Warehouse

[EddieK]

Hello all, I’m working on a project for school and I’m studying the warehouse area of a factory. I’m trying to suggest some process improvements. Can you tell me the best place to get started???

Your pal,
Eddie

[Rohit Trivedi]

Process Improvement begins with the priorities that go hand-in-hand with the business goals and objectives.

For example, for a business dealing with fragile products, a prime concern could be to minimize product damage during storage, handling and logistics. Material handling and storage methods at such warehouses should be designed and implemented accordingly.

Standard Industrial Engineering applications like ergonomics (lightning, etc.), space and inventory optimization, labor efficiencies, safety, are always good to begin with! Good Luck.

[jclark]

As with any process improvement project, you will want to focus your efforts so as to get the most bang for your buck. In a typical warehousing/distribution center, fifty percent of the operating costs are generated from the order picking operations. The other fifty percent are spread across shipping, receiving, and storage related costs. A quick explanation for this tendency is the fact that while large loads are usually placed into a warehouse using some mechanized method (i.e. loading a pallet to a rack with a fork truck), the process of picking many small items from a warehouse is very labor intensive. In the case of a warehouse in a manufacturing facility (as opposed to a pure distribution center), the order picking operation will occur when warehouse employees are picking parts to be sent to the line. The first thing you may want to investigate/familiarize yourself with is the current method being used to pick parts. The four main order picking methods are discrete, zone, batch, and zone-batch (several additional hybrid methods can be created). Each method has specific advantages and disadvantages. Determine which method is in place and whether or not this method is ideal for your facility.

[ewilliams]

jclark's comments are spot-on. Simulation is an excellent method to "[d]etermine which method is in place and whether or not this method is ideal for your facility." The current method can be modeled first as a validation check: do performance metrics from the simulation match those currently observed? Then other methods jclark cited can be substituted in the model -- a quick, inexpensive (no capital investment yet!), non-disruptive way to see whether, and by how much, they might be superior.