Warehouse Definition
"Warehouse" refers to the collective term for buildings and sites used for storing, preserving, and housing goods, which can include structures such as houses, caves, large containers, or designated areas, and serves the functions of storage and protection. "Storage" signifies the act of storing or reserving, indicating the collection of goods for future use, encompassing the meanings of collection, preservation, and delivery. Warehousing refers to the storage and preservation of goods within a warehouse, which is a comprehensive location reflecting the activities of factory materials and serves as a transit station connecting production, supply, and sales, playing a crucial supportive role in promoting production efficiency. Warehousing is the temporary storage of products and goods due to order or market forecasting. It is a comprehensive location reflecting the activities of factory materials and acts as a transit station between production, supply, and sales, playing a significant supportive role in enhancing production efficiency. Additionally, surrounding the physical activities of warehousing, clear and accurate reports, documents, and accounting records with accurate information are also conducted, thus warehousing integrates logistics, information flow, and document flow.
Warehouse Management: The Eightfold Path
Effective warehousing management is essential to fully leverage its role in the supply chain.
No content provided for translation.Pursue
Warehouse management should possess information traceability capabilities, extending to logistics transportation and supplier production and shipment status, and aligning with supplier production scheduling and actual shipment status. At the same time, warehouse management must be connected with logistics providers for ETD/ETA traceability, which includes: ETD (Estimated to Departure) - How much cargo is leaving the supplier's factory wharf? How much cargo is leaving the supplier's outsourced warehouse wharf? How much cargo is leaving from the third-party and fourth-party logistics carriers' departure point? ETA (Estimated to Arrival) - How much cargo is reaching the destination for the third-party and fourth-party logistics carriers? How much cargo is reaching the company's factory wharf? How much cargo is reaching the company's production line side warehouse? Linked with the VMIMin/Max inventory system for restocking status.
No Chinese content provided for translation.Received:
During receiving, the warehouse should use barcodes or more advanced RFID scanning to confirm the incoming material status. Key points include: if the delivery documents from the supplier do not have the procurement VPO number, the warehouse should promptly contact the relevant department to investigate the cause and confirm whether the goods should be received at this time; when counting materials, if there are loose boxes that do not meet the packaging quantity, the boxes should be opened and counted carefully, ensuring accuracy before receiving; during the receiving scan confirmation, if the system does not accept it, the relevant department should be contacted promptly to investigate the cause and confirm whether the goods should be received.
ThreePlease provide the Chinese content to be translated.
The warehouse should have the capability to inspect goods, with special control over Class A materials (A category materials with limited competitive markets and monopolistic supply sources available from only a few suppliers), strictly regulating quantities, maintaining independent storage, and 24/7 security surveillance; establish a non-inspection system for packaging and consumables, requiring suppliers to promptly restock and replace defective packaging and consumables upon immediate notice; and analyze the storage time limits for materials and set deadlines for the disposal of defective materials.
No Chinese content provided, original return: "Four"Storage
Material handling ensures that items are not dropped or, at the very least, stored on skids that can be easily moved. Each material should have only one loose box, or loose boxes should be grouped on a single skid. Temporary storage time limits are automatically alerted, aiming to implement Bin-Location control and adhere to NoPickList (work order pick list) procedures; items must not be moved!
FivePicking
Picking is based on the sequence of work order consumption, and it is considered top-notch (also known as "Pick-to-Light") if picking is done according to light signals. During picking, automatic scanning of deduction actions is achieved, and inventory information is promptly updated to inform the central dispatch for restocking.
Six: Issued
The warehouse distribution should be based on work orders, picking lists, material preparation lists, and picking lists, ideally combined into one for clarity. This ensures that the consumption of work orders on-site is easily visible, and the use of an automatic scanning system in conjunction with information transmission operations.
SevenDisc:
We always adhere to the principle of counting materials in a scattered, boxed, and numbered manner. For example, if there are 103 pieces of one type of material, it consists of 10 boxes (each with 10 pieces) and 3 odd pieces. On the inventory list, the counting method should be written as 10 boxes × 10 pieces + 3 pieces = 103 pieces. Materials should be categorized and classified to determine the inventory timing for each category. Regular inventory can be divided into daily, weekly, or monthly盘点; daily inventory should be paired with MoveList (inventory movement list)盘点; and a target for completing the settlement by noon on the first of each month should be set.
Eight: Retire
Adhering to the principle of whole-package returns and exchanges, the processing time and quantity should be such that whole packages are returned immediately or all are returned in bulk by 3 PM every Friday. This replaces the ForceParts (line-side inventory automatic replenishment and exchange) system with the RMA (Return Material Authorization) process, aligning with the VMIHub return storage area sharing principle, and requires suppliers to provide free packaging boxes.
Factors Influencing Warehouse Design
In the realm of warehouse design, a balance must be struck between space, labor, and mechanization.
2. Fixed and variable goods storage layouts.
Expand Horizontally and Vertically
4. Picking and Replenishment Function
5. Double Platform and Single Platform Layout
6. Space designated for corridors and storage areas.
Categorized by the primary functions of the warehouse
Strategic Inventory Warehouse
The reserve warehouse is primarily used to store goods that are produced year-round and consumed seasonally, or goods produced seasonally and consumed year-round. Such warehouses can be located at the starting point or the end point of the goods' transportation route. These reserve warehouses have higher requirements for the maintenance of the goods.
Wholesale Warehouse
The wholesale warehouse primarily stores goods purchased by the commercial wholesale department and then supplies them to retail stores or other wholesale departments in stages. According to the requirements of the order units, services such as replenishment, deconsolidation, batching, and re-packaging are generally required. The business characteristics of this type of warehouse include small quantities, frequent batches, high throughput rates, and are mostly located in areas of consumption.
Retail Warehouse
Retail warehouses are primarily designed for short-term inventory storage for retail stores. After purchasing goods from the wholesale department, the retail department typically engages in necessary activities such as unpacking, inspection, sorting, grading, repackaging, and modification. Such warehouses are usually located within retail stores; larger retail stores may have dedicated retail warehouses nearby; supermarkets and large-scale retail businesses also require the establishment of distribution centers to ensure daily common deliveries.
Transit Warehouse
The transshipment warehouse primarily addresses the storage needs that arise during the transportation process, specifically due to temporary halts caused by the change of transportation modes. Such warehouses are typically located near stations or docks.
