Articles

Warehousing

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Implementing a Pick-to-Light Solution

For distribution operations where 80 percent or more of item-level picking volume comes from 20 percent or less of the SKU base, pick-to-light solutions can help optimize productivity and accuracy. Christina Dube, marketing communications manager of Westbrook, Maine-based materials handling solutions provider Kardex Remstar, offers these tips for selecting and implementing pick-to-light technology at your […]

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Paul A. Myerson
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Tapping Technology To Improve Lean Warehouses

Lean is traditionally thought of as a methodology for using visual signals, optimized layouts, and streamlined processes to improve material and information flow. But technology also plays a critical role in Lean operations, especially for companies managing global supply chains. Implementing forecasting, advanced planning and scheduling, distribution requirements planning, and transportation and warehouse management systems […]

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Creating a Greener Warehouse

Reducing warehouse energy and water consumption ultimately helps companies improve their bottom line and bring value to customers. Tim Barrett, COO, and Arthur Barrett, president of Massachusetts-based Barrett Distribution offer their tips for creating a greener warehouse. 1. Reduce energy waste. Implement strict rules for truck idling time in parking lots and at loading docks. […]

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Perry Belcastro
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Fine-Tuning Fulfillment for Happy Holidays

Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the holiday season are fast approaching. For many companies, including retailers and online merchants, the holidays are the year’s peak sales period. With so much on the line, it is critical to be prepared. Today’s consumers have no tolerance for inaccurate orders, delayed shipments, or unresponsive customer service. They expect […]

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Trends—October 2013 
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Trends—October 2013 

Warehousing 2018: Rise of the Adaptive DC As supply chains shift their moorings and settle into new realities—the permanence of e-commerce, sustainability, risk management, total landed cost sensitivity, and demand-driven strategies—distribution centers are evolving in kind. Stock characterizations of warehousing are falling to the wayside. DCs are becoming more complex and sophisticated; so are their […]

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Optimizing Warehouse Operations

Warehouse operations efficiency is key to the success of any company that processes, inventories, and ships orders. When efficiency lags, products may not arrive at customer destinations on time, orders can get lost, and low inventory levels can result in stockouts. Here’s some advice on optimizing warehouse operations from Chris Castaldi, manager of business development […]

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Keith Biondo
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We Need Jobs…Let’s Raise Taxes?

Balancing a budget is an exercise in best judgment. Add politics to the equation, and logic flies right out the window. One example: the Minnesota legislature is finalizing its $38-billion state budget, which includes a 6.5-percent sales tax on warehouse services. A wide-ranging tax hike on warehouses will have far-reaching implications. None good. A warehouse […]

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Ronald Leibman
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Understanding Warehouseman’s Liens

When a warehouse operator believes it is owed storage and handling charges from a customer, it will often assert that it holds a “warehouseman’s lien” over the customer’s goods stored in the warehouse. By asserting such a lien, the warehouse operator is attempting to prevent the customer from shipping or otherwise making use of any […]

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Thomas Clark
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Better Efficiency Begins at the Loading Dock

Productivity in the less-than-truckload (LTL) freight transportation industry demands and depends upon efficient operations. Shippers and carriers must collaborate to orchestrate consistent on-time pickups and deliveries. By working together to align the processes by which shippers tender freight and carriers receive it, supply chain partners can achieve greater efficiency at the loading dock, and improve […]

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Felecia Stratton
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Warehousing ‘Outside the Box’

Historically, warehousing was viewed as a function that exists inside “four walls.” Visibly, that’s true. But when you consider all the different parts and impulses that influence a distribution operation, it can no longer be cornered so conveniently. That’s why our May 2012 issue spotlights warehousing and distribution wall-to-wall—and beyond. For example, it’s easy to […]

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Innovative Warehouse Strategies: Four Walls, Three Takes
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Innovative Warehouse Strategies: Four Walls, Three Takes

In most warehouses, change is a constant—especially when you consider seasonal demand forecasts, supply exceptions, and inventory flows. Distribution centers (DCs) are critical sense-and-respond nodes within the supply chain. Warehouse management is about mediating variability so supply flows to demand as economically and efficiently as possible. In today’s consumer economy, however, the warehousing function faces […]

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Chris Wright
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Tracking Rugged Tablets

Q: It seems that tablet computers are growing in popularity. Is this true in our field, where conditions can be difficult? A: Although the tablet has been available for years, it is receiving renewed attention for its combination of an easy-to-read display and keypad-free data entry and retrieval. Tablets offer several advantages over notebook computers […]

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