The Satellite Review Magazine The Satellite Review Magazine Vol 3 | Page 22

picking systems are justifiable when
25 to 40 percent of a manufacturer’s
volume is sold in full layer quantities.
If less than 10 percent of the volume is
full layer quantities, it may not be the
best choice.

Other components of the
integrated solution
Warehouse Execution Systems
(WES)
A software system directs your automated operations. Typically, organizations use a warehouse control
system (WCS) to communicate with
a warehouse management system
(WMS) and obtain order information,
including SKUs, quantities and picking
sequences. The WCS then directs the
all equipment associated with the
AS/RS, including layer pick tools.
However, the more pieces of automation in your solution, the better
“brain,” or software system, you will
need. Instead of separate WCS and
WMS applications, many companies
are opting for warehouse execution
systems (WES). A WES combines the
functionalities of these traditionally
interdependent applications to seamlessly direct, control and optimize internal material flow and order picking,
like the conductor of an orchestra.

Why integrate an
automated layer picking
system with an AS/RS?
Now that you understand the pieces of
each solution and how they work, it’s
time to answer the big question: why
should you integrate an automated
layer picking solution with an AS/RS?
Because there are a number of benefits
that stem from this robust combination, there’s not one simple answer.
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Staging Solutions
As automation increases your picking
speed, you will likely need a place for
items to go en route to order fulfillment. A truck or sufficient warehouse
space are not always available, and
sometimes, your entire order isn’t
ready to go out the door. By adding
an automated staging solution to the
mix, you can more easily prepare the
truckload in sequence, hours ahead of
when it actually arrives.

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Instant, On-demand Replenishment: Integrating an AS/RS with
a layer picking system creates an
instant, on-demand replenishment
process that is more consistent
and reliable. Otherwise, manually replenishing the pick areas
and getting the product to the
appropriate area for picking is an
arduous, time-critical task.
Productivity: Without automation, picking is a repetitive,
time-consuming manual task.
There’s also a safety factor involved
and companies are now more
willing to invest in machinery
or equipment to eliminate heavy
lifting or unsafe working environments.
Accuracy: An AS/RS allows you
to select the right product from
inventory, and the layer pick system pulls it to fill the order. Tying
an AS/RS to a layer picking system
sets you up for maximum accuracy
and therefore, better product and
customer service.
Speed: Your order fulfillment
process has a certain output
capacity that is limited by your
workforce’s productivity rate. As
orders become more complex, that
output capacity decreases. Without the need for manual labor, an
AS/RS and a layer picking system
help you increase output capacity

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and shorten the order fulfillment
window and timeline.
Better Space Utilization: As the
output rates get higher and order
fulfillment processes get faster,
the amount of available space has
a bigger impact on your overall
operations. The AS/RS and layer
picking combination improves
space utilization within existing
assets – the warehouse.
Flexibility: Integration allows
your warehouse to “flex” better. In
the past, automated systems were
designed to meet the demand of
the peak day – the highest volume day of the year. If you design
your system around that day, you
will hold your labor force captive
to the system and use unneeded
resources during the remainder of
the year.

Considerations before
implementing an AS/RS
with a layer pick system
No two organizations are the same, so
not everyone is capable of implementing an AS/RS, a layer picking solution
or both. But, if an integrated AS/RS
and automated layer pick system is a
good fit for you, consider the following
items before diving headfirst into a
solution.
1. Thoroughly Evaluate Operations.
Perform an in-depth analysis of
your operations. What is your
throughput? How many hours/
shifts is your operation active?
How many pallets do you receive
per hour, per day?
2. Study Order and SKU Profiles.
What are the characteristics of customer orders? How much product is going out and where is its
destination? Also, look closely at
your SKUs. How many SKUs does
the inventory comprise? Use the

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Pareto rule (80/20) to determine
your optimal storage configuration
(80 percent of your volume should
be based around 20 percent of
your SKUs).
3. Get People Involved. Running an
automated facility requires a labor
force with a slightly more technical
skillset. If your management team
is onboard with automation, they
should also take the time to invest
in proper training to ensure greater use and proper maintenance of
the system.
4. Plan for the Future. Avoid investing in a system you will quickly
outgrow by creating a five-year
plan. Look at your recent SKU
growth and project how much
volume you’ll have in the next few
years. Next, define your design
year – how many years out do you
want your automated facility to
serve you? This will give you an
idea of how to configure your system to grow with your business

Obtaining Payback from
Automation
Automation may require a large upfront investment, but the returns are
significant – and fast. With an AS/RS
alone, typical payback is three to five
years. However, the savings will continue to rack up because today’s most
advanced systems have 25+ year life
spans. Here are a few areas where you
can obtain ROI:
• Space Savings: When compared
to a conventional warehouse, an
automated warehouse can store 30
to 50 percent more product in the
same amount of space. An AS/RS
can go higher and is much denser than a traditional rack storage
system.
• Reduced Labor: An automated
layer picking system eliminates

100 percent of manual picking
while an AS/R S increases labor
efficiency and productivity by
cutting down on the number of
wasted steps in the material handling process.
• More Efficient Order Fulfillment:
Through on-demand/JIT order
fulfillment, warehouses use less
square-footage, less dock space
and fewer people. This leads to
faster truck turns because facilities
can load more trucks and ship
more product in a shorter window.
You’ll also reduce the likelihood of
incurring truck detention fees.
• Taller Loads: Layer picking
systems can build taller loads
than humans can build. If you can
build a taller load, you can better
utilize trucks and trailers,
thereby saving on transportation and pallet costs.
However, consider what’s
happening on the other
end – verify that your
recipient has the ability to
unload the product from a
higher level.
• Less Energy Consumption: Because automated
warehouses require fewer
interior lights and have
less space to heat and
cool, companies can reduce their energy costs by
about 40 percent. Savings
are even more significant
in cold or refrigerated
warehouses.
• Traceability: The layer
pick system has the ability
to track and trace every
SKU within every layer
of the pallet. The report
of what has been built
is available for review as
soon as the pallet leaves
the system. This level of
traceability is ideal for

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food/beverage manufacturers
who require detailed information
about their food products as they
make their way through the supply
chain.
Of course, there are many other benefits that lead to “intangible” payback,
such as improved accuracy, decreased
product damage and greater customer satisfaction. As more companies
embrace automation as a means of
transforming their supply chains,
the market will only become more
competitive. Therefore, it is an opportune time to consider how integrated
automated layer picking systems and
AS/RS can enhance your warehousing
operations.

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