System Configuration

Once ProTrack Warehouse has been configured to import data, configuring other key elements in the system comes next. Some of this is required, and some of it may remain optional until standards have been configured and productivity data is flowing through ProTrack *Warehouse. The required configuration is listed below:

The items listed above (facilities, activities, schedules, and employees) can also be imported via flat file, rather than entered manually through the application.

Zones, Micro-zones, Activity Group, Tasking Group, and Shift

After completing the above configuration, these additional reporting elements can optionally be configured. These are used as additional reporting groups, providing added flexibility when reporting on various combinations of activities in your operation.

Zones and Micro-Zones
These are elements which can be passed via WMS file import which represent where the Activity was physically performed in the facility. Additionally Zones and Micro-Zones may be used for more granular reporting. There is no direct relationship between a Zone and a Micro-Zone.

Activity Groups and Tasking Groups
These are hierarchical groupings which provide you with the ability to group activities together for reporting purposes. An Activity Group is a group of Activities, and a Tasking Group is a group of Activity Group. Each Activity may only belong to one Activity Group; each Activity Group may only belong to one Tasking Group.

Shift
A Shift is simply a group of schedules. Shifts are often used in ProTrack Warehouse to group schedules that start around the same time. For example a single Shift may contain three Schedules, which have associates on staggered start times (differing by perhaps 30 minutes).

Warehouse Mapping (XYZs)

ProTrack Warehouse is capable of calculating the discrete travel routes taken by associates as they work in an assignment. This is achieved by mapping the various places an associate travels to within ProTrack Warehouse application. The system utilizes a precise coordinate system to assign each location an (x,y) coordinate. We then define the passable travel paths, on which the locations are associated.

For activities using dynamic travel calculations, every point in the warehouse to which an associate travels should be mapped within ProTrack Warehouse. These points include rack slot locations, dock drop locations, order pickup desks, or any other places that an activity requires the associate to travel to.

The process of configuration of XYZs involves importing several types of elements, as defined below:

Import Floors
Import Aisle Paths and Travel Paths
Generate Node
Import Segments
Import Locations
Generate cache

Floors
A Floor ProTrack Warehouse is simply the building’s floor level (e.g. “first floor”, “second floor”, etc).

Aisle Paths & Travel Paths These are the defined paths on which associates can travel around the building. These are simply lines having start and end points which intersect to create the map on which travel is permitted. Travel Paths differ from Aisle Paths in that they serve the special purpose of interconnecting floors.

Nodes are generated at each intersection and end point of Aisle and Travel Paths. These are used ProTrack Warehouse dynamic travel calculation engine.

Segments represent the physical racking in which locations reside. Segments are built relative to Aisle Paths, and create a nice visual view of the warehouse rack configuration when viewing the Facility Layout viewer in ProTrack Warehouse. All locations, even miscellaneous drop points, must be configured inside a Segment.

Locations & Levels Locations are imported last and represent the various places an associate travels. Locations are specified as (x,y) coordinates. Levels are the various z heights within each location. A four-shelf rack with levels labeled as letters would typically have 5 levels: floor level (A), 1st shelf (B), 2nd shelf (C), 3rd shelf (D), and 4th shelf (E).

Caches (Node & Location) – ProTrack Warehouse utilizes two types of caching techniques in order to improve optimal travel route determination while calculating standard times. Node caching stores optimal routes between every pair of nodes on a floor and is a required process before standard calculation can take place. Location caching stores optimal routes between pairs of locations and is typically built and grows “on-the-fly” as WMS data is being processed in the system. Location cache is not required, but is merely a performance optimization.

Equipment
In order to utilize ProTrack Warehouse's dynamic travel route calculation functionality, a specific type of equipment must be configured in the system. This is used to determine how fast an associate can travel along the optimal route. ProTrack Warehouse utilizes the concept of “speed breaks”, which allows you to configure different speeds for different distance ranges. This is based on the simple idea that an associate can accelerate to a higher speed when going further.

Standard
Once the elements we’ve covered are all in place, you can now configure standards for the on-standard activities in your operation. This involves configuring “Selectors” in ProTrack Warehouse, which select a specific standard based on the assignment’s Activity ID, and optionally some other field value. An individual standard has one or more “determinants” associated to it, which each contribute some portion of standard time to the total allotted time for the assignment. For example, an activity ID of PICKCASE-ZONE1, may trigger a generic standard called “PickCase”, which has 3 determinants associated to it: “time per case”, “time per slot”, and “time per pick batch”. Also, one of the specific Equipment types configured in the previous section may be associated to a standard to provide dynamic travel calculations.

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System Configuration