A Mathematical Model for Supermarket Order Picking

Order picking consists in retrieving products from storage locations to sat- isfy independent orders from multiple customers. It is generally recognized as one of the most significant activities in a warehouse (Koster et al, 2007). In fact, order picking accounts up to 50% (Frazelle, 2001) or even 80% (Van den Berg, 1999) of the total warehouse operating costs. The critical issue in today’s business environ- ment is to simultaneously reduce the cost and increase the speed of order picking. In this paper, we address the order picking process in one of the Portuguese largest companies in the grocery business. This problem was proposed at the 92nd European Study Group with Industry (ESGI92). In this setting, each operator steers a trolley on the shop floor in order to select items for multiple customers. The objective is to improve their grocery e-commerce and bring it up to the level of the best inter- national practices. In particular, the company wants to improve the routing tasks in order to decrease distances. For this purpose, a mathematical model for a faster open shop picking was developed. In this paper, we describe the problem, our proposed solution as well as some preliminary results and conclusions.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Gamification of warehousing: exploring perspectives of warehouse managers in the UK

Contemporary warehouses are key links in the supply chains in competitive global business environments and with rapidly evolving trends in technology they need to adapt to the evolving needs of customers. Gamification recently emerged as a potential means of improving employee engagement leading to increased operational efficiency. This article therefore explores the perspectives of warehouse managers in the UK on gamification of warehousing activities. The findings suggest that gamification is applicable in the warehousing context with potential benefits such as improved worker engagement, increased morale and productivity, enforced competition, increased accuracy, and skills development. However, there are also significant barriers to effective implementation – these include resource constraints, gamification efficacy over time, ethical considerations, and ensuring fairness for all players. The findings from this study provide some valuable insights, thereby providing a rational basis for potentially fruitful future research in this area of growing interest