Self-determined work in order picking processes

The processing of these items is largely determined by the wishes of various stores and their departments and also depends on the condition of the items provided by external suppliers. In addition to activities such as ironing goods, sorting flat goods or removing individual packaging, goods can also be secured on request. Depending on the recipient location and the quality of the delivery, a dozen individual activities can quickly become necessary for one item, which the employees carry out on a product-related basis.

Previously, the instructions for the work steps were provided in paper form at the workplace. Due to the large number of exceptional cases, different branches and departments, the instructions were summarized in a catalog at the workplace. The head of department explains that "observing all possible combinations presents us with daily challenges and means longer training times, especially for new employees". Theoretically, 106 combinations of individual activities are possible for a product in a branch for a department of the recipient.

This also presents managers and employees with particular challenges. While department managers invest a lot of time in maintaining catalog data, manually calculating evaluations and actively supporting new employees during the training process, trained employees must constantly re-read the individual process flow of the goods to be processed and record these quantitatively by writing them down.

A lot of manual work: picking processes in fashion logistics. Photo: Deutsche Post DHL

Under the leadership of DHL Solutions Fashion, a research project was set up in collaboration with Hüdig + Rocholz GmbH & Co. KG as a specialized manufacturer of workplace systems and Sensrec GmbH with the aim of setting up an efficient and future-oriented workplace. The University of Duisburg-Essen, Chair of Production Engineering, provided scientific support for the project.

Hardly any process knowledge required

The system was developed within eight months. An independent assistance system for employees at the workstations was designed in such a way that transaction data is automatically imported from DHL's own ERP system. In future, employees will hardly need any process knowledge, as they will automatically receive the correct instructions for the respective processing step simply by scanning barcodes, with additional image material if required. The workstation is simply equipped with a touch-enabled computer system and a hand scanner.

System maintenance is designed to be so intuitive that foremen and department managers set up one-off work processes, which the system then assigns and evaluates independently. The IT system for Workplace 4.0 is self-learning. Holger Dander, Managing Director of Sensrec and responsible for IT development, explains: "We import almost 10,000 data records every day that are due to be processed in the coming days. The employee is not aware of any of this and only needs a hand scanner to display the processing steps that are important to them on the monitor."

Reduce secondary times within the picking process

The work tables were optimized by Hüdig + Rocholz as part of the development process, particularly with regard to ergonomic aspects. Sufficient work surfaces, sorted material provision options (e.g. for hangers or labels) and waste separation facilities were taken into account and help to significantly reduce secondary times during order picking. This is achieved primarily through the adaptability of the System Flex work table used. "Every employee has the option of adapting the workstation to themselves and the process in just a few simple steps. This also increases acceptance," adds Ralph Roth, Managing Director of Hüdig + Rocholz.

In addition to reducing secondary times during order picking, the digitalization of the process also allows key figures to be generated for the first time. Administrators receive information on current daily events, the utilization of workstations and the process of individual articles through monitoring. The system therefore helps to identify workload peaks at an early stage, to carry out optimum personnel planning and to improve the entire supply chain.

www.dhl.dewww.huedig-rocholz.de