March 30, 2020
This is Chapter 4 of 13 in our eBook on eCommerce Fulfillment for 3PL Warehouses. See the link below to download the full ebook. The next step in the fulfillment process is to pick the inventory for the orders. The process of picking orders from storage may vary. This process will happen after the orders have been batched. Some operations may use a pick aisle as the packing station, where the timing can be more independent. However, for the purpose of this chapter, we will assume the picking is happening […]
March 5, 2020
This is Chapter 3 of 13 in our eBook on eCommerce Fulfillment for 3PL Warehouses. See the link below to download the full ebook. The ultimate magic in efficient operations happens during Order Planning and is the next principle: All work is done in batches. A warehouse may receive orders all day long (or overnight for 24/7 Ops) and must determine when an order is “Ready to Process”. The client may explicitly dictate the date to ship, or a service level agreement may be in place where the date to […]
February 19, 2020
This is Chapter 2 of 13 in our eBook on eCommerce Fulfillment for 3PL Warehouses. See the link below to download the full ebook. In order to begin fulfillment, the warehouse must have a way to get the order information. With the growth in technology, the electronic transfer of data is the preferred method for obtaining orders. The first 2 principles of handling high volume eCommerce fulfillment are to Establish System-Driven Automation thereby Reducing the Manual Entry of Data into the system. The two leading methods of obtaining high volume […]
February 10, 2020
This is Chapter 1 of 13 in our eBook on eCommerce Fulfillment for 3PL Warehouses. See the link below to download the full ebook. We’ve identified six key principles that should be considered with 3PL eCommerce fulfillment operations. The objective is to constantly work on creating a smarter, repeatable process. Each decision that is made needs to respect and adhere to the following principles: Drive System Automated Decisions Reduce manually entered data All work is performed in batches Find opportunities to consolidate steps together Account for value-added services Isolate exceptions […]
January 29, 2020
The retail landscape has been undergoing a massive transformation for the past decade. Online purchases have hit an all-time, with consumers purchasing $517.36 billion worth of goods and services online with U.S. merchants in 2018. This is a 14.2% increase over 2017, showing that it’s not about to go away any time soon. Although, with total retail sales in 2018 at $3.628 trillion, eCommerce is still only 14.2% of overall retail purchases. In 2017, eCommerce represented only 12.9% of retail purchases. So this shift of 1.3% to eCommerce this past […]
December 6, 2019
As long as people use things, others will continue to make them. It’s the basic economic concept of supply and demand. Making and using things requires storing them as well as all the components along the way. Sorting and tracking those components, from raw materials to finished items, spare parts to toolkits means that someone must quickly and efficiently find out where what is needed can be found. A variety of digital tools can help industrial entities maximize their storage of all components needed. Looking forward, some more exciting possibilities […]