Improving Warehouse & Factory Logistics With Optimized Part Picking

Part Picking is one of the primary warehouse processes. It is the warehouse process in which the workers collect products in a warehouse to fulfill customer orders. Part picking, on the other hand, is also a significantly important process in manufacturing. It is the part picking and transporting of particular items or materials that are needed for the production of other products. Optimizing these processes allows you to streamline the logistics, minimize cost and achieve higher accuracy. Let’s find out how.

• Implementing order profiling

Order profiling or ABC Analysis is a good way to understand how efficiently the inventory is being moved. Under the ABC Analysis, the warehouse manager classifies goods into three categories (A,B & C) according to the order volumes. The goal of this exercise is to organize inventory in a way that the highest volume inventory (A) is stored around the front of the warehouse, while the lowest volume inventory (C) is kept towards the back. This leads to lesser walking time and fewer man-hours required to complete picking operations.

• Evaluating material handling equipment and layout

Analyze your material handling equipment and evaluate if you have the right equipment to store and pick your items. Check whether you could take use of overhead material handling equipment for better efficiency. Consider the use of a mezzanine or shelving system to consolidate your slow-moving SKUs to reduce the walking times in your facility. The right material handling devices can ensure maximum picking efficiency.

Another way is to evaluate the layout to increase the space in your warehouse for storage while also decreasing the amount of travelling done for picking orders. Keeping the high-volume products at ground level eliminates the need for lifting equipment to retrieve goods for picking and the user to wait for the product to come to them.

• Embracing technology

You could incorporate technology in your warehouse or factory in a way that it makes the part picking process more efficient. For example, barcode scanners can be used to identify products, locations and containers. 

Additionally, picking can be made easier by using mobile devices such as RF scanners and Android smartphones protected by a durable case. These devices, when combined with a warehouse management software, give real-time information of inventory and tasks happening in your facility.

Another technology for better picking is voice picking, wherein operators use a headset and microphone that are directly connected to the WMS over local wireless networks. The operator interacts with the WMS via voice commands, and the system provides verbal instructions about the place, product, and quantities that the operator has to pick.

• Consider other order picking methods: 

Zone picking: Order pickers are assigned separate specific zones and they only pick orders in their respective zones.

Batch picking: Each order picker is assigned multiple orders simultaneously in a way that it minimizes trips to each location.

Wave picking: Orders don’t move from one zone to the next for picking. Instead, all zones are picked at the same time and the items are then sorted and consolidated into separate orders/shipments.

Implementing these techniques for better part picking can significantly improve the logistics at your warehouse or factory. Try these for a faster, more seamless operation. click here to learn more