Warehouse Operation Tips Archives

Warehousing for eCommerce – Capturing a Piece of the Profit Pie

As ecommerce has changed the face of the traditional retailing model, so too has it triggered new methods in warehousing and logistics. Has your company incorporated these best practices for ecommerce warehousing?

7 Methods to Improve Ecommerce Warehousing Efficiency

>Use a cluster-picking strategy with multiple order containers in a single cart. Pick rates will go up while order pickers have to make fewer trips throughout the warehouse.

>Timely and accurate communication between retail and warehouse locations is imperative. Integrated systems such as distributed order management (DOM) help ensure smooth processing of all sizes of orders from any point of origin.

>The natural progression from a multi-channel model is omni-channel, which focuses on enhancing the customer experience by providing consistent service across all purchasing options. Designing facilities that consolidate these operations results in better cost-effectiveness.

>Use level-loading throughout the year to avoid the seasonal disparities of order processing.

>Don’t discount the value of warehouse management systems (WMS) as a solution to ecommerce challenges. Many WMS vendors are including more automation in their systems to meet the demands of higher volumes of smaller orders.

>Warehouse seasonality doesn’t always correspond with holiday seasonality. Make sure you understand the specific seasonality of your business so you can plan for the highs and lows.

>Consider using pop-up fulfillment centers to better accommodate order flow.

Warehousing and Logistics Material Handling Solutions from DJ Products

Maximize your workforce with our best-selling CartCaddyShorty or any of our other battery-powered tugs, pushers and movers. Visit our website and use the handy chat feature to let our of our sales engineers help you find the best solution for your application.

Top Technology Trends in the Logistics Industry

The newest logistics technology is radically reshaping the way we buy groceries, shop for clothes, and even how we do our own jobs. Warehouse managers today are quite likely to rely heavily on technology that didn’t even exist just a few years ago.

A look at the top five trends in logistics technology covers everything from software to your friendly neighborhood robots:

• Warehouse robots have been popularized by Amazon, but other companies continue innovating their own solutions. Most prominently, motorized equipment can assist human workers with faster, safer fulfillment.

• Augmented reality for pickers and other warehouse workers can be used in smart eyeglasses to assist with finding items accurately and quickly.

• Predictive analytics up to and including “anticipatory shipping” before a customer actually buys and Uber-style trucker-to-shipper matching will continue to revolutionize the warehouse data game.

• Autonomous vehicles may be the solution to the truck driver shortage while lowering the cost per mile.

• Drones are poised to fulfill their destiny as the solution for last-mile delivery.

Data and Equipment, Working Together

Data shapes decisions in logistics, and your warehouse equipment supplier has the tools to put that data into action.

At DJ Products, our industrial cart movers help with the human side of the equation. Heavy stress from pushing loaded carts and repetitive stress in warehouse jobs both contribute to productivity loss and worker injury.

Powered material handling equipment, from our CartCaddyLite cart puller to the WagonCaddy industrial power mover, enable your workers to move at the speed of modern logistics. Get a free demo from DJ Products, your warehouse equipment supplier for powered cart movers and more.

Direct-to-Consumer Sales Turn Stores Into Local Warehouses

Facing pressure to match the e-commerce giants, more retailers have begun using brick-and-mortar locations as fulfillment warehouses. With the right adjustments, stores can deliver faster, cheaper shipping than using a remote distribution center.

For warehousers, this ups the ante for efficient and affordable third-party fulfillment services. For retailers, it creates a new need to alter retail space and train employees differently.

Pymnts.com recently examined the direct-to-consumer warehouse trend by looking at how Kohl’s has invested billions of dollars to turn its big box stores into warehouses. It may be just what traditional retail needs to keep up.

Businesses need to invest wisely with a warehouse equipment supplier for the right tools to make brick-and-mortar locations as effective as fulfillment centers. A recent Wall Street Journal op-ed questioned whether retailers are prepared for the challenge.

Challenges for turning a store into a warehouse include:

• Customer shopping replaced by the new labor of employees picking

• Retail employees need different skill sets for warehouse work

• Small storage space can be difficult to maneuver boxes, carts, forklifts

As a warehouse equipment supplier, DJ Products understands the challenges of workers picking items and moving cart loads of boxes and inventory items around tight spaces. Employees face high injury risk when maneuvering loads around corners and carrying heavy packages in and out of the warehouse.

An industrial cart mover can transform your storage room into a high-functioning distribution center. The CartCaddyShorty motorized cart puller, for example, pulls up to 3,000 pounds and can be operated safely by virtually any employee.

Contact DJ Products to speak with our helpful warehouse equipment supplier team today.

Mobile Computers and Their Role in the New Warehouse Landscape

The digital age has made its presence known with material handling equipment, but is warehouse intelligence as effective as it could be? Hardware and software experts are working to use mobile computers for a more integrated communications system.

Mobile Computers: Expanding the Horizons

Mobile touchscreen computers are making it easier for lift truck operators to handle the work flow. According to Mike Maris, senior director of transportation and logistics at Zebra Technologies, they could be even more efficient if the technology was integrated into one central communications point.

Directing a lift truck from point A to point B is only part of the equation. Each lift truck is part of an entire fleet of vehicles that needs to be managed, and maintenance also needs information to keep the trucks in good working order.

Instead of simply communicating work orders, mobile computers have the potential to handle a number of data streams. Different screens can be dedicated to different functions, such as one that provides task instructions and another that relays maintenance information or real-time maps.

Better Technology = Improved Productivity

Maris explains that the mobile computer on a lift truck can serve as a point of communication to broader systems rather than just a portal restricted to one vehicle. Streamlining the process can pay off with a 10 to 15 percent improvement in productivity.

State-of-the-Art Material Handling Equipment from DJ Products

Maximizing your work force is a major element of top productivity. Visit our website to learn how using electric material handling equipment such as our CartCaddyLite can be like adding an extra employee.

Strap-On Body Enhancements May be in the Future for Warehouse Workers

The Future: Wearable Body Enhancements.

Today’s wearable technology puts information such as your heart rate and your pet’s whereabouts right at your fingertips. Now warehouse employees can don a flexible exoskeleton suit that turns them into “superheroes.”

Meet MAX

The Modular Agile Exoskeleton, or MAX, is the brainchild of suitX, a robotics company based in Berkeley, CA. MAX uses assistive bionics technology to reduce the amount of muscle power needed to complete physical tasks in the workplace.

Separate modules protect the shoulder, back and legs, and they may be worn individually or in any combination. The modules are passive, so there are no motors to malfunction.

Increase Workplace Safety and Efficiency

In a press release announcing the arrival of MAX, suitX founder and CEO Homayoon Kazerooni said the suit was intended for jobs “where no robot can work as efficiently as a human.” In addition to warehouses, MAX has applications for delivery services and construction.

Each year, workplace injuries caused by overexertion and stress cost companies billions of dollars in lost productivity, insurance claims and higher premiums. Employees with physically demanding jobs can use MAX to boost lifting power and reduce the stress of repetitive tasks performed in awkward positions.

Maximize Your Workforce Effectiveness with Industrial Tugs from DJ Products

Your employees don’t need superhuman strength to operate our battery-powered industrial tugs. Movers like our CartCaddy 5WP allow a single person to move loads of up to 10,000 pounds, and they’re ergonomically designed to prevent repetitive movement injuries.

Don’t wait until injuries get out of hand. Visit our website and let our sales engineers help you find the right industrial tug for your needs.

Tips for Smooth Operations at Your Warehouse

Warehouse Organization and Management

Warehouse operation is the backbone of a successful company, but it’s easy to lose control of all the moving parts. Use these helpful tips to manage the details that keep your warehouse running on all cylinders.

1. Establish an Organized System

Without a logical system, your warehouse will fall into chaos as employees fall back on their own random methods. Set up the warehouse using a well-thought-out plan based on operational goals.

2. Stay Flexible

Your company is a dynamic environment where goals and conditions can change rapidly. Be sure to assess your warehouse system periodically and make any necessary changes to stay current with the business plan.

3. Make Receiving a Priority

All shipments should be received promptly and placed in the appropriate location so they’re readily available. Deal with damages and shortages immediately before problems pile up.

4. Train Your Staff

There’s no such thing as being overtrained. Develop a thorough program for training new associates, but include ongoing training and cross-training to put employees in the best position to succeed.

5. Establish and Maintain Effective Safety Practices

Workplace injuries have a ripple effect on lost productivity and increased expenses. Use proper equipment and work methods to reduce the chance of accidents and injuries.

Streamline Warehouse Operations with Industrial Tugs from DJ Products

Moving heavy equipment and materials is one of the primary causes of workplace injuries. Our battery-powered industrial tugs like our popular CartCaddy let a single employee move loads of up to 10,000 pounds easily and efficiently. Visit our website and chat with our sales engineers to find the best solution for your needs.

Tag: Warehouse Operation Tips