Increased productivity of storage and picking processes in a mass-consumption warehouse applying Lean Warehousing tools: A Research in Peru

Authors

Figueroa-Rivera, Ernesto

Bautista-Gonzales, Andres

Quiroz Flores, Juan Carlos

Abstract

In recent years, the warehouse logistics sector in Peru has shown a considerable increase proportional to the country's economic growth, however, this increase in the sector has not been accompanied by large technological investments. This deficiency implies that the logistics operators that provide the warehousing service keep staff labor as their main resource, generating operational inefficiencies that lead to cost overruns and a low level of competitiveness. This research focuses on the application of tools of the lean warehouse methodology in a 3pl warehouse with the final objective of obtaining a continuous improvement model that optimizes the use of resources used in operational processes, reducing cost overruns related to excessive use of labor in the process picking and storage. The model makes use of tools such as standardization through 5S, route optimization with SLP, reduction of rework through FEFO, and flow optimization with operator load balancing. The proposal was executed through pilots and simulations in the sand software, obtaining as results an increase in picking productivity by 26.7% and storage productivity by 33.8%.