A “Work-in-Process” solution will monitor each step, station, and process throughout the entire manufacturing process, from the delivery of raw goods to the shipment of the final manufactured product. This critical inventory management application will also allow you to analyze each segment of the manufacturing process to help guarantee that you have the right parts on-hand, at the right station, at the right time, to keep your manufacturing line constantly operational.

By combining handheld computers, barcode and/or RFID readers, the right software, and a wireless infrastructure, Intercode Solutions’ work-in-process solution allows you to track and trace, by the parts and ingredients used in the manufacturing process, to ensure the inventory you have on hand is the inventory you need. By connecting to your existing wireless infrastructure (or installing a new one if you don’t have existing one), your work-in-process application will operate in real time. This gives your managers the ability to monitor your facilities inventory and track each part of the manufacturing process from the arrival of raw material to the shipment of your final product.

By providing extra levels of insight into labour events, Intercode Solutions’ job costing software helps you understand how labour is used in your organization. It provides true visibility into how your workforce performs against productivity goals and benchmarks. With Workforce Activities, you have timely activity tracking data that allows you to make decisions and act before your bottom line is at risk.

More control managing workloads and better labor allocation

Intercode Solutions’ labour tracking software lets you collect and analyze labor data according to a wide range of criteria: employee, task, department, customer, project, even part number. This insight, combined with detailed activity tracking data, provides you with more control over productivity and labour costs.

With Intercode Solutions’ software solutions you can:

• Respond to increasing customer demand without sacrificing profitability
• Perform quicker, more accurate, and more efficient job costing
• Allocate labour resources more effectively and control labor costs
• Improve quality control by factoring scrap and rework into analysis

Key features of Workforce Activities

• Track labor activities and production with step-by-step reporting
• Create teams and track their activities in a production environment
• Measure workforce efficiency against real -time productivity standards
• Reconcile time spent on activities against an employee’s hours worked
• Use real-time data on an activity’s status to prevent unnecessary work

Of all warehouse processes, order picking tends to get the most attention. It’s just the nature of distribution and fulfillment that you generally have more outbound transactions than inbound transactions, and the labour associated with the outbound transactions is likely a big piece of the total warehouse labor budget. Another reason for the high level of importance placed on order picking operations is its direct connection to customer satisfaction. The ability to process quickly and accurately customer orders has become an essential part of doing business.

The methods for order picking vary greatly and the level of difficulty in choosing the best method for your operation will depend on the type of operation you have.All factors-the characteristics of the product being handled, total number of transactions, total number of orders, picks per order, quantity per pick, picks per SKU, total number of SKUs, value-added processing such as private labelling, and whether you are handling piece pick, case pick, or full-pallet loads-affect your decision on a method for order picking. Many times a combination of picking methods is needed to handle diverse product and order characteristics.

Key objectives in designing an order picking operation include increases in productivity, reduction of cycle time, and increases in accuracy. Many times these objectives may conflict with one another in a method that focuses on productivity may not provide a short enough cycle time, or a method that focuses on accuracy may sacrifice productivity.

Piece Picking method: Piece picking, also known as broken case picking or pick/pack operations, describes systems where individual items are picked. Piece pick operations usually have a large SKU base in the thousands or tens of thousands of items, small quantities per pick, and short cycle times. Mail order catalog companies and repair parts distributors are good examples of piece pick operations.

Basic order picking: In the most basic order-picking method, product is stored in fixed locations on static shelving or pallet rack. An order picker picks one order at a time following a route up and down each aisle until the entire order is picked. The order picker will usually use some type of picking cart. The design of the picking flow should be such that the order picker ends up fairly close to the original starting point. The picking document should have the picks sorted in the same sequence as the picking flow. Fast moving product should be stored close to the main cross aisle and additional cross aisles put in to allow short cuts. Larger bulkier items would be stored towards the end of the pick flow. This basic order picking method can work well in operations with a small total number of orders and a high number of picks per order. Operations with low picks per order will find the travel time excessive in this type of picking while operations with large numbers of orders will find that the congestion from many pickers working in the same areas slows down the processing.  

Batch picking / Multi-order picking: In batch picking, multiple orders are grouped into small batches. An order picker will pick all orders within the batch in one pass using a consolidated pick list. Usually the picker will use a multi-tiered picking cart maintaining a separate tote or carton on the cart for each order. Batch sizes usually run from 4 to 12 orders per batch depending on the average picks per order in that specific operation. Batch picking systems may use extensive logic programmed to consolidate orders with the same items. In operations with low picks per order, batch picking can greatly reduce travel time by allowing the picker to make additional picks while in the same area. Since you are picking multiple orders at the same time, systems and procedures will be required to prevent mixing of orders. In very busy operations, batch picking is often used in conjunction with zone picking and automated material handling equipment. In order to get maximum productivity in batch pick operations, orders must be accumulated in the system until there are enough similar picks to create the batches. This delay in processing may not be acceptable in same day shipping operations.

Zone picking: Zone picking is the order picking version of the assembly line. In zone picking, the picking area is broken up into individual pick zones. Order pickers are assigned a specific zone, and only pick items within that zone. Orders are moved from one zone to the next as the picking from the previous zone is completed (also known as "pick-and-pass"). Usually, conveyor systems are used to move orders from zone to zone. In zone picking, it’s important to balance the number of picks from zone to zone to maintain a consistent flow. Zones are usually sized to accommodate enough picks for one or two order pickers. Creating fast pick areas close to the conveyor is essential in achieving high productivity in zone picking. Zone picking is most effective in large operations with high total numbers of SKUs, high total numbers of orders, and low to moderate picks per order. Separate zones also provide for specialization of picking techniques such as having automated material handling systems in one zone and manual handling in the next.

As the goods are bought from the manufacturer, they need to be stocked at the warehouse before they are taken away to different selling points. It is required to keep a complete up-to-date record of the goods that are stocked in the warehouse. Our instruments like the MC3000 series and the MC9000 series along with bar coding and RFID keep a steady track of all the goods coming in at the warehouse and simplify the pain stacking manual process of updating the record on paper.

After the goods have been received, they are stocked. Our scanners keep a track of the goods that are stored in the warehouse. The forklift terminal VC5090 effectively takes care of the pick away verification. With the help of such instruments, we introduce utility in time by keeping a steady track of the goods that are stored in the goods.

Cross docking implies the transfer of the goods from one truck to another, thus subtracting the need to store the goods in a warehouse and thus reaching the point of demand more quickly. Cross docking is a more efficient way of dealing with excessive demand. Our instruments will scan the goods that are received from the manufacturing plant and also the goods that are loaded to reach the shops and stores where these goods are needed. With our instruments, the entire process of cross docking is simplified.

The entire process of converting a raw material into a finished product is a strenuous and complicated. One needs to have a complete track of where the components are coming in from and where they are being utilized. Our equipments will scan all the products being utilized and maintain all the details of the products and goods being produced. Quality control is also ensured by us to make sure that no products are sub-standard and every product manufactured is of A-degree quality.