Business value

To meet different customer expectations, in many cases it is crucial that the picker in the warehouse pays extra attention to the aspects that are important for this customer.

E.g. add a manual in the specified language for a group of customers, only ship fully wrapped products to specific customers, check humidity of nature products, put country specific safety stickers, avoid picking a scratched product for a customer who complained about scratched product before etc.

This additional information enables basic value added logistics. The best moment to present this information to the picker is when the picking the particular work line.

In Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations only the shipment text is displayed on the mobile device at the start of a picking work, but specific information on work line level can not be displayed. The same limitation exists for receiving products on the mobile device. 

In Advanced Warehouse Management several out of the box mobile device screens are enriched with an extra text line (e.g. “Check seal XYZ”, "Add French users manual"):

• Sales line text
• RMA receipt line text
• Purchase line text
• Transfer line text
• Customer (group) specific item text
• Vendor (group) specific item text
• Item text

For testing purposes (e.g. multiple workers must login from the same PC), Warehouse Management enables the mobile process from the PC browser too.

Additional texts on mobile device

In case there are more applicable texts, e.g. a sales line text and a customer specific item text, these texts are displayed in one line, separated by a space.

Specify the applicable document type in Warehouse management parameters.

Setup mobile device app field names

Setup mobile device app field priority

Mobile device work process without app

In case the Dynamics 365 Warehouse app is not available, for testing purposes, the menu item Work process (aka. WHSWorkExecute) can be used to execute the mobile device work. Also relevant to test with multiple workers simultaneously from the same PC, or if multiple environments need te be tested simultaneously.

Limitation:

• Images are not shown
• The layout, especially of (work) lists is not optimal
• Use ESC to exit the login form (there is no Close button)

Work audit template custom method Print labels

Warehouse management > Setup > Work > Work audit template lines update

In the work audit template line, an additional custom method is available: AWHSPrintLabels.

This method will print n addional labels for the target license plate on the current work.

The label must be generated first (a record in License plate labels must exist) through the standard process.

Then in the audit template, enter the following:

Now add the audit template Print label to a mobile device menu item that is used for executing the work.

Note that the generate label must be switched on, and the document routing must be setup.

To avoid mistakes like scanning an EAN code in the field Nr of extra labels, the maximum number of extra labels is fixed on 100.

Suggested use:

• Upon receipt: On the mobile device menu item switch on generate label, and add an audit template ID. Standard 1 label per received LP is created and printed. Additional copies of this label can be printed with the audit template.
• Existing inventory: If a label must be printed for an existing license plate, use a mobile device menu item Movement by template with the audit template ID. Or use the reprint function on the mobile device, but this function can only print one label at the time.

Data inquiry additions

The Mobile Data inquiry feature adds great lookup and information functionality to many mobile processes. In Warehouse Management some additional display methods where added that can be displayed on a mobile data inquiry tile.

Loads

Load lines / shipment lines 

Dock appointments

Work and work lines

Put-to-wall: when goods must be packed from the wall, the worker can use the mobile data inquiry to see which positions are ready for packing and choose a suitable carton size for the given weight, volume and length. 

Arrival journal and lines

Physical dimensions

First arrival check: use these methods to check on the mobile device whether the physical dimensions and barcodes in the system are correct for the different units.

The physical dimensions records per item are initialized in the form Physical dimensions, button Import units for item.

Cycle counting  

Enable smooth re-counting on the mobile device by a supervisor. Create a data inquiry on the cycle count registrations, and lookup the pending counting registrations.

Work line overview replenishment info

Warehouse management > Setup > Mobile device > Mobile device menu items

When executing existing work with the Warehouse Management app, it is possible to display a work line overview (feature and setting in the mobile device menu item).

This work line overview displays each open work line as a tile. Unfortunately the work lines that are still awaiting replenishment, are not visible to the worker.

Warehouse Management can add an information text with the total open replenishment quantity, weight and volume, to the work lines that are ready to pick, to indicate that other pick work lines are hidden because of open replenishment activities.

Setup

To enable the replenishment information, use the 2021 warehouse management app (blue white), and switch on Show work line list on the mobile device menu item.

For the content of the tiles use the button Field list on the mobile device menu item, and select existing fields and methods from the work line.

Work line method DYSDWAReplenLines: if the current work has open work lines that depend on replenishment the total number of open replenishment lines and the total weight and volume of these open lines is displayed. This allows a picker that is stacking the pallet while picking, to anticipate on some more products that need to be added to the pallet.

In a similar way the work line method DYSDWAWorkLineText can be added to the tile.

Generate container from target license plate

Create containers in the mobile picking process and avoid the PC packing station

In many situations, the pick worker can pick and build the shipping pallet at the same time. There is no need to register the pallet in the packing station, however in the mobile process, the worker should:

• scan or enter the container type (EPAL, gitter box etc.)
• optionally enter the physical data
  • pallet height, width and / or length,
  • gross weight and / or net weight
• optionally enter the track and trace number
• print and stick a ZPL label with content list

Work line custom steps 

The before mentioned mobile actions are enabled through additional work line custom methods that can be set on the work template. Specify the relevant custom work types with capture data = yes and the custom method as described below:

One of these 2 methods is the mandatory last custom work line:

When entering a value for size or weight, the logic automatically:

• interpretes both decimal commas and decimal dots as decimal spearators
• checks whether the maximum weights or sizes as specified on the container type are not exceeded

Split work line on mobile device

Similar to the PC functionality in Warehouse Management , it is now possible to add a detour to a mobile picking process for splitting a work line. Especially if a warehouse worker composes a picking pallet (target LP) that will be shipped as picked, this functionality adds great flexibility.

E.g. a worker has to pick 5 large cartons of item X and 6 medium cartons of item Y for one shipment. The 4 large cartons do not fit on 1 pallet, and the optimal stacking would be:

• picking pallet A: 3 large cartons, 2 medium cartons
• picking pallet B: 2 large cartons, 4 medium cartons 

The worker opens the work line list on the mobile device, and clicks the tile of the 5 large cartons item X. Confirm location and or item.

When the mobile devcie asks to confirm the quantity, press the button Split work line.

Now enter the quantity to split: 3 (this is the quantity that the worker wants to pick now on the current pick pallet).

The original work line is reduced from 5 to 3 and a new work line for 2 will be added.

Now confirm that 3x item X is picked (on picking pallet A) instead of 5. (Or go back to the work line list to see that the tile of 5x item X has no split into tiles for 3x and 2x.)

The quantity to split must always be entered in inventory units, even if the work line unit (e.g. Box) differs from the inventory unit (e.g. ea).

After the split, the reduced quantity has to be entered. When working with different units, always read carefully in which unit the picked quantity must be confirmed, or change the unit with the edit pensil. If a full number of Boxes etc. has been split, then the picked quantity will be in Boxes.

It is advised not to use the work line function in combination with the group pick functionality on the mobile device menu item.   

Setup Split work line

The setup below is needed for the split work line (mobile) functionality:

Warehouse management > Setup > Mobile device >

Mobile device menu items

• Create [my split work line menu item]. Indirect, activity = Split work line

The steps below contain the setup of standard detour functionality. The feature Warehouse management app detours is active by default.

Warehouse management > Setup > Mobile device >

Mobile device menus

• Add the Split work line to a menu that the worker has access to, e.g. a menu with all types of lists and data inquiries. This is a standard obligation for detours, otherwise the detour button will not be shown!
• NB: if you are not in a picking work, it is possible (but not practical) to split a work line separately: scan the work ID, press OK and enter the line number).

Mobile device menu items

• find [my picking work menu item] > Work confirmation setup > Pick > Quantity confirmation = yes
• Show work line list = Only upon request, or At the start of the first pick only or At the start of every pick

Warehouse app field names

• Create default setup

Warehouse app field priority

• Create default setup

Mobile device steps

• Create default setup (takes a few minutes)
• Find step ID = Confirmation, Title for input = Check values, then confirm
• For this step ID, button Add step configuration, to create a detour for [my picking work menu item]
• Button Available detours (menu items)
• Add the detour Split work line (select fields to send is not needed to specify).