Warehouse workers may need to process picking orders with multiple products, or products with tracking dimensions such as batch and serial numbers. To improve efficiency, it can be beneficial to execute the put step in the background after a warehouse worker has picked the product(s).
Consider the following scenario: A sales order includes a product with 2000 serial numbers. After the sales order is released to the warehouse for picking, a warehouse worker uses a mobile device, drives with the forklift to the storage locations, and scans the pallet barcode with the requested product and serial numbers. After picking, the worker brings the pallet (put step) to the outbound location.
Once the pallet is delivered, the worker confirms the delivery. However, due to the large number of serial numbers, it may take up to 8 or 10 minutes before the mobile device has processed the confirmation of the delivery to the outbound (put). Consequently, the worker needs to wait until the confirmation has been processed before he can continue with the next task.
In this scenario, implementing the ‘work processing policy’ feature can significantly improve efficiency in the put step, as it enables immediate processing of the confirmation step on the mobile device and executes it in the background. This way, a worker no longer has to wait until it has been processed, resulting in several added benefits for the business:
1. Decreased of waiting time for warehouse workers: By preventing the waiting time during the put step, warehouse workers can utilize their time more productively, leading to increased efficiency in the overall workflow.
2. Increased processing capacity: With the elimination of waiting time, warehouse workers can process more pick orders throughout the day. This heightened processing capacity allows for greater throughput of orders, thereby enhancing overall productivity.
3. More shipments and deliveries: With warehouse workers being able to handle more pick orders efficiently, the business can fulfill more shipments and deliveries to both internal and external customers. This contributes to customer satisfaction and strengthens the business’s reputation for timely and reliable service.
Overall, the implementation of the ‘work processing policy’ feature not only improves operational efficiency within the warehouse, but also contributes to the broader goals of enhancing customer service and driving business grow.
Configuration
1. Configuration of work processing policy. The first step is to configure a work processing policy. This policy allows you to select the processes for which you want to apply the work processing policy, such as sales orders and/or transfer orders.
Path: Warehouse management > Setup > Work processing policies
| Nr. | Field | Description |
| 1 | Work processing policy name | The name of the work processing policy |
| 2 | Description | The description of the policy name |
| 3 | Work order type | The work order type which the policy is applied to |
| 4 | Operation | The operation that is processed by using the policy. |
| 5 | Work processing method | The method that is used to process the work line. If the method is set to Immediate, the behavior resembles the behavior when no work processing policies are used to process the line. If the method is set to Deferred, deferred processing that uses the batch framework is used. |
| 6 | Deferred processing threshold | A value of 0 (zero) indicates that there is no threshold. In this case, deferred processing is used whenever it can be used. But if the specific threshold calculation is below the threshold, the Immediate method is used. For sales and transfer related work, the threshold is calculated based on the number of associated source load lines that are being processed for the work. For replenishment work, the threshold is determined based on the number of work lines that are replenished by the work. By setting a threshold of, e.g., 5, for sales, smaller tasks that have fewer than five initial source load lines won’t use deferred processing, while larger works will use it. The threshold only influences the process if the work processing method is set to Deferred. |
| 7 | Deferred processing batch group | The batch group that is used for processing. |
2. Configure Work Processing Policy in Warehouse Management Parameters. Once the work processing policy is defined, it needs to be configured within the Warehouse Management parameters. This setting determines whether the work processing policy is active for a given legal entity.
Path: Warehouse management > Setup > Warehouse management parameters
3. The work processing policy could be configured on warehouse level as well.
Path: Warehouse management > Setup > Warehouse > Warehouses
4. It is also possible to exclude mobile menu items of using the ‘Work processing policy’ with the setting ‘Deferred put processing policy’.
Path: Warehouse management > Mobile device > Mobile device menu items
Demonstration
1. A sales order for product ‘MX KEYS S’ with quantity of 2000. The product ‘MX KEYS S’ is serial number controlled which in this case means that it includes 2000 unique serial numbers.
2. The sales order is released to the warehouse for picking.
3. The warehouse mobile device needs to be opened. Then, select the menu item ‘Sales picking’.
4. Picking of the pallet (license plate) via the mobile device (warehouse app).
5. Delivery to the Ship Location (Put Step). Once delivered at the ship location, the warehouse worker can start the put step by clicking on the ‘Confirm’ button. Once clicked, a task will be created automatically to process the put step in the background. This allows the warehouse worker to proceed with the next task, e.g., handling a new picking order.
6. The status of the put step will be ‘in process’ until the deferred processing task has been fully processed.
7. Once initiated, a deferred put processing task will be generated automatically. This way, the put step is processed via a batch job in the background. Warehouse workers have the option to track the progress of these deferred put processing tasks through the ‘Deferred Put Processing Tasks’ form. Additionally, users could cancel or reprocess the put processing task through this form when necessary.
Path: Warehouse management > Work > Deferred put processing tasks
8. After processing, the status of the deferred processing task is updated to ‘Completed’. In this case, it took approximately 10 minutes for the deferred put processing task to process the put step. Without this feature, warehouse workers would have been required to wait during this step. However, once this feature is implemented, warehouse workers can continue with other tasks using the mobile device, without having to wait for the processing to complete.
9. Following the completion of the put step processing, the work associated with it is closed. This shows that the put step has been successfully executed and finalized within the warehouse operations.
10. After the put step work has been closed, the shipment can be confirmed.
11. Once the shipment has been confirmed, the packing slip can be posted. Posting the packing slip finalizes the shipment process, indicating that the items have been packed and will be delivered to the customer.
12. Following the successful posting of the packing slip, the status of the sales order is changed into ‘delivered’. This indicates that the order has been fulfilled and delivered to the customer.
