Picker App
The Picker mobile app assists the picker to pick an item from a rack in the warehouse and record any problems or issues faced while picking.
Picker App
The Picker mobile app assists the picker to pick an item from a rack in the warehouse and record any problems or issues faced while picking.
Picker App
The Picker mobile app assists the picker to pick an item from a rack in the warehouse and record any problems or issues faced while picking.
Picker App
The Picker mobile app assists the picker to pick an item from a rack in the warehouse and record any problems or issues faced while picking.
Project Overview
Dmart, a major retailer with over 366 stores in India, saw a massive wave of growth. But Inefficiencies had crept into the day to day operations of the warehouse
especially the picking process. Hence a digitisation effort was carried out to move away from a physical pen and paper system to a digital screen based interface. Two apps were built to address the picking issue the planner and the picker app. Below we discuss the picker app.
Project Overview
Dmart, a major retailer with over 366 stores in India, saw a massive wave of growth. But Inefficiencies had crept into the day to day operations of the warehouse
especially the picking process. Hence a digitisation effort was carried out to move away from a physical pen and paper system to a digital screen based interface. Two apps were built to address the picking issue the planner and the picker app. Below we discuss the picker app.
Project Overview
Dmart, a major retailer with over 366 stores in India, saw a massive wave of growth. But Inefficiencies had crept into the day to day operations of the warehouse
especially the picking process. Hence a digitisation effort was carried out to move away from a physical pen and paper system to a digital screen based interface. Two apps were built to address the picking issue the planner and the picker app. Below we discuss the picker app.
Project Overview
Dmart, a major retailer with over 366 stores in India, saw a massive wave of growth. But Inefficiencies had crept into the day to day operations of the warehouse
especially the picking process. Hence a digitisation effort was carried out to move away from a physical pen and paper system to a digital screen based interface. Two apps were built to address the picking issue the planner and the picker app. Below we discuss the picker app.
The Picking Process
The diagram shows how the pick process is executed.
What was the problem ?
Lack of a digital trail meant in the ware house meant
High error rates in picking : Error rates in picking were not improving and pickers did not know how it could be improved
No real-time tracking or reporting: Warehouse mangers had to manually track down errors and this was time consuming
Manual task assignment to pickers : Mangers had to track picking and pickers manually on paper to make sure the warehouse was working efficiently which was again labour intensive.
High rates of Overstaffing: Warehouses were overstaffed by 40%
What we learned from our user interviews
We interviewed warehouse managers, pickers, loaders and other warehouse staff and found :
Pen-and-paper pick lists: Pick lists were printed and handed to pickers, increasing the risk of errors.
Low-light areas: Errors were common in low-light areas, where pen-and-paper processes were less effective.
Multitasking errors: Pickers had to multitask by reading lists and marking exceptions while picking, which led to mistakes.
What was the problem ?
Lack of a digital trail meant in the ware house meant
High error rates in picking : Error rates in picking were not improving and pickers did not know how it could be improved
No real-time tracking or reporting: Warehouse mangers had to manually track down errors and this was time consuming
Manual task assignment to pickers : Mangers had to track picking and pickers manually on paper to make sure the warehouse was working efficiently which was again labour intensive.
High rates of Overstaffing: Warehouses were overstaffed by 40%
What we learned from our user interviews
We interviewed warehouse managers, pickers, loaders and other warehouse staff and found :
Pen-and-paper pick lists: Pick lists were printed and handed to pickers, increasing the risk of errors.
Low-light areas: Errors were common in low-light areas, where pen-and-paper processes were less effective.
Multitasking errors: Pickers had to multitask by reading lists and marking exceptions while picking, which led to mistakes.
What was the problem ?
Lack of a digital trail meant in the ware house meant
High error rates in picking : Error rates in picking were not improving and pickers did not know how it could be improved
No real-time tracking or reporting: Warehouse mangers had to manually track down errors and this was time consuming
Manual task assignment to pickers : Mangers had to track picking and pickers manually on paper to make sure the warehouse was working efficiently which was again labour intensive.
High rates of Overstaffing: Warehouses were overstaffed by 40%
What we learned from our user interviews
We interviewed warehouse managers, pickers, loaders and other warehouse staff and found :
Pen-and-paper pick lists: Pick lists were printed and handed to pickers, increasing the risk of errors.
Low-light areas: Errors were common in low-light areas, where pen-and-paper processes were less effective.
Multitasking errors: Pickers had to multitask by reading lists and marking exceptions while picking, which led to mistakes.
What was the problem ?
Lack of a digital trail meant in the ware house meant
High error rates in picking : Error rates in picking were not improving and pickers did not know how it could be improved
No real-time tracking or reporting: Warehouse mangers had to manually track down errors and this was time consuming
Manual task assignment to pickers : Mangers had to track picking and pickers manually on paper to make sure the warehouse was working efficiently which was again labour intensive.
High rates of Overstaffing: Warehouses were overstaffed by 40%
What we learned from our user interviews
We interviewed warehouse managers, pickers, loaders and other warehouse staff and found :
Pen-and-paper pick lists: Pick lists were printed and handed to pickers, increasing the risk of errors.
Low-light areas: Errors were common in low-light areas, where pen-and-paper processes were less effective.
Multitasking errors: Pickers had to multitask by reading lists and marking exceptions while picking, which led to mistakes.
The solution envisioned digitized the picking process by providing a digital picklist to the picker which would be have tasks assigned by the warehouse manager
The solution envisioned digitized the picking process by providing a digital picklist to the picker which would be have tasks assigned by the warehouse manager
The solution envisioned digitized the picking process by providing a digital picklist to the picker which would be have tasks assigned by the warehouse manager
Product Highlights
Planner and Picker Apps
Two apps one for assigning picks and another for viewing the picklist. The two apps would work in tandem to update the picking in realtime.
Planner and Picker Apps
Two apps one for assigning picks and another for viewing the picklist. The two apps would work in tandem to update the picking in realtime.
“How much do I pick? and from where ?”
Our interviews revealed users only needed two key pieces of information: the Bin (A006-03-2A) and the number of boxes. We emphasized these on the cards to focus user attention.
“How much do I pick? and from where ?”
Our interviews revealed users only needed two key pieces of information: the Bin (A006-03-2A) and the number of boxes. We emphasized these on the cards to focus user attention.
Pick list and handling unit views
The handling unit is where the item that were picked would be kept. Henc it was like a shopping cart. The pick list also show sthe status of the pick whether it is a full or a partial pick.
Pick list and handling unit views
The handling unit is where the item that were picked would be kept. Henc it was like a shopping cart. The pick list also show sthe status of the pick whether it is a full or a partial pick.
Different states of a pick card
Most picking occurred in low-light aisles with network blind spots. To address this, we used brighter colors, higher contrasts, larger touch areas, and offline functionality. Status cards clearly indicated the pick status (short, nil, full, offline) at a glance.
Different states of a pick card
Most picking occurred in low-light aisles with network blind spots. To address this, we used brighter colors, higher contrasts, larger touch areas, and offline functionality. Status cards clearly indicated the pick status (short, nil, full, offline) at a glance.
Full and partial pick popups
Views for picking an item, if the pick is short a reason can be added for clarity, troubleshooting and reporting.
Product Highlights
Planner and Picker Apps
Two apps one for assigning picks and another for viewing the picklist. The two apps would work in tandem to update the picking in realtime.
“How much do I pick? and from where ?”
Our interviews revealed users only needed two key pieces of information: the Bin (A006-03-2A) and the number of boxes. We emphasized these on the cards to focus user attention.
Pick list and handling unit views
The handling unit is where the item that were picked would be kept. Henc it was like a shopping cart. The pick list also show sthe status of the pick whether it is a full or a partial pick.
Different states of a pick card
Most picking occurred in low-light aisles with network blind spots. To address this, we used brighter colors, higher contrasts, larger touch areas, and offline functionality. Status cards clearly indicated the pick status (short, nil, full, offline) at a glance.
Full and partial pick popups
Views for picking an item, if the pick is short a reason can be added for clarity, troubleshooting and reporting.
My Role and Learnings
My Team & Role
As the UX Lead, I worked with a team that included 1 product manager, 3 designers, and 12 developers.
Facilitated discussions and workshops with warehouse staff, managers, and executive leadership.
Regularly presented design decisions and user research findings to the CEO and the executive leadership team.
Led the design process from concept to final execution, including low-fidelity wireframes, competitor research, user interviews, high-fidelity mocks, and usability testing.
Challenges And Learnings
Picking was just one part of the overall process and an understanding of the overall picking, packing and loading process was needed before the picker and pick planning apps could be designed.
Hence a system design based approach was taken to design the picker and pick planner apps.
My Role and Learnings
My Team & Role
As the UX Lead, I worked with a team that included 1 product manager, 3 designers, and 12 developers.
Facilitated discussions and workshops with warehouse staff, managers, and executive leadership.
Regularly presented design decisions and user research findings to the CEO and the executive leadership team.
Led the design process from concept to final execution, including low-fidelity wireframes, competitor research, user interviews, high-fidelity mocks, and usability testing.
Challenges And Learnings
Picking was just one part of the overall process and an understanding of the overall picking, packing and loading process was needed before the picker and pick planning apps could be designed.
Hence a system design based approach was taken to design the picker and pick planner apps.
My Role & Learnings
My Team & Role
As the UX Lead, I worked with a team that included 1 product manager, 3 designers, and 12 developers.
Facilitated discussions and workshops with pickers, pick planners, and warehouse managers
Regularly presented design decisions and user research findings to the CEO and the executive leadership team.
Led the design process from concept to final execution, including low-fidelity wireframes, competitor research, user interviews, high-fidelity mocks, and usability testing.
Challenges And Learnings
Picking was just one part of the overall process and an understanding of the overall picking, packing and loading process was needed before the picker and pick planning apps could be designed.
Hence a system design based approach was taken to design the picker and pick planner apps.
My Role and Learnings
My Team & Role
As the UX Lead, I worked with a team that included 1 product manager, 3 designers, and 12 developers.
Facilitated discussions and workshops with warehouse staff, managers, and executive leadership.
Regularly presented design decisions and user research findings to the CEO and the executive leadership team.
Led the design process from concept to final execution, including low-fidelity wireframes, competitor research, user interviews, high-fidelity mocks, and usability testing.
Challenges And Learnings
Picking was just one part of the overall process and an understanding of the overall picking, packing and loading process was needed before the picker and pick planning apps could be designed.
Hence a system design based approach was taken to design the picker and pick planner apps.
Results
What Worked Well
Digitization reduced understaffing and empowered pickers to efficiently handle tight schedules, report issues through the app, and ultimately cut pick times by 50%.
What did not work
During testing, we identified the need to implement a fallback option for printing manual picklists in case of network failures. This ensured a seamless transition to a manual process if the digital system encountered any issues.
What Worked Well
Digitization reduced understaffing and empowered pickers to efficiently handle tight schedules, report issues through the app, and ultimately cut pick times by 50%.
What did not work
During testing, we identified the need to implement a fallback option for printing manual picklists in case of network failures. This ensured a seamless transition to a manual process if the digital system encountered any issues.
What Worked Well
Digitization reduced understaffing and empowered pickers to efficiently handle tight schedules, report issues through the app, and ultimately cut pick times by 50%.
What did not work
During testing, we identified the need to implement a fallback option for printing manual picklists in case of network failures. This ensured a seamless transition to a manual process if the digital system encountered any issues.
What Worked Well
Digitization reduced understaffing and empowered pickers to efficiently handle tight schedules, report issues through the app, and ultimately cut pick times by 50%.
What did not work
During testing, we identified the need to implement a fallback option for printing manual picklists in case of network failures. This ensured a seamless transition to a manual process if the digital system encountered any issues.