Amazon’s Distribution Centers
There was an interesting article in Sunday’s New York Times about Amazon.com and how it is moving beyond books and DVDs to become “an online general store.” The business aspect of it is interesting enough, but what really held my attention was the description of the company’s Phoenix, AZ, distribution center about midway through the article.
“Amazon says it stores dissimilar products next to each other on purpose, to minimize the possibility that employees select the wrong item. That seems unlikely: every product, shelving unit, forklift, roller cart and employee badge in these shipping centers has a bar code. Each physical move is orchestrated by software that calculates the most efficient path from shelf to the shipping area, telling employees on their wireless bar code readers which aisle and palette to go to next.”
The article goes on to talk about the quick inventory turns that Amazon, thanks to its huge volume, can undergo, saying the company “generally sells products within 65 days, before it has to pay suppliers for them.”
Although not really focused on material handling, the article is definitely worth a read.
Tags: best practices, conveyor, distribution, material handling
