1. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Order picking is the highest priority in a warehouse for productivity improvements
It’s the most costly activity (63% of operating costs) because:
Labor intensive
Material & information system intensive
Decision support system and engineering projects intensive
Many error occur in order picking
It’s increasingly difficult to manage because of new operating system programs

2. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
New operating systems include:
JIT
CT reduction (cycle time)
QR (quick response
Micro-marketing strategies
Mega-brand strategies
These require:
1. smaller orders delivered more frequently & more accurately
2. more SKUs in system requires dramatic increase in throughput, storage, and accuracy
3. renewed focus on quality improvements & customer focus

3. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Hiring more people (the traditional approach) or investing in more automation have been stymied
Due to:
labor shortages &
high hurdle rates due to uncertain business environment
Some strategies include:
Issue pack optimization
Pick-from-storage
Pick task simplification
Order batching
Slotting optimization
Pick sequencing

4. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Issue pack optimization:
Encourage full or half pallet orders
Reduces counting
Reduces physical handling
Reduces extra packaging
Requires balancing between holding and handling costs

5. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Pick from storage
goal is to pick from reserve storage areas – no forward picking areas are required
Example: Ford Service Parts Distribution Centers:
Automated – receipts arrive by rail in wire basket with ID plate
Operator scans into WMS
WMS directs operator to distribute content into totes (each with ID)
Totes assigned to & conveyed to one of 54 horizontal carousels for putaway
WMS interleaves putaway & picking activities
Picking is light-directed – and order totes are light directed

6. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
The carousels are the reserve storage
-requires a highly sophisticated system
Uses random storage
Intelligent slotting
Activity balancing
Dynamic wave planning
High mechanization
Disciplined work force
Moves storage location to the picker

7. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Pick task simplification:
Eliminate / combine tasks when possible
Human elements involved in picking:
55% - traveling to, from, between pick locations
10% - extracting material from locations
20% - reaching/bending, documenting, sorting, packing
15% - searching for location
Can be reduced through several approaches (next slide)

8. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Stock-to-picker:
Reduce travel time
Carousels
Mini-loaders
Design of system critical to minimize wait time
Person-aboard systems automatically go to pick locations
Frees picker to document, sort, pack while machine is moving

9. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Picking/sorting/packing
More than one order at a time
Use carts with totes / dividers
Pick & pack simultaneously
Works well when order cube is small
Packing/shipping containers must be set-up ahead of time and placed on picking carts equipped with totes or dividers

10. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Work Element
Method of Elimination
Required Technology / Functionality
Traveling
Bring pick locations to picker
STP System:
Miniload ASRS
Horizontal Carousels
Vertical Carousels
Documenting
Automate information flow
Computer-aided order picking:
Automatic ID System
Light-aided order picking
RF Terminals
Headsets
Reaching
Present items at waist level
Person-aboard ASRS
Searching
STP Systems
Person-aboard ASRS

11. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Work Element
Method of Elimination
Required Technology / Functionality
Extracting
Automated Dispensing
Automatic Item Picker
Robotic order picker
Counting
Weigh counting
Prepackage in issue quantities
Scales on picking vehicles
Restocking
Automated look-ahead replenishment should ensure each location has sufficient pick-quantity before the picker reaches the location
Location min-max triggers
Excessive socializing
Assign operators dedicated zones for picking and put-away
Idling / waiting for work
Dynamic zone sizing
Perpetual to-do list
Real-time WMS

12. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Advantage of single order picking is order integrity
Disadvantage is picker travelers greater distances
Order batching (to reduce travel time/line item)
More orders picked by a picker during a picking tour
Especially effective for small orders (one to five line items)
Batch small orders by picking zone
Zone picking requires downstream sortation
Pickers are assigned to a specific area, portion of an aisle, multiple aisles, carousels, etc… (zones)

13. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Storage zones are distinguished from picking zones
Designed for save, efficient storage
Ie; bulky items, floor storage, small items, bar stock, refrigerated, frozen, flammable, explosive, etc…
Free-form picking is the opposite of zone picking
Pickers responsible for picking every item in the order.
Move throughout the warehouse

14. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Benefits of zone picking
Reduced travel time
Minimal congestion
Product-location familiarity
Operator-zone accountability
May or may not pay for itself (increased control complexities)
Order assembly requirements across zones (pass from zone to zone or wave picking with down-stream sortation)
Imbalances in workload, bottlenecks, gridlock, low morale

15. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Cotter & Co – logistics subsidiary of true Value Hardware
Has conveyer down center of each zone
Picker has roll of pick labels sorted in location sequence
Enables picker to make one pass thru zone during a pick wave
Picker pulls item, put barcode on it, puts it on the conveyer and moves to the next location
Conveyor transports to downstream sortation
Metrics are posted at the end of each zone – productivity, pick accuracy, and housekeeping

16. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Progressive order assembly (pick and pass)
Order passed from one zone to next until order is picked
Uses totes, pan, conveyor, carton, etc.
Moves on conveyor or manually on a cart, or pallets on a towline conveyor, AGV, lift truck, pallet jack
intelligent progressive order assembly systems
Only move containers to a zone if there is a SKU for that order in that particular zone (called zone-skipping)

17. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Downstream sortation
No order designation during picking
Pickers make pass thru zone during pick wave
Items bar-code labeled when picked
Placed in cart or on conveyor
Picked items go to sorting system where they are placed into orders
Sortation systems run into the millions of dollars
Benefits need to out weigh the cost

18. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Slot optimization:
Slotting is determining–
Appropriate storage mode
Appropriate allocation of space within its storage mode
Appropriate storage location within its storage mode

19. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Slotting has significant impact on warehouse Key performance indicators:
Productivity
Shipping accuracy
Inventory accuracy
Dock-to-stock time
Warehouse order cycle time
Storage density
Level of automation

20. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Slotting generally has more influence on overall warehouse performance than other aspects of warehouse management
Most warehouses are improperly slotted:
Due to lack of data
MIS resources
No way to keep slotting current
No methodology for slotting

21. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Ten step method for slotting:
1) Perform whse performance & whse gap analysis
See how slotting could improve the operations
Won’t work if…
Poor management
Poor morale
Undisciplined workforce
Union-management tension
Poor housekeeping
Inadequate computer training/support

22. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Ten step method for slotting:
2) Populate slotting database
Describing activity, dimensions, storage characteristics
Include:
Item Number
description
Material type
Storage environment (frozen, flammable, etc)
Shelf life
Dimensions, cube, weight
Units/carton – cartons/pallet
Unit of Measure

23. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Ten step method for slotting:
3) Compute slotting statistics
Popularity (# times hit) (P)
Turn-over (T)
Unit Cube (C)
Unit velocity (V = TC)
Pick density (D = P/V)
Demand Increment (I = T/P)
Standard Deviation of Demand (S)
Slotting Period (R) - (years, months, etc)

24. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Ten step method for slotting:
4) Conduct Warehouse Activity Profile (Ch 2) – include:
Picking mode profile
Operations Planning Profile
5) Assign items to families
Storage environment family
Order completion zones, within environment family, based on order completions and demand correlation profile
Item activity profile, within order completion zones.

25. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Ten step method for slotting:
6) Assign Item Activity Families to Storage Mode Families – based on least cost storage mode option for each item
7) Map individual warehouse locations within each storage mode into Picking Activity Zones.
Plot Pick Path
Serpentine
Main line with side trips
Pod of 2 or 3 carousels

26. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Ten step method for slotting:
8) According to Pick Density assign items to Storage Mode Activity Zones
Begin with highest density in A locations, then B locations, then C
9) Specify Re-slotting Rules
Rules for when or if an item should be re-slotted
Use From-To chart to compute cost savings by moving from a zone to every other zone

27. Chapter 8 Order Picking Operations
Ten step method for slotting:
Pick sequencing
Sequence pick locations visits to reduce travel time