Box picking

Pay attention to the requirements

This page requires that you have installed the PlentyONE Warehouse app on an appropriate device. Note the hardware requirements described on the System requirements page of the manual. In addition, make sure that you are logged into the PlentyONE Warehouse app and that you have carried out all necessary steps for initial setup.

Using box picking, your warehouse staff can pick all items that are needed to fulfil an order and deliver them to the packing table, pre-sorted and ready to be shipped.

The PlentyONE Warehouse app offers a new and improved function for box picking. You can find all necessary information on this page of the manual.

Use labels for storage locations

For mobile box picking with PlentyONE Warehouse, we recommend that you create one label for each storage location and box and that you attach it to the respective storage location. During box picking, you use your device to scan the barcode on the label to select the appropriate storage locations and box storage locations. Have you not created labels for storage locations yet? Refer to the Setting up a warehouse page of the manual.

First, read a short description on box picking that explains the process. Afterwards, the settings that you should carry out in advance will be described. These settings go into effect when you use the function.

1. How does box picking work?

Click on the box below to find out more about the process of box picking.

Workflow for box picking

Warehouse employees have trolleys that they take through the warehouse. Any number of boxes are available on the trolley. Each box is assigned to an order that needs to be processed.

The warehouse employee takes the trolley through the warehouse and looks at a mobile device that shows which items have to be picked. In this overview, duplicate items are grouped together. For example, if the same item is included in two different orders, then the warehouse employee will see that two copies of the item have to be picked. The warehouse employee picks the item and then places it in the box that represents the respective order. This way, each item is automatically assigned to the correct order while it is picked.

Once all of the boxes are filled with items, the warehouse employee returns to the packing table. The first box is scanned and the corresponding order is loaded. The warehouse employee processes the order as usual. At the end of this process, the box is unlinked from the order. The box is then available again and the warehouse employee can re-use it on the next trip through the warehouse.

Carrying out settings for several warehouses

First, decide in which warehouses your warehouse staff should be able to use the mobile box picking function. Then, carry out the one-time settings individually for each desired warehouse.

Excluding items from box picking

If needed, you can exclude specific items from box picking. For example, this might make sense in case it is not possible to place labels with barcodes on those items. Activate the option Exclude from pick list in the Item » Item » [Open variation] » Element: Shipping » Drop-down list: Picking menu.

2. Assigning rights for box picking

Before box picking is carried out in PlentyONE Warehouse, make sure that all users without roles of the type Administrator have been assigned the appropriate rights. This is necessary to make sure that the picking process is carried out correctly.

Users with roles that are not of the type Administrator can only see certain areas and menus in PlentyONE. This means they only have limited access to the system. Should coworker carry out box picking in PlentyONE Warehouse they need at least one of the following rights:

PlentyONE Warehouse > Box picking > See
PlentyONE Warehouse > Order information > See

Tip: How to grant rights

Note that only users with roles of the type Administrator can grant rights.

Assigning rights:

Open the menu Setup » Account management » Roles.
→ The roles overview opens.
Click on New ().
→ The role creation menu opens.
Enter a name for the role.
Make sure that you are using the simple mode. This means that the option Advanced () is not activated.
Assign the rights for the respective area by ticking the check boxes indicated above.
Note: You can either grant rights for complete areas or limit the rights you grant the user. To only grant limited rights in a certain area, expand the area.
Save () the settings.

3. Assigning rights for order statuses

Typically, the orders that are processed during box picking have specific source statuses assigned to them. Which statuses are used for this depends on the individual workflow of your company.

To use box picking without any errors and move the orders to the desired target status, you have to assign rights for displaying and editing those exact order statuses in the PlentyONE back end.

Assigning rights for order statuses:

Go to Setup » Account management » Roles » [Select role].
Scroll down to the Access rights area.
Expand the menu entry Changeable order status ().
Activate () the order statuses that orders for box picking usually have.
Expand the menu entry Visible order status ().
Activate () the order statuses that orders for box picking usually have.
Click on Save ().

4. Carrying out settings for box picking

If you are working with the function for box picking for the first time, make sure that the following settings are carried out beforehand. Otherwise, errors will occur during the process.

4.1. Carrying out settings in the PlentyONE back end

Before you use box picking, you need to carry a few settings one time only in your system. For example, these settings specify which boxes are available, which warehouse technicians are in charge of box picking and when the order and box should be unlinked.

4.1.1. Making boxes available

In the warehouse, every item is stored at its own storage location. When picking an order, the warehouse employee goes and gets the item from its storage location and then places the item in a box. The item stays in that box until the warehouse technician has finished packing and shipping the order.

Thus, boxes are essentially temporary storage locations. Just like regular storage locations, you’ll need to create boxes one time in advance. Specifically, you create one storage location for each box. Then you specify that these storage locations should be used for box picking.

Making boxes available:

Log into your system.
Go to Setup » Stock » Warehouse » [Select a warehouse] » Storage locations.
Create new storage locations for box picking. Refer to the chapter on creating storage locations.
Set the storage location’s Purpose to Box.
Save () the settings.

4.1.2. Providing and using trolleys

After you have made boxes available, you can carry out a few settings in your PlentyONE back end to represent the trolleys that are used for mobile picking in your warehouse. This step is optional, as it is not required for the box picking process to function correctly. When setting up trolleys, you determine the number of boxes that are available on each trolley. When starting the picking process, you can save some time by scanning the barcode of the trolley rather than scanning each box individually. It’s up to you to think about the processes in your warehouse and decide if this makes sense.

Virtual trolleys are created per warehouse and a barcode is assigned to them during setup. Thus, trolleys themselves are no actual storage locations, but can be traced and identified due to the barcode so that they can ultimately be identified by the PlentyONE Warehouse app.

Providing and using trolleys:

Go to Setup » Stock » Warehouse » [Select warehouse] » Trolley configuration.
Click on Create new trolley.
Enter a name in the Name field.
Enter the barcode that you want to specifically assign to the trolley.
Note: If you do not enter a barcode, PlentyONE automatically fills this field with a random value as soon as you click on Save. You can return any time to change the barcode.
Click on Save ().
→ The trolley is created.
Now, go to the lower area of the menu and click on New ().
→ A new view opens. Click on Search to carry out a search for suitable storage locations. Since only storage locations of the type Box can be assigned to trolleys, the search filter is set accordingly by default and cannot be changed.
→ The search results are displayed.
Activate () the box storage locations that should be assigned to the previously created trolley.
Click on Add.
→ The boxes are assigned to the trolley.

Now, you can use the trolleys to your advantage during box picking. There is no need to carry out any additional settings in the PlentyONE Warehouse app - you are ready to go. Follow the steps described below to learn about the required steps.

Using trolleys in the PlentyONE Warehouse app:

Log into PlentyONE Warehouse.
Tap on the menu icon () in the top left corner.
Or: Or: Find the Box picking tile in the Functions area on the dashboard.
Tap on Box picking ().
→ The start screen is displayed.
Instead of manually entering the number of boxes, scan the barcode that is attached on your physical trolley.
→ PlentyONE identifies the corresponding virtual trolley in the background. Thus, PlentyONE Warehouse automatically selects the exact number of boxes that are available on the trolley.
The next steps of the box picking process remain the same. For more detailed instructions on the next steps, refer to the chapter Finding the items in the warehouse and the subsequent sections.

4.1.3. Modifying the order process

You can integrate box picking with PlentyONE Warehouse into your company’s existing order process. To do so, add the following procedure and sub-procedure to your existing process in the PlentyONE back end.

Identifying the correct point in time for unlinking boxes from orders

Should a box automatically be unlinked from the order as soon as the items are packed after box picking? If yes, proceed as follows. If the box should only be unlinked from the order after outgoing items have been booked for the order, proceed as described below.

Modifying the existing order process:

Go to Setup » Processes » [Select process].
Add the procedure and sub-procedure. Carry out the settings according to Table 1.
Save () the settings.

Table 1. Procedure and sub-procedure for box picking
Setting	Explanation
Procedure: Order search	Add the Order search procedure to the Single order processing work step. This procedure searches for individual orders, with the goal of processing them further afterward. Open the procedure’s settings and set the Mode to Box search. This specifies that your warehouse technician will scan the box - meaning the temporary storage location - and then PlentyONE will load the corresponding order.
Sub-procedure: Remove order from box	Add the Remove order from box sub-procedure to the Order procedure. This sub-procedure unlinks the order from the box. This makes the box available again, so that it can be re-used on the next trip through the warehouse.

4.2. Carrying out settings in the PlentyONE Warehouse app

Before you use box picking, you need to carry a few settings one time only in the PlentyONE Warehouse app. For example, these settings specify how many orders should be picked at once and how the app should react if an error occurs with any of these orders.

Pay attention to required rights

By default, the settings described below can only be carried out by users with roles of the type Administrator. If other app users are supposed to see and edit the settings, administrators have to assign the respective rights in the PlentyONE back end. To do so, open the respective role in the Setup » Account management » Roles menu and activate the desired rights for the Settings option in the PlentyONE Warehouse area.

Configuring the settings:

Log into PlentyONE Warehouse.
Tap on the menu icon () in the top left corner.
Tap on Settings ().
→ The settings menu opens.
Tap on Box picking ().
Carry out the settings. Pay attention to the explanations given in Table 2.

Table 2. Carrying out settings in the PlentyONE Warehouse app
Setting	Explanation
General settings area
Warehouse	In which warehouse do you want to pick? When you use the function later, you’ll see a list of items to pick. This list only includes items from orders that are stored in this warehouse. *Tip:* You can manage the warehouses displayed in this drop-down list in the Setup » Stock » Warehouse menu in the back end of your system.
Default number of boxes	Each box represents one order whose items are picked. Select the number of orders you typically pick at once. When you carry out box picking later, this number will be suggested by default. You can manually increase or decrease this number before starting box picking.
Display confirmation dialogue before redistribution	If you activate this option, the app will ask you if you really want to put an item into the box every time you pick an item during box picking. You can only proceed with the next item after confirming the dialogue.
Mandatory scan of storage location	How do you want to select storage locations and boxes for box picking? Activated () = Storage locations and boxes have to be selected by scanning them so that items can be booked afterwards. Deactivated () = Storage locations and boxes can be selected manually by tapping on them in the app.
Sorting of orders	This setting determines in more detail which orders will be sorted for processing them with the box picking function. Select one of the following options: Order ID = Orders are sorted beginning with the lowest order ID. Creation date = Orders are sorted beginning with the earliest creation date. Paid on = Orders are sorted beginning with the earliest date of incoming payment. *Note:* As usual, make sure that you only prepare shipments for orders that have been fully paid for. Priority = Orders are sorted beginning with the highest priority.
Box assignment	Use this setting to determine the point at which you want to link the orders for box picking with the required boxes. During picking: This option is activated by default. This means that you link boxes during the picking process with orders by scanning the required box. Preselection: Activate this option to carry out the assignment of orders to boxes before the start of the picking process. For further information on how this works, refer to the chapter Linking boxes in advance.
Enable automatic linking	Activate this setting to automatically link boxes with orders. For further information, refer to the Adding a comment chapter. *Important:* This setting is only available if you have selected the option Preselection for the setting Box assignment.
Prioritisation of item names	Tap on this option to determine the order in which the components of item names are displayed while you are using the function. Tap and hold () for each component to adjust the order of the displayed elements.
Status area
Source status	Which orders do you want to pick? When you use the function later, you’ll see a list of items to pick. This list only includes items from orders that are currently in this status. *Tip:* You can manage the statuses displayed in this drop-down list in the Setup » Orders » Order status menu in the PlentyONE back end.
Block status	How do you want to flag orders that are currently being picked? As soon as the picking process with PlentyONE Warehouse has been started, orders are automatically moved to this status. This way, it’s not possible to accidentally start picking the same order twice. *Tip:* You can manage the statuses displayed in this drop-down list in the Setup » Orders » Order status menu in the PlentyONE back end.
Success status	Select the status into which orders are moved after they have been successfully processed in box picking, meaning all required items are picked.
Error status	How should the app react if something goes wrong? If an error occurs while picking an order, for example because an item cannot be picked, the app will change the status of the order to whatever is selected here. Additionally, a note will be added to the order itself. This note contains more precise information on the item and on the storage location. Later, you can open the Orders » Edit orders menu to search for all orders in this status and then process these orders separately. *Tip:* You can manage the statuses displayed in this drop-down list in the Setup » Orders » Order status menu in the PlentyONE back end.
Item registration area
Mandatory item scan	Use this option to determine which rules should apply when registering items during box picking. Activated () = All items have to be scanned via their label to be registered for box picking. It is not possible to select items manually via the search results. Deactivated () = Items can either be registered by scanning them or by selecting them manually.
Number of items to scan individually	If you are registering items via scan, you can use this setting to determine how many variations you have to scan individually until the available total quantity is inserted automatically in the field for entering the quantity. *Example:* If you enter the number 5 in the quantity field, the total quantity is inserted automatically after you have scanned the variation five times.
Box selection area
Box search fields	Use the toggle buttons to determine which criteria can be used for the box search while using the box picking function. The options Barcode and Storage location name are available. Activated () = You will be able to use this criterion when searching for storage locations. *Tip:* Tap on and hold () for each activated search criterion and drag it to the desired position to determine the order of the search fields.
Focus on box search field	Will you typically select a box by scanning the barcode of the box or by searching for the name of the box and then selecting the appropriate entry from a list? If you want to scan the barcode, then this setting can speed up the job. None = There will be no focus on any field. Of course, you can still place the cursor in another search field manually. Barcode = The cursor will automatically start out in the barcode field when you select a box. This can speed up the process of selecting a box. Storage location name = The cursor is automatically placed in the field containing the name of the box.

5. Using box picking in PlentyONE Warehouse

Once you have carried out the preparatory settings, you can begin using the PlentyONE Warehouse app to pick several orders at once and bring them back to the packing table, pre-sorted and ready to be shipped.

Are any orders available?

Orders can only be processed using the box picking function in PlentyONE Warehouse if they fit the criteria that you selected in the settings. This means that orders have to match the selected warehouse and the source status. If no orders fit the criteria, no orders will be available for box picking in PlentyONE Warehouse.

5.1. Specifying the number of boxes

First, enter the number of boxes that you want to work with, meaning the number of orders that you want to pick simultaneously.

Determine number of boxes automatically

If you have set up trolleys in the PlentyONE back end, you can scan the barcode of the trolley. The app then automatically registers how many boxes are available on the trolley and automatically enters this number. Thus, you do not have to enter the number of boxes manually, but you can continue to find the items in the warehouse.

Specifying the number of boxes:

Log into PlentyONE Warehouse.
Tap on the menu icon () in the top left corner.
Or: Or: Find the Box picking tile in the Functions area on the dashboard.
Tap on Box picking ().
→ The start screen is displayed.
Tap on the plus or minus icon to increase or decrease the previously defined number of boxes.
Tap Start when you’re ready to go.
→ A list of items is created for the corresponding orders.
→ The status of the corresponding orders is changed to the previously defined target status.

5.2. Finding the items in the warehouse

PlentyONE automatically creates a list of all the items that are ready to be picked in the warehouse. In this overview, duplicate items are grouped together. For example, if the same item is included in two different orders, the warehouse employee will see that two copies of the item have to be picked.

The list includes important information on the items that have to be picked. Warehouse employees do not only see how many copies of an item have to be picked, but are also shown the storage location and name of the item.

Now the warehouse employee takes the trolley and walks over to where the first item is stored. Upon arrival, the warehouse employee scans the barcode of the storage location. Then, the barcode of the first item is scanned. Depending on the setting you have selected for the options Mandatory scan of storage location and Mandatory item scan, you can alternatively tap on storage locations and items in the app to select them manually.

Working with the item list:

Take a look at the list to find out where the item is stored.
Take the trolley to the storage location at which the item is stored.
Scan the storage location’s barcode or tap on the storage location in the app.
Scan the item’s barcode or tap on the item in the app.

5.3. Linking the order to a box

Which box do you want to temporarily store this item in? Scan an empty box or tap on an empty box in the app. This step automatically links the order to the box.

Orders with multiple items

Some orders contain more than just one item. If you’ve already scanned the first item and linked it to a box, then you won’t need to link the second item with a new box too. Instead, you’ll continue using the box that you’ve already linked.

5.4. Linking boxes in advance

Would you rather link all orders to boxes before starting box picking instead of proceeding as described above?

In that case, begin by making sure that you have selected the option Preselection for the setting <<#intable-box-link, Box assignment setting in the Settings » Box picking menu of the PlentyONE Warehouse app. As soon as this setting has been activated, your workflow changes as follows:

Linking boxes in advance:

Log into PlentyONE Warehouse.
Tap on the menu icon () in the top left corner.
Or: Or: Find the Box picking tile in the Functions area on the dashboard.
Tap on Box picking ().
→ The start screen is displayed.
. As usual, enter the number of orders to be picked and then tap on Start.
In the view that is now displayed, you can register boxes by scanning them or by manually selecting them from the list. Repeat this step until the number of boxes equals the number of previously determined orders.
Note: If you have also activated the option Enable automatic linking in the Settings » Box picking menu, a button is displayed at the bottom of the screen during this step. Use this button to link all boxes to orders automatically. If this option is deactivated, each box has to be assigned individually.
Tap on Start to begin picking. Now, it is no longer necessary to link orders and boxes during the actual picking process. All the following steps of the box picking process remain the same.

5.5. Picking items

PlentyONE Warehouse displays important data on the status of box picking. This way, you can see the number of items that need to be picked as well as the storage locations at which the items can be found.

Picking items:

Take a look at the app to access information about the picking process.
Scan the item or tap plus or minus to specify how many copies of the item you have picked.
Note: Every time you scan the item, the number is automatically increased by one.
Place the item in the corresponding box.
Scan the box that you have just picked or tap the green check mark to finish the picking process.
→ PlentyONE links the item to the box. The storage location of the item is changed to this temporary storage location. Your system keeps a record of this stock movement.
Repeat steps 1 through 4 for every order that contains the item.
→ Once picking is finished for this item, the screen changes. You see the list of items again and you can begin picking the next item.
→ Once you have finished picking all items, a final screen is displayed.
Click on the red check mark to finish box picking.

5.6. Additional procedures for items

Some particular use cases may occur while you are picking items. For example, it might be necessary to move an item to the end of the list because you will only get to the storage location of the item at a later point in the picking process. Maybe an item is not available at the indicated storage location, or you want to create an order note containing a comment on the item.

For such cases, the view on each item contains shortcuts which allow you to quickly take care of these tasks. Table 3 contains additional information on the available options.

Table 3. Available shortcuts in the item view
Element	Symbol	Explanation
Comment		Opens a window for entering an order note. Use this function to save a comment with each order that contains this item. Later, you can open those orders in the back end of your system and access the comment.
Enter quantity		Opens a window for entering the item quantity.
Move item		Moves the item to the end of the pick list. This function if useful if you want to skip an item for the time being, for example if the item is currently not available on the indicated storage location.
Remove item		Removes the item from the item list. Use this function in case the required item is not available at the storage location. Optionally, you can add a comment in this step. The comment will be saved as an order note with each order that contains this item. You can access these order notes in the PlentyONE back end later. In addition, the status of the order will be changed to the error status.
Item information		Opens a page with additional information on the item. Depending on the setting you have carried out for the Shortcut behaviour option, you will be asked if you want to automatically return to the item list after viewing the item information.

5.7. Finishing box picking

As soon as all required items have been picked and, if necessary, orders with unavailable items have been assigned the error status, an end screen is automatically displayed.

This screen contains information on the orders that have been processed during box picking. You can see at a glance

how many orders have been picked
how many different items and how many copies of those items have been picked
how many orders have not been picked completely
how much time was needed for mobile box picking.

Tap on finish box picking.

5.8. Packing items

Once all of the boxes have been filled with items, the warehouse employee returns to the packing table. The first box is scanned and the corresponding order is loaded. The warehouse employee processes the order as usual. Outgoing items are booked from the temporary storage location, meaning from the box.

You can adjust your company’s existing order process so that the link between a box and an order is automatically removed as soon as outgoing items are booked for the order. To do so, add the following procedure and sub-procedure to your existing process in the PlentyONE back end.