start looking at a ton of automation.”
Worker training is another crucial piece
of the puzzle. Any system enhancement
should include comprehensive training on
the picking process as well as the systems
and equipment the worker will be using,
Saenz and others emphasize. Measuring
progress is important as well, and the
experts say it should be an ongoing part
of the picking and fulfillment process.
Common metrics include order-picking
accuracy, on-time shipments, and order-
fill rate. The goal is to be consistent and act
on the results, according to Neuwirth.
“[You have to] keep checking that spigot,” he says. “There are many measurable
results in a good picking operation that
need to be monitored, but, simply put, if
the water gets too hot or too cold and you
can no longer get it to that right temperature, it may be time for an upgrade. In
today’s world, it’s a daily part of your operational process. Monitoring customer satisfaction against your operational goals of
cost per order … is a constant that allows
you to adjust your process as required.”
4PLAN FOR AUTOMATION, ROBOTICS Companies that have already run
through these steps and are confident their
underlying processes are sound may be
ready for the next step: automation. Their
first action should be to look at the many
proven technologies in the marketplace
that can speed and streamline picking,
Neuwirth and Saenz say. Converting from
carts and lift trucks to conveyor systems is
one example.
“Conveyor technology is usually the
first thing people want to incorporate—to
replace carts and lift trucks where it makes
sense,” Saenz says. “There are a lot of ways
to innovate with conveyor to move product
through the pick area and to the shipping
dock, for instance, instead of someone
pushing a cart or driving a truck.”
Other proven technologies include
voice-picking systems—which incorporate
headsets, microphones, and voice-recogni-
tion software to free up workers’ hands for
picking tasks—and pick-to-light systems,
which use lights to direct workers to the
proper items to pick from shelves or bins.
Many such systems include “put walls,”
which are becoming a popular option for
managing batch picking, Saenz
adds. Workers distribute multi-line
orders to a wall of shelves or bins
that is also open and accessible to
workers on the other side, who then
sort the items into individual orders.
Other, more advanced “proven
technologies” include shuttle sys-
tems, carousels, and automated
storage and retrieval systems (AS/
RS) that can help companies save
both space and labor. Such systems
can get expensive—in the millions
of dollars in some cases, the experts
say. But they also note that adding
automation can be done in phases
based on a company’s needs and
business projections. Above all, they
say, companies should focus on get-
ting the best return on their tech-
nology investment.
Joel Reed, CEO of IAM
(Intelligent Automated Machines)
Robotics, which offers robotic pick-
ing and retrieval systems, agrees
that advanced technologies can be
added in steps and that they can
offer a compelling return on invest-
ment (ROI), especially for compa-
nies ready to take their e-commerce
business to the next level. He says
automation is becoming a necessi-
ty for many companies to remain
competitive, and that companies
should focus on flexibility and scal-
ability when implementing new
solutions.
“No picking technology can handle all products, picking profiles,
or warehouse environments,” he
explains. “Mobile picking technology, by definition, allows customers to start small—focus on the
applications where picking success
is guaranteed and a portion of an
operation can be automated at a
compelling ROI—and then scale as
either the technology improves or
where operations change to leverage
more of a technology’s capability.”
