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It's a common challenge during peak Holiday season. Every year, thousands for warehouses across the world ramp up for an explosion of shipping that challenges even the most sophisticated warehouse managers. By some estimates, Catalog and E-Commerce businesses generate nearly 60% of their annual sales in the last four months of the calendar alone.

One common "challenge," which might be considered a "good problem to have" is the "hit product" where there are hundreds or even thousands of orders every day for a single product that everyone wants...or wants to give as a gift. When there are so many single-item orders for the same item like this, it seems wasteful to run all of them through the standard picking, sorting and packing process that a typical order would go through.

"Measured in time and money - order picking is without doubt the most costly activity in a typical warehouse. It is also the activity that plays the biggest role for customer satisfaction with the warehouse – and in the final analysis the entire supply chain." - Professor René de Koster

1. “Why not make the work easier and more interesting so that people do not have to sweat?  The Toyota style is not to create results by working hard. It is a system that says there is no limit to people’s creativity.  People don’t go to Toyota to ‘work’ they go there to ‘think’” – Taiichi Ohno

2. “The most dangerous kind of waste is the waste we do not recognize.” – Shigeo Shingo

3. "Many good American companies have respect for individuals, and practice Kaizen and other TPS {Toyota Production System} tools.  But what is important is having all of the elements together as a system.  It must be practiced every day in a very consistent manner–not in spurts–in a concrete way on the shop floor."  - Fujio Cho, President, Toyota Motor Corporatio

To improve warehouse operations and productivity, open your mind to new technology such as a picking cart with portable power. After you have reviewed your order picking process and ready to consider equipment but only if it proves to offer a quick ROI.  If you are still unsure, read case studies here.to learn how others have benefited.

Stock picking carts are an essential part of factory and warehouse operations. Order picking is the most labor intensive and error prone process in the warehouse. Newcastle Systems offers a NEW solution that is ideal for single line items, batch order picking, manual and RF picking as well as “Pick & Pack”.

Once you understand how adding the latest technology from Newcastle Systems includes portable power, you begin to think quickly about the possibilities.It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see the advantages of eliminating wasted steps with a power supply integrated with a mobile stock picking cart station. 

A NEW order picking cart with portable power will be just the thing for you...

A number of supply chain academics such as G.P. Sharp and Edward Frazelle have proposed a number of ways of classifying the order picking system. Four solutions have been identified for order picking.

• Picker to Part
• Part to Picker
• Sorting System
• Pick to Box

Warehouses can be optimized for improved operations in less time than many managers think - but a solid plan is the key to ensuring that everything continues to run smoothly.

Mispicks in the order picking process can be easily defined and understood.  Order picking is the process of pulling items from inventory in the warehouse to fill a customer order.  However, eliminating mispicks is a costly and ongoing dilemna.

In fact, distribution centers are losing an average of nearly $390,000 per year due to mis-picks, according to a study conducted by Intermec, Inc. 

If you have been in the warehousing or distribution for any amount of time, you will order warehouse carts such as those you see in the image above. There is new technology available to change the ordinary warehouse cart into a powered workstation.  

What has not changed is the number of steps the average person takes per hour: 105 steps per minute, 6300 per hour or 50,400 steps in eight hours. We recently showed how saving six minutes can turn into $5,000 by eliminating wasted steps by adding portable power to carts.

Can Lean Consultants be a valuable asset to a Company?  We use an infographic to get a big picture look at the many aspects of lean to consider whether a lean consultant is beneficial to you business:

To err is human and order picking is not an exception.  To accept marginal performance and not be diligent with finding solutions for picking errors is costly.  To conquer problems related to errors in order picking, below you will find suggestions from those who have already found solutions.