[DE] Chaotic warehousing – anything but chaotic!

Are you or your company looking for a new, fast or more flexible system behind your storage? Then today we have a promising concept that could possibly give your warehousing that certain something you are looking for. In this article, we will look at which companies the chaotic storage method is suitable for, what the term even means, what the advantages and disadvantages of chaotic storage are and what impact it can have on your warehouse management.

What is chaotic warehousing?

Chaotic warehousing or also called dynamic warehousing offers an optimal use and many new possibilities to upgrade your warehouse systematically and time-efficiently. Actually, one expects the complete opposite with such a designation, but this concept is not so chaotic at all and holds more advantages than one might think at the first moment.

Chaotic or dynamic warehousing is a very efficient concept in which the storage of goods is not sorted systematically according to product type, colour or other goods characteristics, but quickly, flexibly and swiftly, as it suits you. Of course, there are a few important aspects that should not be ignored, and that is what we will focus on today.

Does chaotic warehousing seem like a solution for your company? – That’s what you need to consider!

This warehousing method is often used in companies that have a very wide range of products and offer many different items. Companies that need to process orders efficiently and quickly gain an enormous advantage from this concept. To ensure that the “chaos” does not reach the outside of the warehouse, appropriate warehousing software or an ERP system or EDP system that can withstand these challenges is of course also required here.

It should also not be forgotten that there should be a certain infrastructure of software for warehousing and a good overview in inventory management.

Many e-commerce retailers can also benefit from dynamic inventory management. Amazon is one of the best examples of this. In Germany, up to one million different items are sold on peak days and this with an enormously wide range of products. Thanks to chaotic warehousing, Amazon manages to make optimal use of free storage space and guarantee flexible and fast processing of orders. The products arrive at reception, are recorded there by one of the scanners with the help of a barcode and stored in the system. The robot then uses the merchandise management system to find a suitable place to store the goods on the warehouse shelves. As soon as an order is placed that includes the stored item, the system again uses the barcode to find where it is in the warehouse and guides a robot to the selected product. The robot then places the goods on a conveyor belt so that the employees can easily remove them and prepare the order for dispatch.

Especially in the case of a rapidly changing assortment with permanently changing stock levels and free storage spaces, which are usually only occupied for a short time, chaotic warehousing offers an enormous advantage. And since a fast handling of the shipping process is essential for survival in online trade, chaotic warehousing is even more suitable.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of chaotic warehousing?

Have you got a good first impression and could you imagine adopting the chaotic warehouse method? These advantages and disadvantages should definitely not go unnoticed:

Requirements for implementation

A suitable enterprise resource planning system is one of the core requirements for giving chaotic warehousing a chance. One should also inform oneself in detail about the different ERP systems or software solutions and obtain various offers. Warehouse equipment also plays a certain role. Although it is easier to familiarise new employees with chaotic warehousing after a short training phase, all employees should be familiar with the tasks and processes in the dynamic warehouse, as data maintenance is essential to ensure that everything functions smoothly and no unexpected errors occur.

Other optimal prerequisites for a dynamic warehouse are a well-developed warehouse plan and working with barcode scanners so that every incoming and outgoing activity is transmitted directly to the software and thus no data is lost. Depending on your assortment, there should also be certain guidelines and rules in the chaotic warehouse. For example, it would make sense to always place heavy goods on the floor or on a heavy-duty shelf or not to place bulky items on the top shelf.

Comparison between static and chaotic warehousing

The counterpart to chaotic or dynamic warehousing is static warehousing. In this system, each item has its own fixed location, which makes it easier for employees to find them. In contrast to the dynamic system, however, this does not require high expenditure for IT and software development and purchases.

The problem with static warehousing is that free spaces are usually left unfilled in the warehouse, which could be prevented with the help of chaotic warehousing, making warehouse management much more flexible.

Your company will benefit from the chaotic storage system if the initial situation offers a lot of free storage space that is to be used efficiently in order to avoid large unused areas in your warehouse. In addition, the use of chaotic storage makes sense if you have a particularly large warehouse and an inventory management system already exists in your company or you are in the process of acquiring one. Since in large warehouses the overview is often lost, it is important to note that there is the possibility of a large risk of failure if your systems are not up to the demands of such a warehouse.

Conclusion

In short, chaotic warehousing offers a good opportunity to save a lot of time, space and money if you have the above-mentioned prerequisites and approach this method systematically. It is important to train the staff well and to have well-equipped technical means, because even a chaotic system needs its order here and there.