Batching Outbound Shipments for Whirlpool Corporation

Abstract

The team investigated the implementation of batch-picking shipments at a regional distribution center for Whirlpool Corporation, the world's largest appliance manufacturer. An Excel-based optimization tool was created to strategically batch shipments to more effectively utilize carrying capacity of clamping forklifts across the network. Due to the decrease in labor hours, this resulted in savings of $1.1M annually.