The Cost of Walking
In a standard warehouse, pickers spend approximately 60% of their time simply walking between aisles. This is non-value-added time. By analyzing your order velocity (identifying fast-moving vs. slow-moving SKUs) and arranging your warehouse accordingly using ABC analysis, you can drastically reduce travel time, double your picking speed, and cut labor costs.
Warehouse Layout Best Practices
- ABC Analysis: Group your inventory into A (fastest selling, 80% of orders), B (medium, 15%), and C (slow, 5%). Place 'A' items closest to the packing stations.
- Forward Picking Area: Create a dedicated, highly accessible area for daily picking, replenished from bulk storage overnight.
- Directional Aisles: Implement one-way aisles to prevent traffic jams between pickers and trolleys.
- Clear Labeling: Use large, high-contrast labels for aisles, racks, and bins so pickers can navigate intuitively without hesitation.
- Ergonomic Packing Stations: Equip packing stations with everything within arm's reach (boxes, tape, thermal printer, labels) to eliminate unnecessary turning and bending.