Materials Handling & Warehousing PDF

CHAPTER 11 Materials Handling & Warehousing Warehousing Operations in a Global Supply Chain Value-Adding Activities Warehousing should aim to provide value-adding services as well as minimising operating costs · Warehousing operations can achieve this by (see Figure 11.2 above): – Creat...

CHAPTER 11 Materials Handling & Warehousing Warehousing Operations in a Global Supply Chain Value-Adding Activities Warehousing should aim to provide value-adding services as well as minimising operating costs · Warehousing operations can achieve this by (see Figure 11.2 above): – Creating bulk consignments – Breaking bulk consignments – Combining freight – Smoothing supply to meet demand Generic Warehouse Functions Cross Docking · Cross-docking: when an item bypasses the storage area in warehouses and distribution centers: – reduces cost – improves customer service – non-value-adding functions are eliminated – typically employed for fast-moving freight with constant demand · In cross-docking inventory is not put into storage but instead moves from the receiving area to the dispatch area of the warehouse. Warehouse Layout Examples Source: Warman, J. (1971) Warehouse Management, Heinemann, London, p. 59. Reproduced with permission of Pearson Education. U-Shaped · Most common type of layout · The shipping and receiving are located right next to each other, offering shared utilization of dock resources such as employees · Allows for cross-docking · No picking face I-Shaped · Shipping and receiving are located in separate areas · Allows for greater storage space (in the middle) · More security · Picking face at the end · It works for larger organizations as they experience a large volume of items, and the I shape is better than the clear in-and- out structure. L-Shaped · Least common · Shipping and receiving are located in separate areas · Allows for greater storage space · More security · The L-shaped design is like an I- shaped design, except that the loading and unloading docks are separated by a 90-degree angle instead of a straight shot · Storage space remains in the center · Works for larger organizations as it has larger storage space in the center. Activity · Identify the warehouse structure of the following companies: – Amazon – Walmart – FedEx Warehouse Management Systems A Warehouse Management System (WMS) manages information processes and material requirements transmitted from the management information system (such as an ERP) to:  Trigger the right work... ... at the right time across the operation... ... to meet demand WMS Information Inputs and Outputs WMS data capture and transmission technologies Materials Handling and Storage · MHE – materials handling equipment · Automated material handling improves and standardises warehouse performance by minimising human intervention · Storage solutions vary depending on the volume, variety and throughput of freight in a warehouse or distribution system – Pallet storage – Non-pallet storage (high-end clothes) Order Picking · Picking solutions vary depending on freight volume, variety and throughput: – Pick-to-order – Batch picking – Pick-to-zero or pick-by-line sequences – Zone picking – Wave picking Prioritising Storage versus Picking Source: Strategos (2010) Warehouse Layout & Design: Transactions, Inventory & Technology, www.strategosinc.com/warehouse.htm. Work Organisation and Job Design · Automation and computerisation is reducing human intervention in the physical handling of freight, and increasing information interaction which has implications for job design · Socio-Technical Systems Theory (STS) focuses on the impact of implementing warehouse technologies on the workforce · Fundamental principles of STS theory are: – Joint optimisation of the technical and social system – Quality of work life – Employee participation in system design – Semi-autonomous work groups Socio-Technical Systems Theory Source: Modified from Bostrom, R. & Heinen, J. (1977) MIS problems and failures: a socio‐technical perspective, MIS Quarterly, September, 17–31.