Dematic has launched a new Put Wall System to enhance online order fulfilment productivity and accuracy in Australian retail distribution centres. (A detailed description of the Put Wall System is provided at the end.)
Functioning as an order consolidation and packing hub, Dematic’s Put Wall System is said to deliver high speed, accuracy and efficiency in split-case picking applications. After all goods required for a wave of orders have been picked, they are delivered to the Put Wall either on a pallet, by trolley, or, in higher volume applications, by an integrated conveyor system.
Advanced algorithms within the warehouse control and order fulfilment software manage and direct the complex process of picking and ‘putting’ multiple batch-picked items to individual orders, as well as shipping these orders.
“The dot.com boom has dramatically increased the proportion of orders that require manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, retailers and e-tailers to pick, pack and ship individual items. This much higher volume of smaller orders is placing pressure on supply chains and requiring many businesses to revise their approach to split case order picking, packing and distribution,” said Darren Rawlinson, manager direct & wholesale distribution at Dematic “The most efficient way to process multiple orders for the same item is to batch the orders together, pick the total number of items required for the batch in one pass, and then sort the items to individual orders.
“While batch picking and sorting full-case orders via conveyor sortation systems is commonplace in retail distribution DC, batch picking and sorting split-case items requires a different approach. The new Put Wall System improves the productivity and accuracy of sorting batch-picked split case items to individual orders, reducing labour costs and boosting throughput capacity.”
The Dematic Put Wall System software can create groups and batches automatically, or allow ‘ad hoc’ tote and batch operations by pickers as orders become available. The system also enhances visibility of DC performance such as Put Wall performance, system progress, order information, picks per operator, total picks, and items packed.
Put Wall throughput rates range from 200 to 500 items per operator per hour, with the packing side usually running at rates of around 100 to 250 items per operator per hour. Each Put Wall module can process single-line or multi-line orders. They can also be mounted on wheels to be moved around or between warehouses as demand changes.
The Put Wall System
Put Wall Systems are a double-sided wall of shelving with individual compartments, each of which represent a single customer order. The front or put-away side of the Put Wall is for ‘putting’ items to orders, while the rear is set up for packing, with a workbench containing the appropriate shipping materials, such as envelopes and shipping cartons of various sizes, and a label printer. The order compartments can be configured in a range of different sizes to suit each user’s product range, with individual compartments also capable of being used for multiple orders through the use of dividers or small tote bins.
Pickers ‘put’ items to orders in the compartments at the front of the Put Wall until all the items for an order have been placed, at which point they push the items through to the rear of the Put Wall, where the items are packed for shipping. In high throughput applications, the shippers can also be sent through a dedicated packing line containing automated address labelling and case sealing. Completed orders can then be directed to an appropriate shipping lane for dispatch.
