Is Your Warehouse Helping You Scale — Or Holding You Back?

By sudarsh@delium.io | Published on 15 July 2025

In the world of inventory-heavy businesses, the way your warehouse functions can either be a silent strength or a constant source of frustration. Time lost in tracking down misplaced inventory or redoing inefficient putaways doesn’t just slow you down — it chips away at profitability and customer satisfaction.

The secret to a warehouse that runs like a well-oiled machine? A dynamic, logic-based flow-through and putaway strategy, powered by a smart Warehouse Management System (WMS). It’s not just about storage — it’s about storage with purpose.

🔄 Smarter Flow, Smarter Fulfillment: The Role of Picking Strategy

Your team shouldn’t be wandering through aisles guessing where to go next. A well-structured picking strategy eliminates guesswork and optimizes every step of the picking process.

This is where location prioritization comes in.

Each item can be assigned a strategy number linked to a tiered list of location groups (or classes). These are ranked by importance, directing the system to check the most logical places first. For example, for high-frequency sellers (your fast movers), the system would:

  • Priority 1: Start with Picking Locations – These are the easiest to access and should always be the first stop.
  • Priority 2: Then check Bulk/Overstock Locations – Used only when the primary spot runs dry.

This layered approach keeps the process efficient and ensures your pickers aren’t trekking to distant bulk zones unnecessarily when inventory is right under their noses.

📦 Mastering the Art of Putaway

Putaway is more than just slotting stock into any available space. An intelligent putaway strategy brings consistency and speed by automatically directing stock to the right place — based on your workflow.

There are two main approaches, depending on how you handle replenishment:

Scenario A: Replenishment-First Strategy

If your warehouse has a planned replenishment cycle, you want to prioritize back storage first. This keeps your pick face lean and clutter-free, reserved only for active fulfillment. The WMS monitors levels continuously, and when stock in the pick face drops below a set threshold, a background task kicks in to replenish it — fast and seamless.

Putaway Priority Example:

  • Bulk Storage Zones
  • Pick Face Locations

Scenario B: Pick-First Strategy

If you don’t have an active replenishment model, flip the logic. Fill the pick face locations first, ensuring that inventory is immediately available for sales. Any overflow gets routed to secondary storage.

Putaway Priority Example:

  • Pick Face Locations
  • Overflow or Back Storage

🧠 Why Strategy Numbers Matter

In a robust WMS, both picking and putaway strategies are managed through dedicated database tables. Each SKU can be assigned a strategy number — which means the logic guiding your warehouse isn’t hard-coded; it’s adaptable.

This makes it possible to:

  • Optimize strategies per product category or velocity
  • Adjust priorities during peak seasons or promotions
  • Streamline onboarding for new warehouses or expansion zones

🚀 The Bottom Line

Your warehouse should be a growth enabler — not a bottleneck. With the right mix of smart logic, dynamic rules, and WMS automation, you gain precision, speed, and flexibility in your daily operations.

So, ask yourself:

Is your warehouse setup enabling you to deliver faster, smarter, and at scale?
Or is it silently leaking time, energy, and money?