Online shopping’s proportion of total retail sales in the United States has increased year over year for the last few decades, from 0.6% of all retail sales in 1999 to 8.4% in late 2016. The development of online shopping has necessitated a greater attention on eCommerce during supply chain management planning and implementation in order to satisfy the demands of internet consumers.
In order to keep up with the growing market for retail sales in the United States, experts in supply chain management are pivoting toward ensuring and maintaining adequate (but restricted) warehouse space, meeting customer service demands, and improving overall efficiency via the usage of cutting-edge technologies. Shippers’ behaviors must adapt as customers’ demands and experiences change.
3 ways growing Ecommerce stores rely on warehouse management
If you’re experiencing growth and fulfilling orders in an ecommerce warehouse, you need proper warehouse management and oversight in place. This requires experienced experts to manage the warehouse along with the tools and facilities to support not only your volume today but projected growth as well.
1. When it comes to warehouse management its best to enable logistical growth
As your business increases in size, additional issues arise in the area of fulfillment logistics. Fast-growing businesses are aware of the influence of warehouse efficiency on everything from the number of dock doors that can be used at once to how much space there is in the facility and the amount of pickers and packers on the floor each hour of the day.
Do you have a clear picture of what your warehouse management system should accomplish? Warehouse management may make use of the ideal technology, shipping carriers, and delivery alternatives to achieve as well as safeguard the greatest warehouse possible to meet future growth without you outgrowing the space right away. These factors work together to help you get product more quickly, pack boxes more swiftly.
2. Packages are processed and shipped faster
Warehouses with good management can increase efficiency and reduce weight. Warehouses are divided into sections based on the fulfillment process (e.g., warehouse picking, packing, labeling, returns, etc.). Each fulfillment employee is assigned one activity per shift to improve their productivity.
It also entails organizing the physical pathways between each functional area and routing everything in a simplified manner. The quicker all of this labor is finished, the sooner packages will be available to ship.
3. Better storage allocation
Warehouse management software is used to place each SKUs in its own specialized location (such as on a shelf, bin, or pallet) that is most relevant for the warehouse’s layout and item. A warehouse management system aids in determining the precise position of any SKU once the inventory has been put in its proper location.
Accurate warehouse management is also beneficial for keeping track of real-time inventory levels, so you never run out of stock or have too much space. If you sell items with expiration dates or are subject to recall, you can store them by lot number and send the oldest things first.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, ecommerce is continuing to grow and has become an essential part of supply chain management in the United States. In order to keep up with this growth, businesses need to ensure that they have the adequate warehouse space and management in place. Utilizing a warehouse management system can help increase efficiency and reduce weight, which will help packages be processed and shipped faster.