There are lots of ways to pick your orders. One of these options is batch-picking. In this blog we tell you about the different batch-picking methods and how you can best use them.

What is batch-picking?

Batch-picking is a method of order picking in which you pick the products of different orders at the same time. Because you only have to walk through your warehouse once to complete multiple picklists, you save a lot of time. The amount of picklists you combine at once often lies between 6 to 24, depending on which kind of products you sell.

During collecting your batch you keep your orders separated in different containers. At the packing table you pack the products for each order.

Which kind of batches are there?

Beside the usual batches where you collect multiple picklists at once, there are more variations on batch-picking such as 'singles-picking'. This are orders where there is only one product on the picklist. For the total of Picqer users, 59% of all orders are 'singles'. This makes the use of this method very interesting.

With batch-picking you divide the products in different containers, for single-batches you can put everything in just one. With this method you can pick way more picklists at once. But be aware: this method only saves you time when a software program assists you. Not every software system supports this method.

There also are other ways of picking such as wave-picking (multiple employees collect the same order) and zone-picking (the warehouse is divided into zones and products get collected for each zone and later combined into one order). But when you process less than 5000 orders a day, these methods are often not interesting as your warehouse is probably too small to incorporate these methods and normal batches often work quicker and more effective.

When can you best use batches?

When you have a large warehouse with small products, batch-picking is an excellent way to process your orders quicker. You have enough space to walk around with a cart and the products are small enough to be collected in containers.

When you sell large products, batches are not as handy as it is hard to collect multiple large products at once. Also, when you have a small warehouse, it might be better to pick per order. The surface is too small to maneuver a cart.

What do you put into a batch?

A batch is a combination of different picklists. But how do you know which picklists to combine?

The best way to create a batch is to see if you can make clear selections. Do you send half of your packages to foreign countries? Then it might be interesting to create batches for each country. This might be helpful when you use different tape or commercial material for different countries, so you don't have to watch out which tape or flyer you're using. Do you only send some packages to a foreign country? Then it is possible your batch becomes too small and sepperating them is not useful.

Do you have multiple floors or locations within your warehouse? Then it might be smart to select your batches per floor so you don't have to walk complicated or long routes. Picking per location is different as the earlier mentioned 'zone-picking' as here you only pick full orders in one zone. Orders spread over multiple zones or floors still have to be walked at once.

How to best incorporate batch-picking?

There are different ways to incorporate batch-picking. It is important to see which method is best for your warehouse.

A clear rhythm is important to not make mistakes. You need to decide if you want to pick in the morning, evening or both. Especially when you group your orders on location or country it is important to walk them multiple times. So be aware these batches don't become too small. Small batches are easily forgotten and it might be you send out a package a day later then promised.

Other aspects to look at are if you want to print your batches on paper or use a hand scanner. And what will the flow of picking be? Will one person pick the orders and someone else will finish it at the packing table? By asking these questions you get a clear overview of what the best batch-picking method is for your warehouse.

Want more tips?

Do you want more handy information about how to start your warehouse and find out which ways of picking there are? Download our free (Dutch) book

Download our free book ‘Zo mag je magazijn er zijn’ full of tips to make your warehouse even more efficient..

Hi! My name is Anna van Brecht and I recently started at Picqer as Junior Developer. In January I graduated in Bioinformatics at the Hogeschool Arnhem Nijmegen. When I started this course, I mostly did it for my interest in biology.

During my studies my interest shifted from biology to informatics. During my first internship I developed a web application to centrally manage research results. The interaction with users on how a workflow could be processed really appealed to me. That's why I chose to learn more about Web Development! Beside my studies I temporarily worked as Junior Developer. Here I worked on a webshop in which I solved and automised a lot of logistical problems. Because I really enjoyed this work, I immediately applied for Picqer when I saw their vacancy.

In my free time I am often busy with social media. I make short make-up tutorials for Instagram to share with my followers. Because of this I gained a lot of fun experiences such as video shoots for Maybelline and a trip to Los Angeles for Anastasia Beverly Hills!

I look forward to work on the software of Picqer to support your warehouse!

Hello everyone, my name is Kasper Hägele, and as of March 2019 I work at the support department of Picqer. Together with the support team, I make sure that everyone is helped in the Picqer way: open, personal & assistant.

I have a lot of interest and experience in the e-commerce sector, which is, of course, helpful at Picqer. It is also exciting to deepen my knowledge about warehouses of webshops, and I look forward to helping our clients reach the next level with the Picqer's software.

Before I started at Picqer, I helped a lot of people with setting up their webshop at a Dutch webshop platform for about 5 years. Also, at a client services company, I helped a lot of well-known webshops with the implementation of live chat and support software. Now it's time to support the warehouses of webshops at Picqer, full of intelligent IT and smart solutions. A real challenge!

I live together with my wife Nivine in Nijmegen. We have two daughters, Haper (2) & Jazz (7 months). Musical names that probably give away that I am a huge music lover. In addition to music, I have a lot of other interests such as the internet, travelling and cooking. You can also find me regularly on Twitter.

I would love to talk to you about your warehouse and how you can organise this even better with Picqer. Nice to meet you :-)

My name is Johan Schutten and I started on the 1st of January at Picqer as a Support Guru. A beautiful name for the work I love to do: supporting clients!

I graduated in 2010 as a journalist at the CHE in Ede. I was able to directly start at a well-known magazine about computers and tech. After some wandering, a few years later I landed in the dynamic world of client service in which I work for four years now.

The past two years I worked with a lot of fun at the township of Apeldoorn and Reden. I answered 1001 questions through telephone and e-mail from civilians and companies. The work was good and diverse but I did miss some challenge. This I found at Picqer. Picqer also fits well with my philosophy that software should be easy to use.

In my free time I love to go out into nature to photograph, cycle or walk. And when I want to I work on my debut novel. I realise that not everyone is as lucky as I am. Because of that I am involved with a civil society that helps people with a little to no network.

As Support Guru I help users of Picqer by answering (technical) questions and solve problems. A lot of answers you can already find on our support pages, which I will continue to develop and update. Do you feel like you miss something? Then I would love to hear from you. It's my goal at Picqer to deliver the best possible support to you Picqer users!

With pride we introduce a new app! With this new Picqer Mobile app you can quickly and easily count your stock.

By counting your stock in calm moments, you are ensured that your stock is correct at the moments it's busy. Now you are able to spend every calm moment in your warehouse useful by checking your stock.

How does it work?

Manual mode

There are two ways to count your stock. The first way is the manual mode. With the manual mode you decide yourself which product you want to count by scanning the product barcode. To do this, we support the same Honeywell scanners as we do with our current app. Of course it is also possible to search for a product by name.

When you scan a product, you see the amount that should be on the shelf according to Picqer. With a simple tap you confirm the amount or adjust it by clicking the plus or minus button.

Guided mode

Through the guided mode the app tells you which product to count. This is the easiest way to make sure that your stock is always counted: the app ensures that you count your assortment as effective as possible.

Two apps

You probably already know the current blue Picqer app in which you can process picklists, receive purchase orders and adjust your stock. You can keep using the app for these features. The new app has a purple icon which you can install besides the current app.

Try it out

You can download the new Picqer Mobile app in the App Store and use it on iPhone, iPod Touch and even on iPad.

Download the app

Give us feedback

The first version of the app is as simple as possible and will be expanded over time. That’s why we would love to hear from you what you think about the app and what we can improve.