Dynamic warehouse

In a dynamic warehouse, a product does not have a fixed spot: you store stock at whichever location is free at that moment and Picqer keeps track of where it is. This is how we advise most warehouses to work.

What is a dynamic warehouse?

With a fixed layout, every product has its own spot in the warehouse. That spot stays empty when the product is out of stock, and you run out of space as soon as you receive more of a product than fits there.

In a dynamic warehouse (also called a chaotic warehouse), stock goes to the first location that is free and fits. Products do not have to sit together "logically" by category, size or colour. What counts is how often a product is picked: that determines which part of your warehouse it belongs in. The rest matters far less. As a result you put stock away faster and use your space better.

Make almost all locations temporary

By default, a product stays linked to a location until you unlink it yourself. If you set a location to temporary, Picqer unlinks the product automatically as soon as the stock at that location reaches 0. The location is immediately available for the next product.

That way you always see which locations are free, without tidying up by hand. Set new locations to temporary in one go with the location wizard, and change existing locations in bulk with an import from Excel.

You can make an exception for the odd product: if you want it to always sit in the same spot, do not set that location to temporary. For most products, picking a free location each time works better.

Do not reserve locations for products

Do not keep locations empty for stock that still has to arrive. An empty location waiting for a product is wasted space.

Do steer on zone and aisle: small products in the small bins, fast movers close to the packing tables, large boxes near the floor. So you keep the rough layout of your warehouse and only let go of the exact spot per product. Read how to divide those zones in optimize your warehouse layout.

It takes some getting used to that the products in a rack are not lined up by brand or product code. You can let that go, because it does not help you when picking: the picker is guided by the location on the picklist. To see which location ends up on the picklist when a product is in several places, read location selection for picklists.

Receive purchases on a container

Receive a delivery on a container first: a cart, crate or pallet. That way you can check the quantities calmly and the stock is already in Picqer, without being at a final location yet.

The container then goes into the warehouse and you store the products at locations that are free in a suitable aisle. Such a location does not have to be near similar products, and that is where the gain is when putting stock away. A colleague can do this while you check the rest of the delivery. To see how to receive on a container, read register receipt.

One product on several locations

Receiving stock of a product that is already somewhere in the warehouse? You can add it to the existing location, but a new free location is fine too. That is often faster, because you do not have to walk a full cart to one specific bin. A product can be linked to several locations and those locations do not have to be next to each other.

Keep one rule of thumb: move as little as possible. Every movement is work that gains you nothing. Store stock properly in one go when you receive it and pick from there until the location is empty.

Store and pick backorders

Do not keep stock for backorders separate on a cart or in a corner. Store those products at locations as well and pick them from there. That way everyone in the warehouse works the same way.

Do you handle a lot of backorders and want to ship them quickly? Then set up a separate rack close to the packing tables to store incoming backorder stock quickly. Do link that stock to real locations: that is the clearest for everyone and new colleagues can pick there straight away.

Replenish pick locations from bulk

Replenishing pick locations works the same way. Stock from bulk does not have to go back to exactly the same pick location; a free pick location in the right aisle is fine too. The pick location that empties out unlinks by itself and can take another product. To see how the replenish advice works, read bulk locations and replenish advice.