Cutting Picking Errors by 40% for a Leeds Distribution Centre

Leeds, West Yorkshire · Distribution

Results:

• 40% reduction in picking errors
• Weekly reconciliation cut from 8 hours to 3
• Measurable results in 6 weeks
• Zero new headcount

The business

A regional distribution centre in Leeds with 20 warehouse staff, running a high-volume picking operation across multiple product categories with varying shelf lives.

The problem

Picking errors were damaging customer relationships and driving up cost. Weekly inventory reconciliation consumed eight hours of management time. Staff turnover meant standard procedures were ignored, shift handovers were chaotic, and the warehouse layout had grown organically with no logical structure.

The intervention

We started with a complete warehouse map — every square metre, shelf and product location documented and analysed. That revealed the root causes of the errors.

Physical layout redesign

We reorganised the warehouse around actual product-movement data. High-velocity items moved to the most accessible locations, workstations were redesigned for better ergonomics, and average pick-path distance dropped significantly.

Product segmentation and prioritisation

Products were segmented by velocity, size, shelf life and batch characteristics, with a clear prioritisation system so pickers no longer made ad-hoc decisions about what to pick next.

A lightweight scanning system

We deployed a deliberately simple scanning system that enforces the correct picking sequence and controls allocation by batch number and Best-Before-End date. It tells the picker where to go, what to pick and in what order — no complex menus, just compliance with the optimised process. This removed the most common source of errors: human decision-making under time pressure.

Continuous stock verification

A verification module is built into the daily workflow. Each day the system flags a few random locations for pickers to confirm during their normal shift. Discrepancies are caught and corrected on the spot, preventing small errors from compounding into the old eight-hour reconciliations. The warehouse stays in good condition continuously, not just at audit time.

Why it worked

We did not start with technology; we started with the physical reality of the warehouse. Only then did we add technology to enforce the new process. The team adopted the changes because the new system made their daily work easier and more predictable.

"Kamil found the leaks we knew existed but could not pinpoint. The changes stuck because they came from the team, not from a manual."