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COVER STORY
whwytriright 34 Controlling and Reducing Fulfi llment Costs
processes and systems fi rst. Keep the processes simple so Slott ing. Eff ective slott ing practices can lower your costs for
that part-time people can be hired and become productive picking, replenishment, and put-away warehouse labor. Try
in shorter times. to have seven days of average demand in the primary pick
location. Th is reduces the number of times the picker fi nds
Reduce handling and touches. Th e fewer touches of prod-
an empty pick slot. Use velocity slott ing to determine pick
uct, the less cost of incurred to process orders. Streamline
locations and reduce travel time. Consider the development
the operation and apply industry best practices to reduce
of a dynamic hot pick zone for very fast selling items.
handling and costs. Flow chart the receiving process through
put-away, and the picking process includ- Inventory control. Eff ective inventory
ing replenishment through to the shipping management is the single most impor-
function. Th e areas for improvement will Inventory tant tool to improve customer service and
become more obvious. reduce cost of operation. Aisle mapping—
management
verifying product to all locations—is a
Replenishment. Eff ective replenishment
fundamental way to improve inventory
is the single
is the basis of effi cient order fulfi llment.
control. Cycle counting—counting prod-
Ineffi cient replenishment will cost a huge
most important
uct in all locations for a single SKU—
amount of dollars and negatively impact
insures inventory accuracy. Cycle count
customer service. Use a combination of
tool to improve
programs can eliminate annual physi-
min/max and demand practices to fi ll for-
customer service
cal inventory taking. Using bar codes
ward pick locations. Make sure replenish-
throughout the inventory process (from
ments are scheduled and completed prior
and reduce cost
inbound cartons and pallets, to put-away,
to the start of the picking process.
of operation.
Continued On 38 whwytriright
36 May 2009
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