Shuttle solutions are highly efficient for the storage and retrieval of goods, while pocket sortation enables items in suspended pockets on an overhead conveyor to be arranged into the precise order sequence required for dispatch. Together, these technologies are a potent combination that can enable one-touch distribution for all types of order – store replenishment, direct-to-customer or click-and-collect.
At just one type of workstation, goods can be picked from storage containers retrieved from the shuttle store and placed into cartons (for store orders) or pockets (for e-commerce or store pick-up orders), meaning the OSR Shuttle store accommodates a single inventory for all sales channels. Pockets with single-item orders travel automatically to the packing area, while pockets with items from multi-line orders are sequenced by the Pocket Sorter's matrix sortation algorithm.
The Pocket Sorter can also help synchronise fulfilment across multiple (manual and automated) areas of the warehouse. Orders for consolidation can be picked manually or by robot via goods-to-person or, alternatively, person-to-goods operations. With articles batch picked and inducted into pockets to increase efficiency, the Pocket Sorter can act as a pre-buffer to harmonise the various processing times. When all of an order's items are ready, the required pockets arrive at the packing station in the correct sequence. In this way, pocket sortation delivers perfect sequencing for chaotically ordered items – including hanging garments that can be transported together with the pockets in one system – while enhancing flexibility and efficiency. Of course, the Pocket Sorter is also ideally suited to processing returns cost-effectively, storing them in a dynamic buffer and making them immediately available for orders via totally automatic picking.
With more than 40,000 shuttles and over 2.5 million pockets installed worldwide, KNAPP has vast experience in these versatile automation technologies. For example, discover the one-touch logistics solution provided by the combination of pocket sortation and shuttle storage technologies for Recreational Equipment Inc (REI) in Goodyear, Arizona.
