Warehouse process and productivity reviews

We measure the processes inside a warehouse, yours or a provider's that you pay for, from goods in to dispatch. We observe the flow, take time and volume data, and convert what we find into cost per line, cost per order and labour hours per thousand units.

The board reads the findings in money and risk, and warehouse management gets recommendations it can act on.

• A process map of receiving, put-away, replenishment, picking, packing and dispatch, with timings.
• A productivity baseline in labour hours per thousand lines, by activity and shift.
• A layout and slotting assessment showing travel waste and congestion points.
• A ranked list of process changes, each with its cost, effort and effect on cost per order.
• A board summary of the cost of the warehouse operation and the changes that cut it.

• Labour hours per thousand order lines are reported by activity, so a slow activity gets named.
• Cost per order line is stated at the warehouse door.
• Goods wait less between the dock and the shelf, and dock-to-stock time is tracked for inbound goods.
• Picks come from the nearest locations.
• Overtime hours are tracked as a share of total hours, so routine overtime shows.

Warehouse reports speak in units shipped and on-time rates. They do not say how many labour hours went into a thousand orders, where goods wait, or why productivity falls in the second half of a shift. Cost therefore creeps while service metrics look fine.

• Labour cost per order has risen for two quarters and the explanation is volume alone.
• Receiving backs up and goods wait in the bay for days before they can be picked.
• The same SKUs are picked from the same overfull locations every shift.
• Overtime is routine in peak and also in ordinary weeks.
• A provider bills for labour hours and you cannot test them.

Chief operating officers and chief executives of groups running their own warehouses, and finance directors paying a provider on a time or labour basis who want to understand what drives the invoice.

Qasim Abbas set the capital logic behind a last-mile fleet of about 1,000 vehicles at BaladiMart, part of Al Baladi Group. Every activity in your warehouse is stated as a cost per unit that a board can compare quarter to quarter.

We work from the warehouse management system the site runs, the invoices behind it and the ledger the group uses, including Xero or NetSuite, with observation and timing on site. See how fees work.

Do you need to be on site?

Yes. Observation is part of the method, and data alone does not show where goods wait or why picks are slow.

Can you review a provider's warehouse?

Yes. We review the provider's warehouse operation that serves your orders, observing the flow on site and pricing the work in cost per line.

Point us to the site and the cost line that worries you most. We confirm what a review measures in your warehouse at a private briefing with the Managing Partner.