Typical Warehouse Dispatch Operation: Efficiency, Security, and Accuracy

In many ways, the dispatch operation is a mirror image of the goods receipting operation; and the dispatch area is the receiving area in reverse, i.e. with bays and docks used for consolidation/bundling and dispatch as opposed to receipt and bulk break/separation. The following describes a typical dispatch operation, and the three colours of highlighting identify which of these operations relate to which of the following operational concerns.

(i) efficiency,
(ii) security, and
(iii) accuracy.

1. Make room available for packaging, loading, stillage, pallets, and other preparation activities or packing equipment.
2. In the assembly area, aggregate the order. If necessary, arrange the order on the floor using a template that matches the layout of the vehicle that will deliver the dispatched goods.
3. Check the documentation that describes the order, and tick off each item in the consignment against each item in the list of goods described in the order. Pick any goods that are not present in the consignment; remove any goods in the consignment placed by error. High value orders may have to be double-checked for quantity and condition by a supervisor. For high value orders, special documentation may have to be produced, completed, scanned, signed-off, and filed, with copies provided digitally or physically to relevant parties.
4. Check the goods in the consignment for their general condition. Inspect for integrity, physical damage, and excessive wear and tear on the packaging. If the consignment is large, carry out a quality inspection on a number of randomly selected items. If there is good reason to suspect that quality issues may affect every item in the consignment, then do a total inspection, provided time and labour availability supports this activity. Any goods that do not pass a general visual inspection should be swapped out for the exact equivalent items, and the rejects not re-shelved but placed in a special area reserved for additional checking and or items to be destroyed or returned. Damaged packaging on a high value item may indicate deliberate tampering, so visual checks of contents should be conducted.
5. Any goods omitted from the order, whether by quality check rejection or due to stockout, damage, or any other reason, should be noted and reported. Any other discrepancies in the order or quality issues affecting any or all items should be reported to the warehouse manager.
6. Identify the correct loading area and ensure that it is appropriate for the delivery vehicle and generally suitable to handle the quantity and nature of the consignment being dispatched. Excessively large areas should not be allocated to very small consignments and, of course, dispatch areas that are too small to accommodate large volume consignments should be considered inappropriate.
7. When the vehicle arrives, inspect and confirm that it is suitable for the consignment. If the vehicle or the driver of the vehicle specifies particular requests or requirements concerning the sequence or assembly of the load, then consider these in light of the nature of the consignment and comply if there is no significant risk, extra labour, or practical disadvantage discernible.
8. Commence loading of the vehicle. Ensure that the appropriate MHE or manual handling (handball) methods are applied.
9. If security locks are in place and must be applied, then apply them while the driver is present.
10. Have the driver sign off for collection of the consignment. If necessary, have a supervisor witness the sign-off, second the sign-off, and perform any final counts of goods in the consignment. It may also be necessary to verbally confirm with the driver the consignment’s destination and inform the driver of the expected versus actual content of the consignment. Any significant discrepancies should also be reported to the party who has initiated the order. This is especially important with high value loads, or with high volume loads in which there are discrepancies between order expected and order dispatched.
11. Formally record the vehicle’s departure and note any security locking processes, seals, codes, hashes, numbers, or security words.

Note: Many of the activities highlighted above can be multiply defined, i.e. interpreted as efficiency-, security-, and accuracy-enhancing, since the three are to no trivial degree related. In 4. for example, the checks described have positive implications for all three. The above list derives from a more rudimentary list described in Emmett (2005: 110).