IENG 471 - Lecture 17

Introduction to Order Profiling

Major portion courtesy of Dale T. Masel, Ohio University and the 2009 Material Handling Teachers Institute

10/14/2013

IENG 471 Facilities Planning

Order Profile
Definition: Order Profiling
A summary of the important characteristics of the orders that a warehouse needs to fill

Examples of important characteristics

Demand for items Whats popular? Quantities ordered Whats the workload?

Unit loads What equipment is needed?

Importance of Order Profiling

Provides information about our population,

which is what we usually need when we design anything

We dont design cars for individual drivers

We dont design clothes for individual wearers

We dont design warehouses for individual orders

Profile gives us insight on the

characteristics of the individuals that comprise the population

Order Profiling as Art & Science

Art Determining which characteristics are relevant for a particular situation
Turning the

Science Converting available data into data required for a profile

Summarizing the

characteristics of the order population into an order fulfillment system

Requires expertise in

order population from the available data

Focus of this

presentation

warehouse design

Where to Start: Data Requirements

SKUs
Whats being stored, and possibly how it is being contained

Inventory
How much is being stored

Orders
Whats being processed, and How much is being processed

Why bother profiling?

Trying to sort through data can be overwhelming
Profiles are ways to organize the data

Dont want to just rely on averages

Demand would exceed capacity 50% of the time

Value of profiling is that it provides a quantitative description of what a distribution center needs to be designed to handle

Example of a Typical Order

Order#8
# of Lines 6 SKU # 1481 Qty 15

1979
2777 3927

12
6 9

3979
2840

7
9

A months worth of orders...

Order#1 # of Lines SKU # Order#2 Order#3

Order#4

Qty # of Lines SKU # Qty # of Lines SKU # Qty # of Lines SKU # Qty Order#28 Order#6 3 1481 6 2 1481 3 2 1481 11 2 1481 18 # of Lines SKU # Qty Order#5 1979 Order#8 2777 # of3979 Lines SKU6# Qty 24 2840 4 15 Order#7 1481 16 # of Lines SKU # Qty 3 # of Lines SKU # Qty 1Order#30 2840 3 1524 18 Order#27 # of Lines SKU # Qty 18 6 1481 12 Order#9 1979 6 1481 15 # of Lines SKU # Qty #6 of Lines SKU # Qty 3 2777 # of Lines SKU # Qty 1956 12 1979 12 1979 12 Order#26 Order#10 5 1901 13 3 4060 12 2705 27 1 2705 9 1955 2777 6 # of Lines SKU # Qty 6 # of Lines 1481 SKU # Qty 14 5422 24 Order#13 2840 6 1972 3927 9 3 3927 18 12 Order#12 1 2839 1524 7 9# of Lines SKU # Qty 6079 12 1901 Order#11 5422 12 6 3979 7 # of Lines SKU # Qty1972 2 2840 24 7 Order#17 Order#25 1524 # of Lines6717 SKU # 24 6 Qty 2840 9 5 1524 13 1955 1481 6 15 # of Lines # Qty # of Lines SKU # Qty SKU 5 1481 8 2840 34 Order#31 4 1979 11 2840 18 3 3122 15 3927 12 Order#16 Order#19 # of Lines SKU # Qty18 3906 3906 13 5422 6 1481 3 #3 of Lines SKU # Qty # of Lines SKU # Qty 2 2839 3079 15 1481 15 6079 12 6079 18 Order#15 1 1979 12 4 1901 12 1481 6 5422 18 Order#20 2840 14 4817 24 # of Lines SKU # Qty 1481 6 # of Lines SKU # Qty 6717 12 Order#29 13 Order#23 4 1972 4800 24 Order#21 2 2705 18 Order#18 # of Lines 18 SKU # Qty # of Lines Qty Order#22 1524 5100 6 SKU # # of2840 Lines SKU # Qty 12 # of Lines 4 SKU # 1981Qty 24 3 1901 24 # Qty 1481 9 4 1972 6# of Lines SKU Order#24 4 1979 1955 9 12 5340 12 Order#32 1 1481 12 1956 36 1524 10 # of Lines SKU # Qty 6079 1481 18 12 # of Lines SKU #1481 Qty 18 1481 9 2 3122 18 1481 1524 17 6 2 3906 17 1979 18 2811 18 5100 13 1481 9

Profiling gives us a way to make sense out of all this data

Examples of Order Profiles

Item Family Profile

Order quantity
Unit Load

Lines per order

Cube per order

Item Family Profile

Want to find families of SKUs
Family = group of SKUs that can completely fill a large number of orders

Items in a family are stored together

and not spread over facility

Reduces travel for pickers to get all items for the order

Orders by Item Family

Order#1 Order#5 Order#15 Order#21 Order#29 Order#22 Order#28 Order#30 # Lines of # Lines of # Lines of Lines SKU SKU # SKU # Qty # Qty Qty # of # Lines of SKU SKU # of Qty Lines Qty SKU # Qty # of Lines # of Lines SKU # SKU # Qty Qty 3 6 4 4 4 1481 3 1972 61981 13 1481 61901 24 12 16 13 1 1481 5 1972 12 1481 1979 1524 1524 24 1955 1979 10 12 18 14 1979 12 18 1481 1524 1481 1481 18 1481 91524 12 12 7 1955 6 91956 1956 1979 1524 6 1972 12 36 18 1972 7 1901 6 1955 15 1524 6 Order#6 Order#7 Order#9 Order#20 Order#24 Order#27

of# Lines # of # SKU Lines of # SKU SKU Qty # Qty # Qty Qty # of# Lines of SKU Lines # Lines SKU Qty #
1 3 6 9 18 18 2 2777 3122 1 2 2840 2705 32705 2705 2840 27 2811 12 18 2840 6

# of Lines SKU #
3 4060 5422 6079

Qty
12 24 12

Family B
2501-4000
Order#25 Order#10 Order#26 # Lines of # Lines of Lines SKU SKU # Qty # Qty Qty # of SKU # 1 3 3 3122 39279 15 18 2839 5422 5422 6 12 6079 6717 12 24

Family C
4001-7000
Order#2 Order#3 Order#4 Order#8 Order#13 Order#16 Order#17 Order#31 Order#32 # SKU of Lines SKU # SKU # of# Lines of# Lines of SKU # Lines of SKU # Lines of SKU # Qty Lines # Qty of SKU # Qty Lines of# Qty Lines SKU Qty # Qty # Qty Qty # of Lines SKU # Qty 2 2 2 43 2 1979 11 3 17 1481 2 1481 112 2840 18 2839 24 12 3906 6 1 1481 1481 1979 15 3906 13 6 9 3979 2840 2777 6 1979 4 1481 15 12 1481 6 1481 1481 15 2777 6 2840 14 3927 9 3979 7 2840 9

Family A
0000-2500
Order#11 Order#12 # of# Lines of Lines SKUSKU # # Qty Qty

1481 1524 8 2840 2840 18 3906 3927 18 3079 1481 15 5422 6079 18

13 34 12 3 18

Family-B & C
Order#14 Order#18 Order#19 Order#23 # Lines of # Lines of SKU SKU # # Qty # Lines of Lines SKU # Qty Qty # of SKU # Qty 5 4 4 3 1979 1901 1901 1972 18 9 12 24 6079 1481 5340 1481 12 18 6 12 1481 4800 1481 6079 12 17 24 18 5100 5100 4817 24 13 6 6717 12

Family-A & B & C

Family-A & B

Family-A & C

Plotting Item Family Percentages

30 25

Percent of Orders

20 15 10 5 0 A B C AB AC BC ABC

SKU Families

Information from the Profile

We get a lot of orders for only family A items and

only family B items

Items from family C are usually ordered with items

from family A or family Brarely alone

Use this information to group items by family in

separate areas
Maximize number of orders that can be filled from a single area
Minimize the size of each area (to keep travel distance small)

Order Quantity Profile

Look at what unit loads are needed to fill an order
Pallets Cases Eaches A mix of these (progressive dimension system)

Store in quantities to make appropriate unit loads

available for picking

Easier for picker to handle Efficient to pick Improve picking accuracy

Plotting Order Quantity Percentages

45 40 35

Percent of Orders

30
25 20 15 10

5
0 Full Broken Mixed

Case Quantity

Information from the Profile

Most orders are filled with full cases, so most of

the inventory will be stored as cases stacked on a pallet

Storage equipment will be some kind of pallet rack

For less than pallet quantities, different storage

equipment is possible, depending on conditions

Pick from an open carton stacked on pallet with rest of full

cartons Store individual cartons on separate shelving or bins

Unit Load Profiling

Look at what unit loads (full or partial)

customers order
The unit loads SKUs are shipped in

should be the unit loads you store

Avoids wasted time repacking the SKUs

Unit Load
Order#12 Order#2 # Lines of Lines SKU # of SKU # #QtyQty 5 2 1481 13 3 1524 3979 34 6 2840 3927 12 1481 3 6079 18 Order#32 Order#15 Order#21 of Lines # of# Lines of # Lines SKU SKU # SKU # Qty # Qty Qty 4 4 2 3906 1972 1972 13 6 17 1481 1524 1524 18 10 9 1481 1481 9 9 1956 1979 36 18

For SKU 1481 the most-ordered SKU in this example

Order#8 Order#17 of Lines # of# Lines SKUSKU # # Qty Qty 6 4 1979 15 1481 3906 12 1979 1481 6 2777 2840 9 3927 3979 7 2840 9 11 13 15 14

3 units ordered ( case)

Order#1 Order#13 Order#19 Order#31 # of# Lines of SKU Lines # SKU Qty # Qty Qty of# Lines # of SKU Lines # SKU Qty# 3 2 4 1481 1901 6 2839 2 2840 24 12 3 1979 1481 24 1481 1481 6 6 6 24 1524 4800 18 5100 6

9 units ordered (1case)

Order#5 Order#29 Order#22 Order#14 of Lines SKU # Qty Qty # of# Lines of# Lines SKU # of SKU # Lines # Qty SKU Qty# 6 1 4 1981 1481 12 1972 5 1481 12 24 1979 1955 12 1481 12 1955 1481 6 6079 12 1972 1524 12 4817 6 1901 6 6717 1524 6 18 12 12 24 12

15 units ordered (2 case)

Order#4 Order#23 of Lines # of# Lines SKUSKU # # Qty Qty 2 3 1901 18 24 1481 5340 15 12 2777 1481 18

6 units ordered (1 case)

12 units ordered (2 case)

18 units ordered (3 case)

Plotting Unit Load Percentages

For a single SKU
25 20 15 10 5 0 1/2 2/3 5/6

Percent of Orders

2 1/2

1 1/6

1 1/3

1 1/2

1 2/3

1 5/6

2 1/6

2 1/3

2 2/3

2 5/6

Portion of Case Ordered

Information from the Profile

50% of orders for this SKU require only full-

carton quantities
6, 12, 18 items

More than 75% of orders require a mix of only full-carton and half-carton quantities
3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18 items Packaging the items in bundles of 3 within the main

carton would reduce picking time for orders needing 3, 9 , or 15 items

1 move to get three items

Lines per Order Profile

Each SKU on an order represents a

line
# Lines = # Locations a picker must visit

May need to pick multiple units of

each line item

# Lines # Units ordered by a customer

Lines per Order

Order#16 Order#22 Order#9 Order#6 Order#10 # of# Lines of# Lines of SKU # Lines of SKU # Lines of SKU # Qty Lines SKU # Qty SKU # Qty# Qty Qty 1 1 1 1 1979 1 1481 2705 12 2840 12 2839 9 3 9 Order#13 Order#20 Order#24 Order#32 Order#3 Order#31 Order#2 Order#4 # of# Lines of# Lines of SKU # Lines of SKU # Lines of SKU # Qty Lines of SKU # Qty Lines of SKU # Qty Lines of SKU # Qty Lines SKU # Qty SKU # Qty# Qty Qty 2 2 2 2 2840 2 2705 2 3122 242 3906 182 1481 18 2839 17 1481 11 1481 3 3 18 1481 2840 2811 6 1481 12 2840 18 1481 9 3979 4 2777 6 6 15

Order#1 Order#23 Order#26 Order#27 Order#7 Order#25 Order#28

Order#19 Order#29 Order#17 Order#15 Order#18 Order#21 # of# Lines of# Lines of SKU # Lines of SKU # Lines of SKU # Qty Lines of SKU # Qty Lines SKU # Qty SKU # Qty# Qty Qty 4 4 4 4 1901 4 1981 4 1979 12 1972 24 1979 11 1972 13 9 1481 1955 3906 6 1524 12 6079 13 1524 18 18 4800 1481 1481 24 1481 12 1481 15 1481 9 17 5100 1524 2840 6 1956 6 5100 14 1979 36 13 6 10 9 18

# of SKU # of# Lines of# Lines of SKU # Lines of SKU # Lines of SKU # Qty Lines of SKU # Qty Lines SKU # Qty # Qty # Qty# Qty Qty SKU
3 3 3 1481 3 1901 3 3927 6 4060 24 2777 18 3122 12 6 15 3 3 1481 16 1979 5340 5422 24 5422 12 2705 12 5422 24 27 6 1979 18 1524 1481 6717 18 6079 18 2840 24 6079 12 6 12

Lines

1956

12

Order#14 Order#30 Order#11 Order#12 # of# Lines of# Lines of # SKU Lines of SKU Lines # SKU # Qty SKU # Qty # Qty Qty 5 5 5 5 1972 1901 1481 18 1524 13 1481 1481 2840 12 2840 14 6079 1524 3906 12 3927 7 4817 1972 3079 24 1481 7 6717 1955 5422 12 6079 15 8 13 18 34 18 12 15 3 18 18

Order#5 Order#8 # of# Lines of Lines SKUSKU # # Qty Qty

1481 1481 12 1979 1979 12 1955 2777 6 1972 3927 12 1901 3979 6 1524 2840 6

15 12 6 9 7 9

Plotting Lines per Order Percentages

30

25

Percent of Orders

20 15 10 5 0 1 2 3 4 5 6

Lines per Order

Information from the Profile

Provides insight on amount of travel

involved collecting all of the items for an order

Profile also indicates percentage of items that consist of just 1 line
These orders could be packed as they are picked,

since items from other zones arent needed May have a dedicated area for packing these orders since they dont need sortation
(more appropriate when 1 unit of a line is ordered)

Cube per Order Profiling

Cube is used to describe the space in

a warehouse
All three dimensions are used for storage, so were concerned about volume, not area

Can be
Amount of space occupied by a unit load

Amount of space available for storage in the racks/shelves

Cube per Order

Order#16 Order#22 Order#9 Order#6 Order#10 Order#2 Order#3 Order#31 # of # Lines of # Lines of SKU Lines SKU # SKU # Qty# Qty Qty # of# Lines of# Lines of SKU # Lines of SKU # Lines of SKU Qty Lines SKU Qty SKU Qty # Qty Qty 1 1 1 2 3 11 3 1 1979 1 1481 2705 122 2840 122 2839 9 1481 3 1481 9 2839 3979 2840 1481 6 4 6 2

assuming 0.1 ft3/unit for all SKUs

Order#4 Order#13 Order#20 Order#24 Order#32 Order#1 Order#27 Order#28 Order#25 Order#7 Order#19 Order#21 # of # Lines of Lines SKU SKU # Qty Qty # of# Lines of # Lines of # SKU Lines of# Lines SKU of ## SKU Lines of # SKU Qty # Lines # of SKU Qty # Lines Qty of SKU # Qty Lines of SKU # Qty Lines of SKU Qty Lines SKU Qty SKU # Qty # Qty Qty# 2 2 2 1481 2 2840 3 2705 18 3122 3 24 3906 18 3 1481 183 4060 174 1481 64 3122 12 2777 16 1901 15 1972 6 12 3 2777 1481 2840 15 2811 1481 6 12 1979 18 5422 9 1979 24 5422 24 2705 18 1481 6 1524 27 6 1524 6079 1956 18 6079 12 2840 12 4800 12 1481 6 24 5100 1979 6 6 10 9 18

0.1 to 2.5 ft3

2.6 to 5.0 ft3

Order#29 Order#23 Order#26 Order#17 Order#18 Order#5 Order#8 Order#30 Order#15 Order#11 Order#12 Order#14 # of# Lines SKU # Qty of# Lines of # Lines of SKU Lines SKU # SKU # Qty# Qty Qty 4 5 5 1972 13 1972 5 1481 1524 8 13 1524 18 1481 2840 2840 18 34 1481 9 6079 3906 3927 18 12 1956 36 3079 1481 4817 15 3 5422 6079 6717 18 18 18 12 12 24 12

of Lines SKU # Qty # of# Lines of# Lines of # SKU Lines of# SKU Lines # SKU # Qty SKU # Qty # Qty Qty # of# Lines of # Lines of SKU Lines SKU # SKU # Qty# Qty Qty
3 3

4 1981 24 4 4 1901 24 1979 18 11 9 1481 6 1979 6 1481 5 3927 1901 13 12 1955 12 3906 6079 13 18 1979 5340 5422 12 12 1979 1481 14 12 1481 12 1481 1481 15 17 2777 1481 6717 18 24 1524 1955 7 6 1524 6 2840 5100 14 13 1972 3927 1972 7 12 1901 3979 1955 15 6 1524 2840 6

15 12 6 9 7 9

5.1 to 7.5 ft3

7.6 ft3

Plotting Cube per Order Percentages

40 35

Percent of Orders

30 25 20 15 10 5 0 0-2.5 2.6-5 5.1-7.5 >7.5

Cube per Order

Information from the Profile

Cube of an order represents size of

shipment to the customer

Can affect method used to pack the order
Pallet vs. Carton
Size of carton

May also affect shipping method

Parcel delivery vs. Less-than-Truck Load (LTL)

Item Activity Profile

Item Activity reflects how frequently its ordered

and picked
Each order for an item represents additional work

for warehouse
Travel to storage Retrieval from storage

Considering Item Activity when assigning a

storage location can reduce the amount of work when the item is ordered
Especially for travel

Typical Item Activity

SKU #1481
Units 21,330/week

Pallets 150 units Cube 0.6 ft3/carton

Activity of many SKUs

SKU #3927 SKU #1524 SKU #6079 SKU #3906 SKU #1481 Units 1,2400/week Units 48/week SKU #1979 SKU #3122 Units 48/week Units 1,2400/week Units SKU #5422 Pallets 150 units Pallets 90units Units 1,2400/week Units 1,2400/week SKU #1956 Pallets 90units Pallets 150 units Pallets Units 1,2400/week 0.6 ft3/cartonCube 1 ft3/carton Pallets 150Units unitsCube 150 units 48/week Cube 1.2 ft3/carton SKU #2777 Cube Pallets 0.6 ft3/carton Cube Pallets 150 units SKU #3079 SKU #6717 Cube 0.6 Pallets ft3/carton Cube 0.6 ft3/carton 90units Units 1,2400/week 3 Cube 0.6 ft /carton Units 1,2400/week SKU #2705 Units 1,2400/week 3/carton Cube 1 ft Pallets 150 units SKU #2840 SKU #1972 Pallets 150 units Pallets 150 units Units 1,2400/week Cube 0.6 ft3/carton Units 1,2400/week 3 Units 1,2400/week Cube 1.2 ft /cartonPallets 150 units Cube 0.6 ft3/carton SKU #3979 Pallets 150 units Pallets 90 units SKU #4817 Cube 0.6 ft3/carton Units 1,2400/week SKU #5100 3 Cube 0.6 ft /carton Cube 1 ft3/carton Units 1,2400/week Pallets 150 units Units 19/week SKU #1981 SKU #5340 SKU #2839 Pallets 150 units Cube 1ft3/carton Pallets 45 units Units 1,2400/week Units 12/week Units 12/week Cube 0.6 ft3/carton 3 Cube 1.2 ft /carton SKU #1901 Pallets 150 units SKU #2811 Pallets 45units Pallets 150 units Units 1,2400/week SKU #4800 SKU #1955 Cube 0.6 ft3/carton 3/carton Units 18/week SKU #4060 Cube 1.2ft Cube 1.2 ft3/carton Pallets 150 units Units 1,2400/week Units 1,2400/week Pallets 45 units Units 1,2400/week Pallets 150 units Cube 0.6 ft3/carton Pallets 90 units Cube 1ft3/carton Cube 0.6 ft3units /carton Pallets 45 Cube 1.2 ft3/carton Cube 1.2 ft3/carton

Creating the Item Profile

Rank SKUs from most units/week to least Usually divided into three classes (A, B, C)
A Fastest movers
Probably 5% 10% of SKUs

Consider keeping these in a special Forward Pick Area

B Average
Probably 10% - 15% of SKUs Consider keeping these near front end of aisles

C Slowest movers
Probably 80% or more of SKUs Store these in longer travel locations

Demand Profile
SKU #1481 Units #1979 SKU Pallets Units #2840 SKU Cube Pallets Units 1,2400/week Cube 150 units Pallets Cube 0.6 ft3/carton SKU #1972 SKU #3122 SKU #4817 SKU #3979 Units Units Units Units SKU #3927 SKU #2777 SKU #5100 SKU #2839 Pallets Pallets Pallets Pallets Units Units Units Units SKU #6717 SKU #1981 SKU #2811 SKU #4060 Cube Cube Cube Cube Pallets Pallets Pallets Pallets Units Units Units Units SKU #1955 SKU #4800 SKU #3079 SKU #5340 Cube Pallets Cube Pallets Cube Pallets Pallets 12/week Units Units Units Cube Units Cube Pallets Cube Pallets Cube Pallets Cube Pallets 45units Cube Cube Cube Cube 1.2 ft3/carton SKU #1901 SKU #2705 SKU #3906 SKU #6079 SKU #1524 SKU #5422 SKU #1956 Units Units Units Units Units Units Units 48/week Pallets Pallets Pallets Pallets Pallets Pallets Pallets 90units Cube Cube Cube Cube Cube Cube Cube 1 ft3/carton

Plotting the Demand Profile

100 90 80 Percent of Cartons Shipped 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0

C B

SKU # ( Ranked from Maximum Demand to Minimum Demand)

Getting Started
Profiling requires data
Need several months, to provide a picture of the long-term

situation (seasonality)

Data will probably require preparation

Identify which data fields in the Work Management System

(WMS) contain the needed data May have data values that need to be fixed

Design shouldnt start until you have a profile that

describes your warehouse situation

Data Preparation
Data may not be complete
Empty fields where data wasnt available or recorded

Data may not be accurate

Invalid SKUs Negative inventory levels

Need to clean up this information

Fix values where possible
Delete entries if fix isnt possible Probably will need to be done manually

What comes next

Completed profiles give data that is

needed for an effective facility design

Amount of space (cube) for storage Types of storage equipment

Profiles are also used to design

operations
Methods for order picking
Equipment for order picking

In summary
Order profiling needs to be done before a warehouse is designed (or redesigned)
is never complete because the order

characteristics change and the warehouse design and management need to be updated to reflect these changes
if done accurately, yields excellent results and

useful information
if done incorrectly, can produce inaccurate

conclusions and lead to bad decisions

Sources for further reading

Warehouse and Distribution Science, John

Bartholdi and Steven Hackman (2008). Available on-line at http://www2.isye.gatech.edu/~jjb/wh/

Facilities Planning, James Tompkins, John White,

Yavuz Bozer, and Jose Tanchoco, 3rd Edition (2002) Wiley.

World-Class Warehousing and Material Handling,

Edward Frazelle (2001) McGraw-Hill.

Questions & Issues?

10/14/2013

IENG 471 Facilities Planning

42