Batching Orders Can Cut Down on Travel

| Sam Flanders

As your operation grows, the type of order selection vehicles that will work best for you may change. Growth often means increasing numbers of SKUs, and larger on-hand quantities. It is not uncommon for shelving storage requirements to grow to cases on pallet rack shelving, and then to full pallet loads of a single SKU. In a business where items are constantly added and changing, you may find that SKUs will proliferate. All of these factors can combine to create extra travel that can place a growing burden on your order picking staff. Fortunately, there are some powered vehicle options that can help.

Hardly current service

| MCM staff

A Multichannel Merchant staffer placed an order for personalized labels on the Website of stationery marketer Current on June 3. She received an e-mail

TAKING STOCK

| Jim Tierney

If you waited until now to buy paper for your catalog, you might be in trouble. Prices have gone up, thanks mostly to mill closures and consolidation in the industry.

Setting S&H fees

| Heather Retzlaff

When it comes to shipping and handling fees, one thing is clear: Consumers expect to pay a fair price for the delivery of their purchases. But they don’t want to do any work.

Incoming Traffic

| Mark Del Franco

Receiving is the Rodney Dangerfield of operations, says consultant Wayne Teres: Few companies give it any respect.

But it is the most complicated function in the warehouse. One error can have a ripple effect.

SEEING DOUBLE

| Linda Formichelli

So you’re good at fulfillment. Why shouldn’t you be? You’ve been shipping catalog orders for years, and you know what you’re doing. Then you open stores.

5 Steps to Disaster-Proofing your Contact Center

| Gary A. Pudles

Contact centers have become the arteries of organizations, enabling customer care, retention, inbound and outbound sales, fundraising and donations, and direct response. So before a disaster threatens or strikes, take effective measures to protect your centers and the services they provide.