch pick
to light, voice directed and bar code scanning system:
i.
Pick from
bay
ii.
Put to
bay (put-to-light/ reverse logistics)
iii.
Pick then
distribute
iv.
Pick then
re-pick (2 phase picking with dynamic slotting)
v.
Conventional Pick to Light (pick to box on
conveyor)
c.
Batch pick by Cluster Picking:
i.
Pick many items into one order
ii.
Pick one SKU into many different orders
4. Unreliable
order fulfillment system
a.
Hardware that is prone to wear and tear: Pick to Light hardware that uses buttons that
break instead of senors that don’t break or wear out.
b.
Not having a back up plan if the main system
fails: If you are relying on pick to
light alone, you are in trouble if it fails.
Having a system that has a “back up plan” like bar code scanning available
if pick to light fails is the better way to go.
c.
Expand without degradation to your system
5. Lack
of Good Reporting System
A good order fulfillment reporting system will give you web access to
real time information on the following important reports:
1.
Status of your orders: Know when your orders
have been pick and what products have been sent out of the warehouse
2.
Status of pickers: Know what they are working on
and what they aren’t working on
3.
Status of products: Know what products are in
inventory and what has been sent out of the warehouse
FastFetch allow you to gain the follow benefits:
1.
Cut walking distance
2.
Reduce stops to pick items
3.
Pick items in clusters: common items are picked
for multiple orders at one time
4.
Maximize space on Carts
5.
Pick most urgent (oldest) orders first
If you’d like more information please contact us at www.fastfetchusa.com, call (714)
496-4499 or email us at Nikki@fastfetchusa.com
