What is meant by Picking warehouse?
A picking warehouse is a specially organized storage area where goods are kept ready for order picking. It is designed to efficiently manage the process of assembling customer orders or production orders. Unlike other types of warehouses, all items are accessible to the picker at all times, with typically only partial quantities being picked rather than complete loading units.
Typical software functions in the area of "picking warehouse":
- Inventory management: Real-time monitoring and updating of stock levels.
- Order processing: Management and prioritization of picking orders.
- Route optimization: Calculation of the most efficient picking routes.
- Pick-by technologies: Support for various picking methods such as pick-by-light or pick-by-voice
- Replenishment control: Automatic triggering of replenishment orders when defined minimum stock levels are reached.
- Performance analysis: Recording and evaluation of picking performance and times.
Examples of "picking warehouse":
- E-commerce fulfillment center: Warehouse for rapid processing of online orders.
- Production-proximate picking warehouse: Provision of components for just-in-time manufacturing.
- Pharmaceutical distribution center: Picking of medications for pharmacies and hospitals.
- Food wholesale: Assembly of orders for retailers and catering businesses.
- Automotive supplier warehouse: Picking of vehicle parts for automobile production.
- Clothing distribution center: Assembly of fashion items for retail stores.