Voodoo RoboticsWarehouseWorkflow Lab
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Problem-solving guide

Packing cannot keep up with picking

Measure what packers actually do and whether uneven work, missing items, rework, or the station layout is creating the queue.

What to look for · What to measure · What to try this weekNot sure about a term? Open the plain-English glossary
Run the guided diagnostic
A simple example

Packers spend 18 of every 60 minutes finding missing items. Fixing how completed picks arrive at packing may add more output than another pack station.

01 · Check the complaint

Signs to confirm on the floor

  • Picked totes queue for pack
  • Pick-rate improvements do not improve ship rate
  • Pack overtime grows near cutoff
  • Packers spend time correcting upstream errors
02 · Possible causes

Check more than one possible cause

The first explanation may sound right and still be wrong. Use the measurements in the next section to separate these possibilities.

1

Upstream release floods the station

2

Order presentation is incomplete or disorganized

3

Carton/document rules add hidden work

4

Verification rejects and corrections dominate

5

Station layout creates reaching/search

03 · What to measure

Numbers that can change the decision

Pack seconds/order by order classTime packing separately for simple, multi-line, fragile, oversized, or special-document orders.
Queue age and depthCount orders waiting for packing and record the age of the oldest order.
Orders arriving complete on the first tryCalculate the share of orders arriving at packing with every item and required document present the first time.
Reasons work is rejected or needs correctionCount packing rejects and extra work by reason, such as missing item, wrong item, damage, carton, or paperwork.
Station availability and changeoverRecord time the station is ready to work and time lost changing supplies, labels, cartons, or order types.
04 · Possible fixes

Choose a fix only after the facts point to it

1

Throttle to sustainable pack capacity

Use this when: Queue peaks follow release peaks

2

Improve consolidation presentation

Use this when: Packers search or wait for missing work

3

Risk-based verification

Use this when: Every order receives costly redundant checks

05 · This week

A practical seven-day starting plan

  1. 01

    Time 50 consecutive pack cycles by element

  2. 02

    Group orders by size, mix, and special requirements

  3. 03

    Age the pack queue at 15-minute intervals

  4. 04

    Tag every upstream defect

  5. 05

    Test one balanced release or station change

Turn what you measured into a small test

The diagnostic compares practical options and shows which limits could change the answer.

Start the diagnostic