STORAGE DELIVERS

The fact that most order pickers actually spend substantially more time traveling between pick locations than they do picking – even if they are equipped with forklifts or pallet trucks – adds significantly to distribution costs. So imagine how much more efficient, productive and safe an order picking team would be if the goods they needed to fulfill orders came directly to them instead.

Actually, the principle of goods-tothe- person (GTP) picking is not new. However, changes in occupational health & safety standards, combined with advances in technology and software, are making GTP an increasingly attractive option for many distribution operations.

GTP distribution solutions available from materials handling suppliers feature two key subsystems:

• Pick-and-put stations for high rate order fulfillment (1,000+ picks/hour across several hundred line items).

[ Next, one of the UK’s leading retailers, achieved a near-threefold increase in order picking rates, along with far greater peak capacity to meet changing business requirements, following the commissioning of a new goods-to-the-person order fulfi llment solution at its Yorkshire DC. ]

• High-throughput automated storage and retrieval systems (ASRS) that sequence and transport the required items to the pick stations for effi cient order assembl

Such solutions have already been successfully adopted by many leading manufacturers, retailers and distributors around the world. More locally, these solutions are finding their way into the Asia Pacifi c region, with a number under construction and several more in progress.

PICK & PUT

Ergonomic pick-and-put workstations are available in configurations capable of fulfi lling single or multiple orders concurrently. Workstations can facilitate both split case and full case picking, with designs that use pick-to-light (PTL) displays or voice-directed technology to further improve accuracy, productivity and throughput. Goods arrive at pick stations in the sequence required, minimizing the handling and movement needed by the operator to pick and place the necessary items to the order.

Full case stations are often designed with ergonomic load building aids which automatically adjust the height of the load being stacked. This not only reduces the physical lifting effort, but also improves productivity at the same time. For split case stations, containers are carefully positioned, oriented and tilted to minimize lifting, bending and twisting to make the operation faster and more ergonomic.

Directed by PTL or voice, pickers fulfill orders without having to leave their workstations. This is made possible with the use of sequencing software and controls which ensure the right stock is supplied to the put station when it is needed to match the orders being processed.

The result is that human errors can be largely eliminated and productivity optimized. Next, one of the UK’s leading retailers, achieved a near-threefold increase in order picking rates, along with far greater peak capacity to meet changing business requirements, following the commissioning of a new goods-to-the-person order fulfi llment solution at its Yorkshire DC. Each station holds up to 24 order totes destined for one of over 500 Next retail outlets. The PTL displays at each location indicate how many items must be put into each of the order totes, allowing a single operator to work on up to 24 store orders at the same time.

Previously, Next employed a manual order picking system for its fast-moving product lines, but given the scale of the company’s product range, operators had to travel significant distances between static pick locations. And seasonal peaks in demand could only be met significantly increasing the number of pickers employed. The high-rate put stations, in contrast, minimize the time taken by staff travelling between store orders.

STORAGE & SEQUENCE

Facilitating high order picking rates through ergonomic workstations is one thing; supplying the goods needed to fulfill the orders fast enough and in the correct sequence is the other part of the challenge in developing goods-to-theperson solutions.

Up until recently, this was a challenge that automation has struggled to meet. However, a new generation of automated storage and retrieval systems has allowed a step increase in what can be achieved in terms of throughput, sequencing and responsiveness, meaning a whole new range of applications is now possible.

Capable of handling a wide variety of cases, totes and trays, and designed to enhance the link between bulk storage and order assembly, this type of ASRS can increase speed, accuracy and throughput, while also off ering redundancy, scalability and the fl exibility to be adopted to the shape or size of the building (existing or new). Providing high space effi ciency also leads to all-important reductions in building footprint and construction – by up to 50 percent.

Whereas conventional automated storage and retrieval systems have only a single crane per storage aisle, the new ASRS technologies use multiple intelligent and self-propelled carts throughout the different levels of each aisle. These carts “shuttle” goods in and out of the high density storage aisles, interfacing with an integrated conveying system that transports and delivers the goods to the pick stations in the correct sequence to facilitate efficient order assembly and load building.

[ One of a number of intelligent carts that shuttle goods in and out of high density storage aisles. ]

The storage system houses all of the stock required to assemble orders. If necessary, this can be replenished from bulk reserve automatically or directly from Goods-In. The automated storage and retrieval system provides a vital interlink and buffer between bulk storage and order assembly, ensuring the necessary stock to fulfill orders is always on hand, improving order fill rates, reducing order fulfillment times and thereby improving customer service levels.

In addition, shuttle based ASRS technologies are able to be confi gured to take account of the throughput profile of the application. For example, the so-called “captive” format is suitable for highthroughput applications such as order picking and order consolidation buffers. A dedicated shuttle is used at each storage level in every aisle so that retrieval and put away are handled simultaneously, at a rate of up to 600 double cycles per aisle per hour.

For more moderate throughput applications, the number of shuttles can be scaled back to suit, with roaming shuttles that are capable of changing levels within the aisles. Additional shuttles can be added to accommodate increased throughput requirements as and when the business grows.

RIGHT PLACE, RIGHT TIME

In addition to having workstations and an ASRS capable of supporting high throughput rates, the success of GTP solutions is equally dependent on realtime scheduling, sequencing, and material flow management capability.

Intelligent software is responsible for ensuring stock availability and delivery, making sure that the right product is delivered to the right workstation at the right time for each order. This might go beyond sequencing for orders and extend to other requirements, such as facilitating product family grouping for store-friendly orders or arranging orders in reverse drop sequence in preparation for delivery routes.

Software is also responsible for ensuring that the right information is in the right place and the right time. From product traceability to container contents tracking to picker productivity and labor management, the software driving the new technology and automation, is also helping provide valuable information. With greater visibility and management tools, operations staff can now run a more efficient operation by making better informed decisions faster.

Automation has long been employed for delivering signifi cant productivity and capacity improvements. Traditionally, this has involved some kind of trade-off in flexibility. With the new generation of ASRS technologies and order fulfillment solutions, this is no longer the case. From the advances made in materials handling technology, operations can now enjoy signifi cantly higher productivity and greater capacity, with significantly more flexibility, scalability and redundancy.

[ The success of GTP solutions is equally dependent on intelligent software in making sure that the right product is delivered to the right workstation at the right time. ]

Michael Bradshaw is Director - Systems Sales, Dematic SEA.