Picking

In the picking section, users can pick items for an order within a facility.

Please go to the Products section for learning about picking methods, short-pick reasons, scanning rules, and more. Go to the fulfillment Developer Docs for more information on creating pick jobs and defining picking methods, short-pick reasons, scanning rules, and more via API.

Start page

The application displays a list of all tasks and their current states, primarily organized by status. Within each group, tasks are sorted secondarily by order date, with the oldest order date listed first.

Order-date vs order-created-date

The order-date is the date when the customer placed the order within the shop of our tenant - it is not to be confused with the order-created-date, which is the date when we created the order in the fullfillmenttools platform.

Clicking on a task shows all ordered items of that task, including the respective amount. Within the screen that shows all items as well as the one that shows the picking summary, a subtitle is generated based on available attributes for each item if no dedicated subtitle is present.

It is possible to configure picking scanning rules, like the validation of barcodes or the usage of a manual input picker.

Picking sequence

It is possible to sort the pick lines in a picking sequence (number from 1 to n), which represents the physical location of the ordered item in the picking area. If storage locations are activated on the tenant, the running sequence of the locations is used. Additionally, the picking sequence can be defined in the listing and in the line items of the order. If more than one listing/order line has the same picking sequence, the listings that have the same sequence number are sorted by their tenant article ID.

Product attributes in product detail view

Apart from the %%subtitle%% key, only attributes that are supplied with the key category and the value descriptive are displayed.

If no such attributes are defined (and no subtitle is provided either), the view remains empty.

Short identifier (short ID)

To identify a task more easily, a short identifier (shortID) is also added. This identifier is generated based on the first letter of the customer's first & last name as well as an incrementing number for each occurrence of such a customer. This number can have a maximum of two digits (e.g., 99). As soon as this number is reached, it will start again with 1. The generated identifier is facility-specified, e.g., it is not unique tenant-wide like an order ID.

Example

The identifier for a task that belongs to an order of Jane Doe would be called JD1, assuming that no other customer in this facility that has a first name starting with a J as well as a last name starting with a D exists.

This identifier is also available within the labeling as well as the handover section. An exemplary use case would be that a fulfiller uses this identifier to locate a chosen parcel that belongs to a task by writing this identifier on that parcel using a pen.

Notifications in Android application

When a new pick job is incoming, the user receives an Android system notification, so the application must not be checked within a certain time.

The notification is related to the chosen facility that the user has currently selected in the application. If no facility is chosen, no notification will be sent. Furthermore, the user must be logged in to our application to receive a notification. The mobile phone, however, can be screen locked. Clicking on the notification leads the user to the list of pick jobs. With this, the application ensures that one is not overwhelmed by notifications.

The notification feature is configurable within the app settings. The sound notification, as well as the banner notification, can be turned on and off. The settings are saved on the device.

How to pick

Each collected line item can be picked by either scanning or manually adding the picked amount.

Scanning

Item barcodes can be scanned using the SCAN-button located at the bottom of the screen. When utilizing a data collection device (e.g., MDE), the device's scan button can be used.

Adding quantities manually

If scanning a barcode is not possible or desired, an item can be selected by clicking on it. The quantity can then be manually adjusted using the amount handler and saved.

Finish picking task

Once all available items are picked, the picking task can be completed by sliding the complete button to the right.

Pause/interrupt a picking task

During the picking process, the user can pause a picking task by clicking the X in the upper left corner of the screen. The picked items will be saved, allowing for easy resumption of the previously paused task.

The picking task does not have a specific paused status, but it is clear in the task overview that items have already been picked.

Picking substitute items

Once the task is opened, picking of the ordered items begins.

If the originally ordered product is unavailable, switching to substitute options can be done by pressing the three-dot-menu (⋮).

Clicking 'Select substitute item' directs to the substitute selection.

Available substitute articles are selected, and the correct/available quantity is inserted. The substitute pick is confirmed by clicking 'CLOSE'.

Picking with load units

Once all items of a task have been picked, it is possible to enter the used load units, such as a bag, a box, or similar items. Load units can be utilized either at the beginning, before the picking starts, or afterwards, once all items have been picked.

Load unit usage before picking starts:

Load unit usage after picking is completed:

Picking with measurement units

When an item needs to be picked by weight, length, or similar criteria, this is specified within the item itself. The Operations application automatically displays the necessary amount.

When a weighted item needs to be picked, the item should first be weighed, and then the weighted amount can be entered into the app.

Secondary measurement units

In certain instances, it is necessary to enter additional information about the required amount, such as combining weight with piece count or weight with length. For example, when picking a watermelon, it's necessary to specify the pieces as well as the weight.

Tolerances for measurement units

When a soft or hard tolerance is set for an item, only amounts within that tolerance range can be entered.

Hard tolerance

Hard tolerance means that it is not possible to over pick by setting a percentage value. The value that can be picked is between the original ordered amount and the original ordered amount plus the set percentage.

Example

1000g of Cherries were ordered
20% Hard tolerance set as a percentage value
Range of picking is: 1000 to (0,2*1000)+1000, i.e., from 1000 to 1200g

This information is communicated during the picking process.

Soft tolerance

Soft tolerance means that it is not possible to under-pick by setting a percentage value. The value that can be picked is between the original ordered amount minus the set percentage and the original ordered amount.

Example

1000g of Cherries were ordered
30% Hard tolerance set as a percentage value
Range of picking is: 1000-(0,3*1000) to 1000, i.e. from 700 to 1000g

This information is communicated during the picking process.

Note that a combination of hard and soft tolerance is possible.

Reasons for short-picks

When a picking task cannot be completed fully, the user may be asked to enter reasons for the short-picks before finishing the task, if configured.

As the user is about to complete the task, they will be prompted to provide reasons for each line item that was short-picked. This requirement can be optional or mandatory, depending on the configuration.

More about short-pick reasons can be found on our short-pick-reasons product page.

Last updated 8 days ago