Warehousing and storage for fast-moving brands

Answer: A fulfilment center, sometimes shortened to FC, can house a single customer’s inventory or many customers’ inventory. This is different from the traditional warehouse store which houses only company-owned inventory. To lower shipping time and costs, a fulfilment company will outsource its orders to a fulfilment centre so that they can usually pick up their products more locally rather than hauling them across the country for pickup at an origin facility.

A fulfilment centre is a modern warehouse that typically employs automation and workers to handle the picking, packing, dispatching and shipping of customer orders. In contrast to a traditional warehouse which will employ staff only for the storage of products, a fulfilment centre worker may be executing picking tasks from anywhere on site with wireless handheld computers. They may have even been replaced by automated pick-to-light technology. Companies using fulfilment centres must make their items available in advance so they can be processed efficiently.

Answer: Fulfilment is, in this context, the act of fulfilling orders or order processing. Fulfilment doesn’t refer to the actual shipment or delivery of goods as there are other professionals who handle that. Fulfilment simply means that the warehouse has fulfilled the request by pulling all items needed for an order and packing them together properly. From here they can be shipped or delivered depending on the seller and their preferences.

Fulfilment providers may also perform other tasks such as inventory control and hazardous material clean-up. In addition, fulfilment centers often have a packaging lab where materials are prepared for shipment to reduce transportation costs and environmental impact. Order processing is one of the most important functions in any warehouse because it ensures there’s enough inventory on hand whilst also eliminating back-orders, ensuring customer needs are met quickly. It’s therefore no surprise that warehousing and fulfilment can increase efficiency for companies and eCommerce businesses.

Answer: A fulfilment centre is where orders are prepared and organised for shipment. For the most part, it’s like an assembly line. Workers gather orders from a warehouse of merchandise then pack them, identify any problems with the order, then take it to someone who labels the package for shipping. It’s important that workers make sure they follow procedures closely to ensure optimal efficiency.

Most of what you see from an online retailer’s eCommerce platform is fulfilled by one or more fulfilment centres. These centres act as the destination for online orders. Fulfilment centres store and organise goods, provide product selection options to customers, pick orders based on predetermined criteria, consolidate orders shipped into one trip, process returns and order cancellation requests, and deal with packages that may be damaged during delivery. Order fulfilment centres are typically used by any eCommerce business who cannot use a warehouse alone to sell their products.

Answer: We offer inventory management and control services via our cloud-based ControlPort software. The primary function of the inventory management services we offer is to work closely with our fulfilment centre to monitor inventory levels and conduct product searches for goods ordered by customers. We also offer additional features, such as storage management, warehousing management, and customer relations tasks. Ultimately we can save you a lot of time and money on various daily operating costs.

Our inventory control services can provide your business with order fulfilment and shipping optimisation. The inventory service ensures compliant stock quantities, correct pricing, and that bulk orders are prioritised properly according to company needs. This will also help gain more point-of-sale information.

Orders are monitored through the ControlPort dashboard that is auto populated with anything ordered from suppliers. This helps to pinpoint where shortages are occurring in an effort to reduce excess inventory. Plus,it can also accommodate expediting orders to keep up with demand while maintaining the highest level of customer satisfaction possible.

Inventory control allows us to maintain complete product knowledge and enables forecasting. Accurate forecasting will allow you to determine your future stock needs based on current trends and customer buying patterns, which can then help guide inventory actions going forward. It’s important that this is as accurate as possible because a large number of suppliers may not produce exactly the same product, meaning that errors can happen if an exact match isn’t found.

Answer: Companies that utilise order fulfilment services save both time and manpower. When a company stocks and ships products, they are spending money on labour, storage space and equipment. Implementing an order fulfilment service allows the manufacturer to focus all their energies on manufacturing products and growing their business – not handling orders. For end customers, this delivery service also saves time as they don’t have to fight the crowds at the store for those “must-have” products.

Order fulfilment services can be as simple as an automated or manual system where a retailer’s goods are sent from a manufacturer’s warehouse into a customer’s physical address of choice. Alternatively it can be an eCommerce platform that handles shipping via a fulfilment centre. Either way, fulfilment services enable easier end-to-end process management. Many steps in the process are automated, including shipping pricing calculations, tracking numbers, automation of returns and exchanges, and product warranties. Not only does this save the company time, money and resources, but it reduces the overall cost for the end customers too as they are not paying for these services. For this reason, order fulfilment services are good for both small and large businesses because they help deliver excellent customer service.

Answer: There are three main significant inventory management problems you have to be mindful of. The first is financial problems, namely excess inventory upfront costs. The second is operational problems. If not monitored carefully, order fulfilment time can be significantly longer than projected because of incorrect or outdated data. There may also be inefficiencies that could include overproduction and lost revenue when extra items are produced in error or when an item has been discontinued before it’s actually sold. Thirdly, the final significant problem comes in the form of customer service. It’s likely that you may face returns due to quality dissatisfaction, damage during shipment or production defects. Having strong inventory management can lower the frequency of these problems significantly. However, you must always be actively working to mitigate these. Order fulfilment services are the perfect solution to these problems as they are largely dealt with for you.