Aisle:

A corridor between racks or blocks of inventory.

 

Ambient Area:

A warehouse maintained at normal room temperature (≤ 32°C) and relative humidity (≤ 80%).

 

APS (Advanced Planning and Scheduling):

A subcomponent of supply chain planning, typically related to manufacturing planning and scheduling.

 

B2B (Business-to-Business):

An e-commerce term for communications between companies and their suppliers.

 

B2C (Business-to-Consumer):

An e-commerce term for communications between companies and their customers.

 

Barge:

A flat-bottomed vessel towed or pushed by another craft for transporting freight in rivers.

 

Batch Picking (Batch Selection):

A method of order selection in which several orders for different customers are picked together. Multiple selectors typically work simultaneously in different sections of the facility to pick the batch.

 

Bill of Lading:

A document issued by a carrier that records the receipt of goods for shipment and the contract terms. It is not an invoice.

 

Block Stack:

Goods on a pallet stacked up one by one without racks.

 

Break-Bulk:

The separation of a consolidated bulk load into smaller individual shipments.

 

Cargo:

The freight carried by a ship, aircraft, truck, or other vessel or vehicle.

 

Cart:

A manually pushed or pulled platform with a handle and four wheels used to move merchandise within a facility.

 

Case Cube:

The cubic size (usually in cubic feet) of a case, computed by multiplying the length, width, and height of the case (L x W x H).

 

Case Lot:

A complete, unopened case of goods. It also refers to a group of cases of goods purchased at one price, instead of being priced by the case.

 

Case Pack:

The number of selling units in a shipping case.

 

Consolidation:

The act of assembling less-than-truckload (LTL) shipments into truckload (TL) shipments.

 

Cross Docking:

Product designated for certain customers before or at the time of delivery, taken directly from the inbound dock to the outbound dock without adding the received quantity into inventory.

 

Customs Duties:

Taxes collected by states upon imports to their territory.

 

Date Code:

A code attached to merchandise indicating when it was packaged, placed on display, should be removed from display, or should be used, facilitating rotation and preventing the sale of off-quality items.

 

Deadhead:

A truck returning empty to the distribution center.

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Dedicated Carriage:

A third-party service that dedicates equipment and drivers to a single customer for exclusive use.

 

Detention Charge:

A penalty charge against shippers or receivers for delaying trucks beyond an allotted time.

 

Devanning:

The process of unloading goods from a container.

 

Distribution:

The movement of products from where they are made to where they are used, encompassing manufacturing, wholesaling, retailing, and consuming.

 

Dock:

A collection of dock doors where trucks are loaded or unloaded.

 

Documentary Credit:

Documents used between buyers and sellers and their respective banks to support payment and transfer title for goods shipped, such as letters of credit (LOC or L/C), bank guarantees, or forwarder cargo receipts (FCR).

 

Double-Deep Storage:

A storage location with pallets placed two deep into a rack or floor slot.

 

EDI (Electronic Data Interchange):

A computer system enabling companies to communicate electronically using Uniform Communications Standards for order entry, invoices, and correspondence, eliminating the need for typewritten documents.

 

Electronic Ordering:

Ordering merchandise from suppliers through a computer hookup.

 

4PL (Fourth Party Logistics):

Supply chain coordination and management by an entity that does not supply the underlying logistical services.

 

FCL (Full-Container Load):

A container load consisting entirely of merchandise from one customer.

 

FIFO (First-In, First-Out):

A method of stocking and selling merchandise where the oldest stock is sold first to ensure quality and freshness, often guided by code-dating.

 

FOB Destination:

Title passes at destination; the seller has total responsibility until shipment is delivered.

 

FOB Origin:

Title passes at origin; the buyer has total responsibility over the goods during shipment.

 

Forklift:

A mechanical device used to transport pallet loads to or from storage.

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Handling Costs:

The costs involved in moving, transferring, preparing, and otherwise handling inventory.

 

Hazardous Class:

Indicates whether a product is hazardous or a source of danger, preventing non-hazardous products from being mixed with hazardous products.

 

Inner Pack:

A unit that is a multiple of a storage case, typically shrink-wrapped or bundled quantities of retail units within a case.

 

Integrated Logistics:

A comprehensive supply chain viewed as a single process, from raw materials supply to finished goods distribution.

 

Inventory:

All stock on hand at any given time, either visibly displayed or in stockrooms and other secured areas. Also refers to compiling an itemized list of such items.

 

Kitting:

Light assembly of components or parts into defined units.

 

Label:

A pressure-sensitive, adhesive-backed paper containing product, pricing, and other information affixed to cases or pallets to identify and track them through the distribution process.

 

LCL (Less-Than-Container Load):

A quantity of freight less than that required for a container load rate.

 

Lead Time:

The total time from receipt of a store order to the scheduled delivery time of the product at the store.

 

LIFO (Last-In, First-Out):

A method of stocking and selling merchandise where the newest goods are sold first to ensure quality and freshness.

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Loading:

The process of moving goods up or down the container or carrier.

 

Lot Number:

A number used to track production where units are produced in a batch.

 

Multi-Modal Transportation:

Goods delivery involving more than one type of transportation vehicle.

 

Optimization:

The process of making something as effective as possible with given resources and constraints.

 

Order Picking:

A basic operating function of any distribution center, involving selecting products from warehouse inventory to fill retail store orders.

 

Order Tracking:

Monitoring and recording the status of orders throughout the process.

 

Out-Of-Stock:

Products not available in a warehouse or store, expressed as detailed items of an order that cannot be filled.

 

Packaging:

The wrapping, dunnage, or container in which something is packed for storage or shipment.

 

Pallet:

A wooden platform used for stacking unit loads of merchandise. The standard size is 40″ x 48″.

 

Pallet Cube:

The amount of cubic feet of product allowed to be shipped or stored on a pallet.

 

Pallet Facings:

The side of the pallet facing the aisle from which stock is picked or handled by a forklift.

 

Pallet Jack:

A handling machine that can move unit loads, designed to accommodate one or two pallets per trip.

 

Palletizing:

The process of loading and securing products on pallets.

 

Pick & Pack:

The process of picking product from inventory and packing it into shipment containers.

 

Pick Label:

A document used for selection that is applied to the product.

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Pick List:

An itemized list of products used in order selection.

 

POD (Proof of Delivery):

Information supplied by the carrier containing detailed shipment information.

 

POS (Point of Sales):

The retail locations where sales transactions occur.

 

Prepaid:

A freight term indicating charges are to be paid by the shipper.

 

Product ID:

A unique code identifying a specific product.

 

Rack:

A structure used for the optimal storage of palletized loads. A drive-in rack has horizontal beams running perpendicular to the aisle, while a drive-through rack can be driven through.

 

Rack Bay:

A section of rack separated by the upright supports, usually two pallets in width.

 

Reach Truck:

A mechanical device used to transport pallet loads to or from storage.

 

Reefer:

Refrigeration equipment for transporting frozen or perishable products.

 

Re-packing:

Unwrapping and repacking goods in a required way.

 

Replenishment:

Moving inventory from reserve storage to active picking slots below.

 

RF Unit:

A radio frequency communications device mounted on a forklift, carried, or worn by a selector.

 

Scan Gun:

A device used with an RF unit or terminal to scan (read) barcodes.

 

Seal:

A small metal or plastic strip and lead fastener used for locking totes, freight car, or truck doors, numbered for record purposes.

 

Selection Line:

The arrangement of warehouse inventory in an orderly system to facilitate selecting (picking) units to fill orders.

 

Staging Area:

A space on the receiving and shipping docks used to gather and check inbound and outbound loads.

 

Standard Pallet Rack:

A one-deep, self-style rack originally designed for pallets but also used for shelf storage of large units. Racks may be fixed or adjustable and are secured to the floor or positioned back to back.

 

Stretch Pallet Wrap:

Bands of plastic film applied by an associate to encase palletized loads prior to shipment, with varying bands depending on the merchandise's fragility or shape.

 

3PL (Third Party Logistics Service Provider):

A company that provides logistics-related services previously performed in-house by the client.

 

Tracking and Tracing:

Monitoring and recording shipment movements from origin to destination.

 

Transit Time:

The total time elapsed between a shipment’s pickup and delivery.

 

Transshipment:

The transfer of cargo from one conveyance to another.

 

Truckload Carriers (TL):

Trucking companies that move full truckloads of freight directly from the point of origin to the destination.

 

Turret Truck:

A type of lift truck with a long wheelbase that stabilizes it when heavy loads are lifted to high levels. It can lift and rotate loads left or right and move loads sideways for storing and retrieving merchandise in pallet racks.

 

Unit Cost:

The cost associated with a single unit of product.

 

Unloading:

The process of moving goods out of the vehicle or container.

 

UOM (Unit Of Measurement):

A predefined and mutually agreed unit of measurement.

 

UPC (Universal Product Code):

A computer code identifying a product. An electronic scanner reads the code and sends the information to a central computer, also known as a barcode.

 

U-Pick Selection (Perimeter, Horseshoe, or Quad Selection):

A picking pattern where selectors move up one side of the aisle and down the other, returning to the starting point.

 

Warehouse:

A physical facility primarily used for storing merchandise.

 

WMS (Warehouse Management System):

A software application managing the operations of a warehouse or distribution center