PTL system

 

When stocks reached warehouse, warehouse officer will look for location to store the stocks (pallet, carton, loose packing).Pallet and carton sizes can be stacked (single or multi-layer) on racks or floors.

For loose is advisable to use put to light (PTL) system or pick to light (PTL) system for easy identification

Each Pick-to-Light display module contains a two digit LED display, a tri-colour indicator light, and three push buttons - one for count up, one for count down and one for pick/put complete. The display unit consists of a high impact, moulded polycarbonate bezel, which snaps onto the wire-way channel. A laminated, tactile push button pad with the three buttons is permanently bonded to a recess in the bezel. A cut out in the bezel matches a clear window in the tactile module for the two-digit LED display. The LED and colour indicator light is attached to the controller printed circuit board, which in turn is attached to the bezel. In the event of a display malfunction, the entire bezel assembly is quickly unsnapped from the channel and replaced.

The advantages of this system when an order need to be picked, the host will send signal to the PTL  worker will look for the location that flash light, once done he will press another button(to show job done). The host will continue to display if uncompleted jobs. This ensures a complete list of job done paperless

Be a leader in economic recovery by positioning your business to prosper

History shows that companies focused on cost cutting strategies during a recession seldom emerge as market leaders. McKinsey & Company, the prestigious international consulting firm, examined the pattern of declines and recoveries during recent recessions dating back to the 1970s.  The February 2009 McKinsey Quarterly points out that in past recessions “businesses that followed counter cyclical patterns of cash utilization and spending fared much better than those with purely defensive strategies.”

With the uncertain economic climate, planning a strategic recovery plan is no easy task.  For companies to emerge stronger and capturing bigger market share when the economy recovers, they need to be realistic in assessing the business environment by reviewing internally its own operational capabilities, technological competence, skills, knowledge, flexibility and competitive positioning.

Append below are steps to begin with

1. A total understanding of all the supply chain functions and costs

Operating a warehouse/distribution centre need a thorough understanding of cost control, maximizing productivity, improve throughput, minimizing downtime and improving accuracy. By understanding the said opportunities, the management team is able to identify a system that can be implemented for automation, integration of processes and able cater to volatile demand.

 2. Understand your customers’ needs

Is the time to get closer to your customer  so as to improve your customer’s economic performance whom demand shorter delivery times, inventories control due to contracting product life cycle and having a friendly system in stock picking (Pick To Light or Voice)

3. To plan even with a reduced  staff

With certain departments downsized and probably eliminated, companies need time to properly execute a redistribution of responsibilities. Due to time constraints or lack of expertise, the remaining in-house engineers may be focused on ad hoc solutions to reduce cost and shared work load. Outsourcing is an option to move from fixed to variable costs. Successfully outsourcing requires careful selection of a partner that understands your business and effectively bond with your organisation goals and expectation.

4. To be a top competitor

As the Logistic Sortation and Warehousing(LSW) industry continues to grow, the gap between customer expectations and the current technological capabilities is a challenge to the industry.  LSW player must show sustainability, security and technology as the crucial areas they are capable of. The pressures to keep supply chain management efficient through innovative technological solutions and priced right for customers. These are ways to retain and grow  market share in the economic recovery.

 5. Communication of  lead time to customer

Experienced companies understand the time it takes to plan, design and implement a material handling project whereas a potential customer would not have idea of the flow development.  While time factors vary with the nature and complexity of the project, a good communication with customer is vital to prevent misunderstanding and losing a job given.

The push factor for a better handling system for your Warehouse/DC

You may think why do I need a better handling system for my warehouse or distribution system as the following criteria has not clocked in yet :

a)    Company turnover less than RM1 billion

b)    Having less than 20 outlets/stores (total outlets sizes about 100,000 sq ft)

c)     Is cheaper to employ workers and  manpower retraining is easy

d)    Everyday logistic, administrative, handling , inventory and others problems can be resolved at finger tips

e)    Late/wrong delivery and customer dissatisfaction are manageable

f)     I am not a listed company, nobody to be answerable to on expansion plan

The advantages of finding a good track record Logistic Sortation Warehouse solutions provider is he is able to understand your business correctly, study your operation well, understand your need/requirement and tailor made a solution to your needs. Regardless of  what business or industry you are managing, a basic motto you believe is ‘ Quick deliverance of goods, Lowest cost of operation and Accuracy’    

Most managers might feedback automation adds zero value to the products, it might add extra cost to operation if not fully utilised the system and maintenance cost will definitely moving up.  You are used to traditional manual processing your work, but at certain point it is getting harder to cope with, the following reasons might u turn your decision to implement automation :

1)   Shipping cost/item increased. This increment in cost is from receiving, storage, order picking, replenishment  and shipping. To put it simply, if you need to handle a major activity/handling with more than one labour transaction, you are probably wasting labour. For example, a manual warehouse process an order, instruct order picker with a cart, moving around storage area to select goods. Once done , a senior will need to check for error in picking , consolidate the batches, box it , build a pallet and organise for delivery truck

How about demand increase or manpower shortage , can you still achieve the above motto of quick and accurate deliverance

2)   Your returns are increasing. Handling returns goods is tedious and inefficient as they require a lot of   manual labour to support.  Thus, if you notice that your return bay is requiring more attention to handle and negative customer feedback due to inaccurate shipments. This cause might be associated with the order picking process.  By implementing a pick to light or voice picking system, not only does productivity increase compared to paper-based picking, but accuracy does as well.

3)  Your inventory accuracy is getting worse.  It doesn’t matter if you conduct regular stock count and reconcile     the results and you still have an inaccurate inventory data. You can implement a low level warehouse management system (WMS) that won’t cost you a bomb. This system is able to tie the receiving inventory, order management and stock movement accurately     

4) Your warehouse is getting messier and more disorganized.  If you are embarrassed to walk your boss around the warehouse, or if you are the boss and you are embarrassed to walk a customer around your warehouse, then you might want to consider ways to tidy things up.

Frequently when warehouse managers face this issue, the answer is to acquire more floor space by either facility expansion or actually moving locations.  This is often not necessary and sometimes, by reconfiguring the warehouse to utilize more of the cubic vertical space, some of the floor space can be recaptured and freed up for other operations.  Cubic space utilization can vary by using simple means such as static storage rack or a mezzanine or it can become more complex through ceiling supported conveyors and multi-level pick modules.  By taking advantage of all of the open space in your facility and maintaining a disciplined routine of tidiness, you will not only be more productive, but also add pride to your work

Stock Keeping Unit (SKU)

An SKU is a number or string of alpha and numeric character  that uniquely identify a product. For this reason, SKUs are often called as part numbers, product numbers  and product identifiers.
SKU allow inventory to be tracked  from point of distribution to point of sale. SKU is a type of data management system.  All SKU tracking varies from business to business and according to regions and corporate data systems. SKU also varies from other product tracking systems due to manufacturer regulations or even government regulations. Other examples of tracking methods are Universal Product Code (UPC), European Article Number (EAN), and Global Trade Item Number (GTIN).

SKU’s are typically printed as a barcode on a label somewhere on the product. This makes it easy and quick to find the products information by scanning it with a bar code reader.
The first part of a SKU may contain the code for that type of product while the second part of the code may represent the color or style.

Since the SKU represents the number of units in the item, you should read carefully to make sure you are ordering the desired quantity. In some cases, a quantity of 1 may mean one box full of a dozen separate products. The problem arises when you only need one product, not a dozen.

SKU can also be used to determine how many time the product flow  at each separate location or where the inventory is stored . SKU can be used to track products through the supply chain as well as to use for inspecting sales data.

Some SKU’s come embedded with an RFID tag. Updates or changes can be made to the item by using an RFID reader. High volume stock can be processed quickly this way because you don’t need to manually scan each individual item by hand. RFID system scans are done automatically. Since RFID scanners act similar to GPS trackers, you can use them to find products that might have been misplaced in large
warehouses.

Another benefit of using SKU is with seasonal products that need to be updated every year. Some SKU’s contain the year somewhere in the code. If product from the following year is going to be used in a new year, then the year in the code can be changed. This is useful for products that do not change from year to year.

When it comes to warehouse storage and distribution, assigning SKU codes to all the items in stock can be a monumental feat. Luckily for distributors, there have been advances in computer software and systems that make the task of giving a product an SKU much easier. This new technology has made the task easier and more convenient, not to mention more accurate because it is free from human error.

Steps in planning your warehouse or distribution centre-Part 2

A distribution center may be a company's largest capital investment,  it's important  the planning is done  accurately and correctly. Thus to achieve this objective, the following steps  are  :

1. Setting goals and objectives. They can be defined as reducing warehousing operating costs, improving  picking activity and  faster deliverance of products to  customers. Or ultimately to  maximize capacity , better  efficiency in resources  and  accommodating future warehouse  expansion or changes in products/process  flow.

2. Information and data collection.  Whether  is a  new facility or using existing warehouse space, make sure the building constraint(column sizes, dock location, ceiling height etc ) to be addressed appropriately  ,don't let any building constraints to  restrict process flow design.  The product information pertaining to the number of stock keeping units (SKUs) to be stored and picked within the facility, along with their dimensional measurements, weights, order history, and velocity data

3. Process analysis. After the  information about the building and the inventory has been collected, a thorough analysis should include the following queries:

• How  is the  process flow from inbound till outbound ?
• Does the inbound storage/racking has sufficient space to accommodate increment in volume ? Any space for buffering 
• What type of conveying eequipment  , identification  method  and sorting equipment to be used?
• What level of  the warehouse control system to be used ?
• Any outlay for future expansion?

If the above analysis conform with the requirement set, a detailed project plan can be developed. Else, the management will need to review a new requirement in term of  resetting a new goals and objectives.

4. Create a detailed project plan. Task list to be created  on schedule planning , designing , equipment sourcing , discussion with partners , commissioning and handling over. Not forgetting the maintenance and service support. 

5.Project review. The implementation phase of the project is crucial as this will counter check the original goals and objectives are met and realised .Changes are required during the implementation phase in order to meet the most current demand . It's important to remember that all of these changes or deviations from the original plan must be well documented so that expectations for all stakeholders are managed properly.

6. Post project review. Once the project has been completed and products flow  is moving smoothly in and out of the facility, a final meeting should be conducted.  This session will include a discussion with the implementation team as to whether the final layout was implemented as originally designed and approved, and to confirm that any changes were appropriately documented. This step is critical for future project planning. 

Steps in planning your warehouse or distribution centre-Part 1

In today's economy , investors or directors do not compromise in mistakes especially an investment of a facility that is critical component of the supply chain , they required detailed planning to meet expected return on investment

The projection of inventory on hand and projected increment in turnover, how the inventory movement (fast moving, slow moving) will decide the floor area of the storage, the storage requirement (high bay storage or ground storage).

During planning  a new distribution center layout , the following requirements will decide the design of the warehouse:

• Low movement / Low Storage Requirements. This scenario needs a simple, smaller warehouse operation. To have  automation or sophisticated storage and picking mediums or devices do not justified the investment. Thus , designated floor storage with  stacked pallets and  simple pallet racks  are sufficient  in the warehouse  along with manual handling.
• Low movement / High Storage Requirements. This scenario needs a  high bay, multi-level and  high-density storage .  Order  picking  can be   manual or semi-manual.
• High movement / Low Storage Requirements. This scenario requires  a  condensed picking area supported by a reasonable  buffer of stocks to cater for under stock.  This  justifies for  a  picking system and the use of automated material handling systems.
• High movement / High Storage Requirements. This scenario is a requirement to have a workable  Logistic Sortation and Warehousing solutions for the  distribution center.  This  high picking  activity and high storage requirements  justify the use of  automated order picking systems, conveying the products , identifying the products  and a sorting systems for outbound. In short looking for a workable and reliable partner whom has the expertise is  a vital step to reduce over investment and under perform management team of the partner

Once the storage and picking scenario is well studied and  after taking into account the economic forecasts for the coming 5-10 years ahead , the planning process is now off and running.

Return of investment consideration

ROI will affect the bottom line of a company, this is answerable to the shareholder or directors . When proposing a distribution center, a realistic ROI will counter check the pros and cons of the set up.

The following parameters need to be studied clearly :

a) Manpower saving in term of quality control, overtime ,reduced  recruitment process and reduced manpower turnover

 b) Throughput in term of simplified material flow paths, faster response time to customer, elimination of bottlenecks,reduce inspection, capacity to manage new products,improving scheduling and work flow

c) Accuracy by reduce transit costs for mis-shipments between stores and DC

d) Brick and Mortar Savings ,elimination of excessive aisle space or better space utilization 

e)  Safety means less handling of products , thus,  avoidance of injury.

f)  Inventory , good control of inventory to achieve JIT inventory practices, reduce shrinkage(due to overstock) and damage reduction (less handling) 

g) Image  , the company able to project a favourable perception  to both customers and suppliers.

The sorting process

A reliable sorting system is needed for fast and accurate  sorting of parcels, packages, boxes etc. This requires a tailor made solutions with a considerable sorting capacity taking into account the special requirements and allocated budgets.

The sortation systems can be divided into 5 divisions :
 a) In feed the products into the sortation system
 b) Identification for the sorting process
 c) Automatic merging from different feed points to the main sorter
 d) The sorting process
 e) Out feed the sorted products to designated bays

Frost & Sullivan Predicts Malaysia's Logistics Revenue in 2011

NewswireToday  -Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 01/25/2011 -The Malaysian logistics industry is expected to grow 11.5 per cent to RM121 billion in 2011 as compared to RM108.5 billion a year ago, supported by the country's strong external trade and stable economic outlook, says Frost & Sullivan. Mr. Gopal R, Vice President, Transportation & Logistics Practice, Asia Pacific and Country Head for Malaysia at Frost & Sullivan said that external trade for Malaysia is expected to increase 10 per cent year-on-year to RM1.28 trillion in 2011 as compared to RM1.16 trillion in 2010.