Order Picking

Order picking is the job of collecting items from storage to fill a customer's order. It sits in the middle of the flow through a warehouse: an order arrives, the warehouse management system (WMS) turns it into pick tasks, you pick it, someone packs it, and a carrier takes it away. A wrong pick costs a return, a replacement, a customer service call and some of the customer's trust, so accuracy comes first. Speed builds on accuracy as you learn the building.

What You Will Be Able to Do

• Explain discrete, batch, zone and wave picking and when each one fits.
• Read a pick task and find a location from its code.
• Verify every pick against the four checks.
• Handle a short pick, a wrong item or a damaged item correctly.
• Pick at a good rate while protecting your body.

Reading a Pick Task

A pick task tells you what, how many and where. For example:

Location formats differ from site to site, but the idea is always the same: every storage spot has a unique address. Learn your building's format on your first day. Some sites add a fourth part for the position on the shelf.

Pick Methods

The method depends on order volume, product mix and layout. You may use more than one in the same building.

Wave picking is about when work is released. Within a wave, you may still pick by discrete, batch or zone methods.

In batch picking, keep orders apart. Use a cart with numbered compartments or color-coded totes. If items from different orders mix, you lose the time you saved in sorting and errors follow.

In zone picking, your zone is a link in a chain. If you fall behind, orders stack up and the next zones wait.

Picking Technology

• RF scanner: RF stands for radio frequency. This handheld device directs you to a location and checks each scan against the WMS as you go. Its big advantage over paper is that it confirms the location, item and quantity in real time, and catches an error before the item leaves the shelf. That is why high-volume sites prefer it.
• Voice picking: A headset tells you where to go and how many to take, and you answer by speaking. Your hands and eyes stay free.
• Pick-to-light: Lights on the shelf show which bin to pick from and how many. You press a button to confirm. It suits dense areas with fast-moving items.

The tools change, but the checks do not.

How to Pick

1. Get your assignment. Log in on your scanner or headset and accept the task, wave or batch.
2. Prepare. Take a clean cart or tote, a charged scanner and any PPE your zone needs, such as freezer gear.
3. Go to the location. Follow the pick path the WMS gives you. It is planned to reduce backtracking.
4. Scan the location. Scan the barcode on the rack or bin. If the scanner rejects it, stop. You are probably in the wrong spot. Check the code before you pick anything, and never override the scan.
5. Match the item. Compare the full SKU to the item label. Do not go by the picture or by how it looks.
6. Count the quantity. Count every unit, and recount if it is more than a handful.
7. Scan and place. Scan the item, then set it in the tote with care. Keep heavy items off fragile ones.
8. Finish. When the task is complete, take the order to the pack station or staging area the WMS names.

The Four Checks

Every pick must pass four checks:

1. Right location: you scanned or confirmed the shelf address.
2. Right item: the SKU matches, including size, color and variant.
3. Right quantity: you counted each unit.
4. Right condition: nothing is damaged, opened or out of date.

Many warehouses aim for order accuracy of 99.5 percent or better. On 1,000 orders, that allows about five errors.

Why Mispicks Happen

• Similar products sitting in neighboring locations. This is one of the most common causes.
• Skipping the location scan.
• Miscounting loose items.
• Someone else having put away the wrong item earlier.
• Rushing the last pick of a batch.

FIFO and Dated Stock

FIFO means First In, First Out. Pick the oldest stock first, so product does not expire or go out of date on the shelf. If a location holds more than one date or lot, take the oldest one unless the system directs otherwise. Check dates on food, medicine and anything else that expires.

When Something Is Wrong

Exceptions are part of the work. Handling them properly keeps the inventory record true.

If you catch your own mistake, fix it right away. If you find someone else's, report it. Never adjust a quantity or swap an item to cover an error. The next picker depends on that record.

Pick Rates

Pick rate is usually counted in lines an hour (LPH). A line is one item on an order, whatever the quantity. Some sites count units instead. Targets depend on the site, the product and the walking distance, so treat these figures as typical ranges rather than standards.

Worked example. You picked 420 lines in a 6-hour stretch of picking, after breaks. That is 420 divided by 6, or 70 LPH, a solid rate for a discrete picker. If your errors were 2 of the 420 lines, your accuracy is 418 divided by 420, or 99.5 percent.

Getting Faster Without Getting Sloppy

• Learn which aisles hold which products, and learn your top items by sight.
• Follow the pick path instead of second-guessing it.
• Handle each item once. Do not rearrange your tote mid-trip.
• Read the next location while you walk.
• Walk briskly, but never run.
• Hold your scanner the same way each time so you do not fumble it.

Quotas and Your Rights

Several states, including California, New York, Minnesota, Washington, Oregon and Connecticut, have laws on warehouse quotas. They generally require covered employers to give workers a written description of their quota, and they do not allow quotas that stop you from taking meal or rest breaks or using the restroom. The details vary, so check your state's rule and ask your employer for your quota in writing.

Staying Safe While You Pick

Picking means thousands of small moves in a shift, plus walking long distances near moving equipment.

• Lifting: Use safe lifting technique, and ask for help or equipment with anything too heavy or awkward. Heavy items are usually stored low to reduce strain.
• Repeated reaching: Change sides and rotate tasks if you can. Report aches early.
• Reaching high: Use the step stool or rolling ladder provided. Never climb racks.
• Carts: Do not overload them. A top-heavy cart tips and is hard to stop.
• Forklifts: Stop at aisle ends, look both ways and stay out of any aisle where a truck is lifting.
• Order picker trucks: Riding one requires training and evaluation by your employer, plus fall protection as your site requires.
• Floors: Pick up shrink wrap and spilled product before someone slips.
• Box cutters: Use a retractable blade and cut away from your body.

Wear supportive shoes and drink water through the shift. A long shift of walking is hard on your feet and you will notice the difference.

Common Mistakes

Check Your Understanding

1. You are picking item RB-500 from location C-07-02. You scan the item and the scanner says it does not match, even though the box looks right. What do you do?

Stop and put it back. Recheck that you are at C-07-02 and read the SKU on the bin and the item. If you were at the wrong spot, go to the right one. If the bin holds the wrong product, report it to inventory control.

2. Your task says quantity 6, but only 4 are in the bin and nothing is in the locations on either side. What now?

Pick the 4 and flag the 2 as a short pick in the WMS. Do not add a different item to make up the number.

3. Your warehouse has 200 small orders due out on the 3:00 carrier pickup and long aisles to walk. Which methods would likely be used?

Batch picking cuts the walking on many small orders. A wave timed to the 3:00 cutoff would release the work in time.

4. You reach for the last box in a bin and see that its corner is crushed and the product inside is broken. What do you do?

Do not pick it. Flag it, report the damage and move it to the damaged-goods area so it cannot reach a customer.

Key Takeaways

• Accuracy comes first. Speed comes with practice.
• Check every pick: right location, right item, right quantity, right condition.
• Never override a rejected scan, and never substitute an item.
• Short picks, wrong items and damage get flagged and reported, not hidden.
• Oldest stock goes first.
• Learn your state's quota rights and protect your body over the whole shift.