Discussion:
Replenishing Locations/Stocking split case

Hello first time poster. This is a best parctices question for restocking picking locations. Our current practice is that we stock our products in two types of locations. Pick locations and overstock reserve locations. When a pick location needs to be restocked and alert is sent out and the restocker grabs a pallet from the reserve location. He then fills the pick location to its maximum quantity. This is where the question comes in. Some cases the pick location needing filled can take the whole pallet from the reserve location. In this case the restocker will make the pick location pallet have an even layer and then take the restock pallet, pallet and product, and place it in the pick location, thus leaving two pallets. The location has been filled however there are now two pallets. There is back in forth between my supervisors. One saying that it saves time to put the whole pallet in the pick location. The other states its a saftey issue and creates extra work to have to work around mutliple pallets in a location. Question, finally, would best practice be to stock the location full piece by piece and store the empty pallet after the restock or continue the current method of placing the whole pallet in the pick location leaving multiple pallets after the restock. These are in rack locations.

Your help and expertise from the forum greatly appreciate.

Thank you
  • Posted 12 Jun 2025 22:07
  • By Michael_Emch
  • joined 12 Jun'25 - 1 message
  • Ohio, United States
Warehouse Manager
Showing items 1 - 1 of 1 results.
In most warehouse operations - especially in rack pick locations - best practice is to keep one pallet per pick face whenever possible. The reasons are mainly:

Safety - Multiple pallets in a single location can force pickers to reach awkwardly, use unsafe footing, or maneuver equipment in tighter spaces. That increases injury risk and product damage.

Efficiency of picking - One clean, fully stocked pallet is quicker for pickers to work from than having to navigate around two separate pallets or partials.

Inventory control - Having product split across multiple pallets in the same location can cause mis-picks, counting errors, or confusion about which pallet to pull from.

That said, there are exceptions - for example, if your WMS can track sub-location inventory accurately and your racking is designed for double-pallet storage safely, then swapping in a full pallet can save restocking time. But that's more common in bulk or reserve storage, not active pick faces.

In most case-pick or split-case operations, the lean approach is:

Break down the reserve pallet into the pick location until it's full (piece by piece or layer by layer).

Store the empty pallet in the pallet return area or reuse it for the next task.

This keeps the pick face clean, safe, and consistent - and your replenisher's "extra" work is offset by fewer hazards, better picker flow, and fewer mis-picks.

If your supervisors are split, you might run a short time-and-motion trial comparing piece-fill + pallet return vs. full pallet swap with two pallets in the rack. That way you have data, not just opinions, to decide.
  • Posted 10 Aug 2025 14:55
  • By Asjad_Khan
  • joined 10 Aug'25 - 5 messages
  • United Arab Emirates

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