Dynamic Slotting

Simple, Efficient, Affordable Order Fulfillment

Slotting is sometimes used by progressive companies to reduce picking time by moving commonly ordered products (aka “high velocity SKUs”) to a few aisles of the picking area and consequently reduce walking time during picking. The primary drawbacks to traditional slotting are the labor to physically relocate products and the cessation or slowdown of picking while products are being moved. Because of these drawbacks many companies never or rarely slot their inventory.

 

Dynamic Slotting uses FastFetch®‘s Batch-Picking Cart Solution combined with bulk-pull methodology to dramatically reduce walk time when picking low velocity SKUs, order profiles that are unpredictable and difficult to slot a warehouse for, and SKUs spread out in very large storage areas.

 

The large area is divided into pick zones. Bulk picking SKU carts are simultaneously sent (one to each zone) to gather the exact items and quantities necessary to complete a large wave of orders. Once these carts gather the SKUs, the carts are parked in a row and the control program on each changes it from a picking cart to a lighted picking bay that can couple with a lighted order picking cart using FastFetch®‘s patented technology.

 

Order picking carts using voice and light direction only have to traverse this single-aisle warehouse to complete each batch of orders, with almost no walk time and extremely fast picking rates due to SKU density and coupled light direct picking technology. While order picking carts are completing the current wave of orders, bulk picking SKU carts can be gathering product for the next wave.

System Overview

  • The picking area is divided into zones, for each wave a single SKU cart is sent to each low velocity zone
  • Low velocity locations are picked with scanning and light and voice direction from the SKU cart
  • The SKU carts are parked in a row to become a one-aisle high velocity picking zone perfectly slotted and stocked for the wave
  • Batch carts are sent through the high velocity picking zone to pick orders directly into shipping boxes
  • Dynamic slotting vastly reduces total walk time to pick a wave of orders from low density or very large picking areas

Features

  • Drastically reduces walk time by doing a single path bulk pull for a large wave of orders
  • Employs a multimodal picking approach that blends voice, barcode scanning, light directed picking and putting technologies into a single system
  • Works with both lighted and non-lighted product locations
  • Operates without the need for a host computer to control lights on bays
  • Can speak any language
  • Tablet can display images of products being picked
  • Readily scalable to fit both small and large operations
  • Provides fault-tolerant operation
  • Uses cubing information for box selection

Benefits

  • Significantly reduces travel time in the DC to pick products
  • Pickers work in a hands-free, heads-up mode
  • Fast, accurate order fulfillment
  • Easy to interface to customer’s WMS
  • Reduces or eliminates the need for auditing and packing
  • Flexible reconfiguration to meet changing business needs
  • Easy to learn, easy to use, and easy to maintain
  • Excellent ROI with short pay-back period

Learn more about FastFetch®’s Dynamic Slotting solutions!

© 2023 FastFetch® Corporation. All rights reserved.

Click Me
error: Content is protected !!