Warehouse receiving, often an overlooked aspect of supply chain management, is fundamental to all warehouse workflows. Errors during receiving have a severe ripple effect, causing inventory discrepancies, fulfillment delays, and damaged goods.
By maximizing efficiency and accuracy right at the receiving dock, warehouse operators can narrow the information gap between warehousing, production, and distribution.
In this article, we explore the common issues of traditional warehouse receiving – and how mobile data capture helps operators address them.
What is warehouse receiving: definition and key steps
Warehouse receiving is the process of accepting, inspecting, verifying, and documenting incoming goods delivered to a warehousing facility.
Let’s take a closer look at the key steps of receiving:
- Receiving and unloading: Warehouse workers meet the carrier at the designated receiving dock. They then begin unloading the items.
- Inspection and verification: The incoming goods are checked against the delivery documentation, such as Bills of Lading (BOLs). Workers perform quality checks, often via sampling, to detect damage or irregularities. Regulations typically prescribe inspections for perishable goods and other sensitive items. Damaged or incorrect items are set aside.
- Inventory counting and documentation: All received items are counted – manually for smaller shipments, in batches for standardized goods. The counts, and data such as lot numbers, are logged into the warehouse management (WMS) or enterprise resource planning (ERP) system for accurate traceability. The quality checks are documented, too.
- Putaway and storage: After they pass muster, the goods are transferred and stored in their designated warehouse locations, based on the nature of the item. Temperature-sensitive goods, for instance, go into cold storage.
Common challenges in warehouse receiving processes
The core objective of receiving is to efficiently and accurately unload, check, and store incoming inventory. In practice, it is enormously complex: Warehouse operators have to integrate a variety of systems and processes for the task.
This complexity surfaces in the following common challenges in warehouse receiving:
- Irregular deliveries (unexpected times, inaccurate quantities, varying quality)
- Seasonal peaks and dips in shipment volumes
- Complex returns processing
- Discrepancies between received goods and paper documentation
- Human error in manual counting and data entry
- Vaguely defined processes or checklists
Leveraging technology for advanced warehouse receiving: How to gain a competitive edge
All of these challenges stem from a lack of structure, inefficient data accumulation, and poor communication.
The good news is that they are solvable with a powerful, yet simple-to-use technology.
By integrating mobile barcode and document scanning, warehouse operators can achieve a seamless flow of information through all key steps in receiving.
Mobile barcode scanning
No dedicated hardware is needed to integrate accurate barcode scanning into warehouse receiving. Even ordinary smart devices can be turned into powerful barcode readers simply by downloading an app with barcode scanner software.
With a barcode system, warehouse operators can enhance receiving in several ways.
Upon arrival, warehouse workers scan barcodes on delivery documents or shipping labels, immediately retrieving the related purchase order and expected items from the WMS.
As shipments are unloaded, workers scan batch or item barcodes to confirm that the correct goods are being delivered – and in the correct quantities. Discrepancies are flagged instantly.
During putaway, goods are scanned again when they arrive at their designated spot in the warehouse, updating inventory levels and locations in real time.
All this enhances product traceability, saves time, and keeps inventory levels up to date.
Mobile document digitization
By integrating document scanning into their WMS app, warehouse operators can significantly streamline document processing during the receiving process, too.
Leveraging OCR engines, these solutions turn text from delivery notes, BOLs, packing slips, or invoices into machine-readable data that can be processed in the WMS or ERP system.
On the one hand, this minimizes the errors manual data entry is so prone to. On the other, it speeds up workflows, as the digital information can be retrieved and reviewed instantly from any authorized device.
Real-world insights: How Wolf System GmbH digitized their warehouse receiving processes
Wolf System GmbH, a leading expert in hall, container, and agricultural construction, significantly improved its operative efficiency, reduced errors, and accelerated the flow of construction materials thanks to a mobile data capture solution: the Scanbot Barcode Scanner SDK and Document Scanner SDK.
Previously, Wolf System GmbH faced all the common challenges of a largely manual warehouse receiving process:
- Time-consuming manual data entry: Employees had to type information from the delivery notes into the WMS.
- Delayed availability of goods: Slow manual processing meant goods weren’t immediately usable.
- Difficulties in tracking and tracing: Delayed inventory updates made it harder to know the exact status and location of incoming goods.
Consequently, workers often couldn’t use materials and products available in the warehouse for the task at hand. This cost them a lot of time, slowing down construction projects.
To improve warehouse management, the Wolf System GmbH team developed an internal ERP application. And thanks to Scanbot SDK, employees can now directly add incoming goods to the inventory system, record their locations, and automatically digitize delivery notes.
Scanbot SDK – your solution for mobile data capture in receiving
All Scanbot SDK solutions leverage on-device processing and run entirely offline. This ensures their functionality even in areas with network connectivity issues, such as warehouses.
Our fixed-price model lets you grow your operations with ease – you can reliably calculate the expenses with the flat annual fee.
To experience the performance of the Scanbot SDKs, try our free barcode scanner demo app and document scanner demo app. For more information, please contact our solution experts at sdk@scanbot.io.
