When to Use Sort & Seg Receiving

Guidance on when to use the Sort & Seg receiving option and recommended processes.

IN THIS TOPIC

• When to Use Sort & Seg
• Recommended Process for Sort & Seg Receiving

Sort & Seg provides an option within mobile receiving for multiple users to sort loose goods prior to entry on an Inbound in Flexe. Once sorted, or as full pallets are ready, goods can be received on the inbound in Flexe. If an inbound does not need sortation, Sort & Seg can be bypassed and Standard Receiving used instead.

Using Sort & Seg Receiving

If the Sort & Seg feature is enabled, within the Receiving App you have the option per inbound to use the Sort & Seg or Standard Receiving flow. Below are examples of when it will benefit your operation to use Sort & Seg, or if Standard Receiving should be used instead.

When to Use Sort & Seg

Sort & Seg is recommended for:

1. Multi-SKU floor loaded inbounds that are not pre-sorted and where the majority of SKUs are not easy to distinguish visually.

Standard Receiving is recommended for:

1. Single-sku inbounds
   • No sortation required 
2. Multi-sku inbounds where the majority of SKUs are easily visually distinguishable
   • For example, a home goods company inbounds a container of charcoal and light fixtures. Both SKUs come in sellable packaging(ship-as-is), with pictures and large text easily informing operators what is inside. These SKUs can be sorted manually, without the help of the Sort & Seg option.
3. Multi-sku inbounds (palletized or floor loaded) which are pre-sorted prior to loading.
   • For example, a food manufacturer who loads their products according to what sequentially comes off the line.

Recommended Process for Sort & Seg Receiving

We highly recommend operators follow the below process guidelines when using the Sort & Seg option. This process will optimize operations and provide the most benefits when receiving the recommended inbounds recommended for Sort & Seg.

Recommended Process 

• Utilize conveyance to quickly transport the cases from the container/trailer to the dock.
  • This can be a low-cost, manual, portable conveyor or a powered one, depending on operator preference and existing availability.
• Assign 1-2 associates to act as “lumpers” moving product from inside the container to the conveyor, then pushing it down toward the dock.
  • These can be temps or 4th party lumpers, as use of a Flexe device is not required.
• Assign 1-2 associates to sort the product by SKU in the dock area. Scanning and moving product to pallets in their respective Pre-Sort Areas.
  • These should be 3PL employees or 3PL contracted temps, as use of a Flexe device is required.

Compared to sorting from inside the container this process: 

• Increases your pallet build capacity from 1 to multiple at one time
• Decreases carton handling to 2 touch points
• Increases the ability to social distance
• Increases accountability through visibility
• Accommodates temp / lumper usage

We do not recommend the following processes:

1. Sortation inside the container / trailer:
   • Lowers productivity
   • Does not provide adequate space to build out the required Sort & Seg pre-sort areas.
   • EHS conditions inside the container(extreme temperatures, darkness, cramped space, etc.) decreases accuracy and increases difficulty.
2. Associates lumping product, sorting, then returning to the container to do so again:
   • Lowers productivity
   • Increases exhaustion due to extra travel time