SCANNING DURING THE PICK

Scanning orders during the pick is most efficient when multiple orders can be picked and scanned before the picker returns with the picked orders. This can be done using totes that have dividers that keep individual orders separated. It also lends itself well to warehouses that can be traversed quickly or while picking smaller items that can be located together, close to the point where they will be packed. Since items are not brought back to a packing station for scanning, a mobile device is required to verify items as they are picked. Scanning at the pick is the only option in instances where individual items do not require barcdoes. In this case, bins must be barcoded and scanned instead. More on that below.

When scanning during the pick the highest assurance of accuracy is achieved by scanning items and placing them directly into the box or envelope in which they will be shipped. Ideally, the parcel will be sealed and labeled just after packing is completed. This prevents items from falling out of, or accidentally getting added to, scanned orders. This requires shipping labels to be printed in batches prior to picking and scanning.

If shipping labels will be printed afterward there are two options. The parcels can be left unsealed with the packing slip accessible. The packed and verified parcels can be dropped off at a shipping station where the packing slip is scanned to find the order and create the shipping label. Another option is to set up a mobile printing solution where shipping labels (or smaller barcode labels with just the order number barcode) are printed right on the pick cart.

 A pick cart is often used when scanning during the pick. The cart can be loaded with packing materials and can include bins or totes where shipments are stored after they have been scanned.  This makes it possible to scan and pack many orders before returning to drop-off completed parcels and replenish envelopes etc. If it is impractical to have a cart large enough to carry the packing materials, the cart can include just the bins or totes. Each tote or each section of each tote will receive items for a specific order and the packing slip for that order. The contents of the totes can then be transferred to the final shipping parcels when the shipping label is created at a shipping station.

SCANNING DURING PACKING

Scanning orders as they are packed can be done in several different ways. If you’re not scanning during picking items will need to be individually barcoded but it opens up the possibility of picking in consolidated batches. This is important for larger warehouses where it is not feasible to move across the warehouse to pick multiple items in different locations for each order. Here are some popular variations of scanning while picking.

SCANNING DURING PACKING – AT ARMS LENGTH

 For small items (beads, screen protectors, etc. ) and a low number of total skus, the majority of items may be at arm’s length. Here the line between scanning at the pick, and scanning at the pack is tough to distinguish because you can pick everything you need within a step or two of the packing station. This is often the case when shipping smaller items from a garage or spare room in the early stages of a business.

SCANNING DURING PACKING – SCAN FROM TOTES

Here orders have been picked to a tote by a picker and dropped of at a shipping station to be scanned and packed. The picking was done based on a  packing slip which is now in the tote divider with each of the items in the order. Rather than returning to the packing station after each order is picked, multiple orders are picked back to back into the same tote. Orders in the tote remain separated by dividers. After several orders are picked to a tote it can be taken to a packing station where the packing slips are scanned to cue orders in GroovePacker for QC scanning.

SCANNING DURING PACKING – BATCH PICKING

A third variation of scanning during packing involves using a consolidated pick list to gather all of the items needed to pack a batch of orders. The optimal batch size can vary greatly based on the size of the items, the size of the warehouse and the number of items in an average order.  When items are spread across a large warehouse a consolidated pick list, sorted by location, allows pickers to move linearly through the warehouse eliminating back-tracking.

When the items required to pack a wave or batch of orders are listed by location it is often referred to as a consolidated pick list. As the batch size increases more items are picked and the time spent picking each order decreases. Unfortunately, large batches also result in more items for the packer to contend with when they begin selecting items during packing.

At some point, it feels like there are two pick processes, one from the shelf to the pick cart and another from the pick cart to the packing station. Limiting the number of orders picked in each batch will limit the number of items and help greatly but this will increase the number of pick passes required. For small warehouses, this may not be an issue but in large warehouses, more time will be spent in transit.

Another solution is to divide the pick cart into sections that correspond to sections in the warehouse. GroovePacker can display the bin location of each item as it is suggested for scanning which will let the packer know where it can be found on the cart. This speeds up the packing process because the packer can locate items faster.

Batches can also be set up with specific items to increase efficiency for similar orders. For example, single-item orders with popular items can be picked and scanned in separate batches. These orders can generally be completed very quickly. Focus can then be given to the more complicated orders once the single items are all out of the way. 

If there are batching conditions that you would like to see implemented in GroovePacker, ie. Batch creation based on Shipping Method, Import Source or Quantity of items, reach out to support and let us know. We build GroovePacker based on feedback from our users.