Warehouse Processes That Benefit from Automation

Organizations adopting automation in their warehouse operations and processes are on the rise.

Recent data shows that the global warehouse automation market size is estimated to reach USD 54.60 billion by 2030 at a CAGR of 10.9% in a span of seven years (2023-2030)!

Automation is believed to increase efficiency, ensure inventory accuracy, minimize errors, reduce labour costs, and improve worker safety.

From order confirmation and tracking to moving, assembly, pick and pack, and order fulfillment, automation plays an inevitable role in increasing warehouse management's effectiveness, productivity, and profit levels. 

Your business has much to gain if you have a fair understanding of the different warehouse processes that benefit from automation.

Warehouse Processes That Benefit the Most From Automation.

1. Inventory Management

Automatic identification and data capture (AIDC) technology (eg: barcodes, RFID tags) offers real-time visibility into your organization's inventory, regardless of your warehouse's location or the number of warehouse units you have. 

You can now overcome costly warehouse management challenges such as out-of-stock and overstocking through automated inventory tracking, cycle counting, and stock replenishment.

Inventory automation ensures the right stock volume to satisfy customers and improve order rates.

2. Order Picking, Packing, and Fulfillment

Your team can easily track stock levels, the location of items, and other crucial information related to your inventory. Warehouse automation offers real-time data for analysis.

Warehousing technologies like pick-to-voice or light, robotics, machine learning algorithms, and radio frequency with or without barcode scanning enable your team to optimize picking paths. 

Techniques such as single-order picking, batch picking, discrete picking, zone picking, wave picking, and cross-docking help in efficient order fulfillment. 

3. Receiving and Put-away

Automation allows you to efficiently receive, process, and put away items according to your warehouse's workflow and business rules. 

Here are some of the top receiving and put-away benefits enabled by warehouse automation:

Receive, validate, and reconcile items against online purchase orders.

Enable more accessible storage and retrieval by scanning the barcode or RFID tags affixed to each item in your inventory.

Automate the creation of identification labels for goods, pallets, etc., and flag items that require inspection by QA experts.

Receive automated storage recommendations based on the size, expiry date, demand predictions, and durability of each product.

Enable cross-docking by notifying warehouse staff when goods have to be shifted from the receiving zone directly to a shipping zone.

Automate the status reporting of incoming receipts, so your warehousing and merchandising staff can use the data to solve day-to-day challenges.
 
4. Optimization of Warehouse Layouts

Warehouse automation will allow you to identify and improve traffic flow between warehouse sections. 

Automation technology such as Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) or robots will allow you to move items efficiently within your warehouse by optimizing your warehouse's space, layouts, design, and workflows. 

5. Shipping Management

You can gain real-time visibility into the status of every consignment. 

For example, it allows you to automate the creation of packing lists, shipment invoices, bills of lading, and other crucial notifications, and even manage the timely arrival and delivery of shipments to the right destination. 

Some of the practical applications of warehouse automation in shipping management include:

Route optimization for delivery agents by tracking their live locations and delivery schedules/ destinations.

Tracking the entire shipment history of each order, right from order confirmation to delivery and fulfillment.

Faster and timely delivery of consignments off the dock and in transit to the correct destination.

Merging multiple orders addressed to the same consignee into a single shipment to avoid missed deliveries, delays, or loss of goods.

Integrating your warehouse management system with your shipping carriers' application to estimate the accurate lead time and rates.

6. Data Analytics and Reporting

Automated data analytics enables warehouse managers to monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) such as:

a) Sales and marketing performance
b) Customer behavior
c) Inventory levels and stock movement
d) Employee productivity and performance
e) Profitability or sales volume

You can now forecast future growth opportunities and proactively assign workers and automation solutions to the busiest areas of your warehouse.

7. Workforce Management 

Scheduling warehouse teams to manage soaring order volumes during peak seasons like the end of year sales or Black Fridays is a formidable challenge in warehouse operations. 

Adopting warehouse automation allows your team managers to:

Dynamically assign tasks to your warehouse staff based on orders, inventory levels, procurement, and shipping schedules.

Support task interleaving depending on the priority and proximity to minimize your workforce's idle time and travel time to delivery destinations.

Understand factors that affect your labour costs, response times, and productivity gaps, so you can plan to streamline and improve each aspect.

Be it handling loads or organizing tasks, automation of different warehouse processes allows you to reduce operational costs, improve service quality. 

The right warehouse automation technology can increase the overall efficiency of your warehouse entity. 

Looking for world-class, automated warehouse solutions with flexible storage options in and around the UAE? Get in touch with us.