Walter is Supply Chain Manager at a gardening supplies retailer and is also responsible for the central distribution centre. Spring is just around the corner and Walter noticed that the warehouse layout isn’t quite right. The parasols and outdoor rugs are at the back of the warehouse and the slow movers are in prime locations. Goods are taking a long time to pick and delays are increasing because of the inefficient layout. So what now?
Rearrangement is a feature in SAP Extended Warehouse Management (EWM) that ensures new, more efficient warehouse organisation for existing stock, and exactly what Walter needs!
Master data is key
In order to use Rearrangement properly, it is important to have your master data in order. SAP will use the article codes to tell Walter where an item should be located in the warehouse. This will be an important task for Walter. The products that were fast movers in recent months could well be slow movers in the months ahead. Walter is ready to get started!
System set-up
As soon as Walter knows which warehouse areas he wants to use Rearrangement for, the system can be set up. The search sequences for warehouse type, warehouse section and warehouse locations are adjusted. SAP can help Walter reorganise his distribution centre by assigning “penalty points” to “non-optimal” warehouse types, warehouse areas and warehouse locations.
Use of the feature
Now that everything has been set up correctly, Walter has started to improve efficiency considerably. SAP gives Walter a daily suggestion on which stock is in an inefficient location in the distribution centre according to the system set-up. Walter can use the allocated penalty points to determine which stock he wants to move. To ensure that the layout remains as efficient as possible, Walter can also opt to have SAP create these tasks automatically at regular intervals. Letting SAP ensure an optimal layout saves Walter even more time.
Walter can now spend the new season with peace of mind and with more time to enjoy the spring sun.
To find out what Rearrangement can do for your warehouse, contact us now.
