- Feature
- Convert work containers to packing-station containers
- Availability
- Generally available in Supply Chain Management 10.0.49
- Industry focus
- E-commerce fulfilment centres
In e-commerce fulfilment, every touch costs money. Orders are small, numerous and time-critical, and the packing station is often the bottleneck between picking and despatch. Anything that lets a packer move straight from receiving picked goods to closing a parcel saves seconds per order, and seconds add up across thousands of orders a day.
The industry challenge
In Dynamics 365 warehouse management, goods are often picked into work containers, such as totes or cartons used during picking. At the packing station, items are typically packed into shipping containers, which become the parcels that leave the building.
When the picking container is also suitable as the shipping container, for example a single-item order picked straight into a shipping carton, the packer may still need to create a new container and move the items into it in the system, even if nothing physically changes. That adds clicks and scans at the busiest point in the process, and it creates opportunities for error when packers take shortcuts under pressure.
What Microsoft delivered in Supply Chain Management 10.0.49
Supply Chain Management 10.0.49 adds the ability to convert work containers into packing-station containers. In practical terms, a container used during picking can be carried into the packing process as the packing container, instead of requiring a separate container to be created and items transferred.
The release notes describe the capability at a summary level, so organizations should test how it fits their specific packing flows.
Where the value shows up
| Business area | Impact |
|---|---|
| Packing productivity | Fewer system steps when the picked container is the shipped container |
| Accuracy | Less re-handling of items reduces the risk of mis-packs |
| Throughput | Faster flow through the packing bottleneck at peak times |
| Process design | More freedom to design pick-to-carton flows |
| Training | Simpler packing steps for temporary peak-season staff |
A worked scenario
(An illustrative example.) An online fashion retailer runs a fulfilment centre where many orders are single items. Pickers pick these directly into shipping cartons sized for the item, then send them to packing stations for checking, labelling and sealing.
Previously, packers had to create a new shipping container in the system and move the item into it, even though it was already in the right carton. After the update, the process team tests converting the work container into the packing container. Packers can confirm the item, print the label and close the container in fewer steps. During a peak trading weekend, the team monitors throughput at the packing benches to judge the effect.
Adoption considerations
- Map your flows. Identify which order profiles pick into containers that can also be shipped.
- Test the details. Because published detail is limited, validate the behaviour in a sandbox with your container types and packing profiles.
- Check labelling and weights. Make sure shipping labels, weights and dimensions are correct for converted containers.
- Update work templates. Review container build templates and packing station set-up.
- Train packers. Explain when conversion applies and when a new container is still needed.
The bottom line
In e-commerce fulfilment, the fastest pack is the one with the fewest steps. Converting work containers into packing-station containers removes redundant system actions when the picked container is already the right one to ship. It is a modest change that can matter a lot at peak. An experienced Dynamics 365 warehouse adviser can help you test it against your order profiles.
Source: Microsoft: What's new or changed in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management 10.0.49