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23 August 2018. If you want to stop errors in your warehouse or if you know that your pickers are constantly making mistakes then you will want to get this sorted out at the earliest opportunity. After all, if you don’t then you will end up facing even more issues in the future and this is the last thing that you need because all of this will be hurting your bottom line.
Track accuracy rates
If you can’t find how accurate your team have been recently then you aren’t tracking things well enough. It doesn’t matter how much you focus on efficiency because unless you are able to back it up with data then you won’t be getting anywhere. You also need to be able to track your customer complaints, your inventory, how it compares to the progress you have done before and more. A lot of warehouses even use cylinder scales or other measuring equipment to increase the accuracy of the products that they are selling and to also make sure that the products are being handled in the right way.
Identify slow employees
When you are trying to manage your warehouse inventory, you may find that there are a couple of things holding you back. For example, you may have someone who is very slow on the product line and this may be backing up all of the other processes you have. People may be left with stacks of boxes that are waiting to get sorted and they may also be waiting to try and get other jobs done as well. The solution to this issue would be for you to put the person who is slow at the start of the line so that they set the pace and so things don’t get backed up or cause errors. Other things that you need to think about include whether or not the products are slotted into the right picking locations or even to find out if errors are even being noticed. When you are able to eliminate issues like this, you can then go on to implement the right solutions.
Always do cycle counts
Cycle counts are like vitamins for your warehouse. You can benefit in a number of ways and they will really help you to shape the errors of your inventory space as well. They will help you by telling you where the problems in your warehouse lie and they will also help you to know if there is anything that you can do to try and sort them out as well. If you are having problems with this then it may be worth you hiring a professional so that you can count on them to get everything back in order.
Automate everything
Automation really is the key to success. You need to automate absolutely everything and anything you can. Not every application is suited to be automated but you can do more to try and create a much bigger and much more efficient operation. You can even do inventory counts through automation as well if you want. This isn’t expensive and it isn’t difficult either, but when you are able to put the work in and when you are able to really find out what you can do to make everything easier, you will soon see how it can all comes together.
Count after you’ve done the picks
If you aren’t already then you need to try and count after you have done the picking and before. Shippers and packers need to work together to make sure that the right product is going out. These quick counts may, at times seem intensive in terms of time but believe it or not, they can actually save you a ton of time in the future. The time and the money you spend making sure that the order is right the first time around will stop a lot of dissatisfied customers and it will prevent a lot of customer relation headaches as well. Sure, you might not always be able to prevent a few returns here and there but you may find that errors are prevented before they become too serious.
Running a warehouse isn’t easy but when you are able to put the time and effort into making sure that your process is solid, you can then really take the time to get everything in order and how it should be. You can also stop a lot of dissatisfied customers as well, and this is essential to your own future.
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