The Hidden “Expense Increaser”
If you manage a warehouse, you’re likely focused on labor costs, selection speed, and order accuracy. One hidden factor impacts all three– and most warehouses ignore it.
That factor is warehouse slotting. If you are not optimizing it, you’re bleeding money. Every Single Day.
Consider this: If you have 10 selectors picking 2000 cases daily and each case takes just 1 extra second, the inefficiency adds up fast:
- 20,000 extra seconds daily (2,000 x 10 selectors)
- That’s 5.5 extra labor hours per day (20,000 ÷ 3,600 seconds per hour).
My brother calls this “corporate math” (We’ll get into that in a later post!).
In this post, we will cover:
- What warehouse slotting is (in simple terms)
- How poor slotting impacts labor and efficiency
- Common mistakes that are slowing you down
What is Warehouse Slotting?
Warehousing slotting is often a hidden responsibility within job titles like Warehouse Manager, Continuous Improvement Manager, or Inventory Manager.
Whether the title is Slotting Coordinator, Slotting Optimization Analyst, or Continuous Improvement Manager, the responsibility is the same – ensuring inventory is positioned to maximize efficiency and safety.
At its core, warehouse slotting is the process of organizing products in the warehouse to facilitate employee safety, improve selection speed and increase efficiencies.
A properly slotted warehouse makes it safer, easier and faster for selectors to locate and retrieve items.
A poorly slotted warehouse leads to increased labor, frustrated workers, and increased expenses.
Slotting isn’t just about “putting things where they fit.” It’s about strategically placing items based on order frequency, size, weight, and pick paths.
How Bad Slotting Wastes Time and Money
Many warehouse managers assume that as long as inventory is on the shelves, the job is done. Bad slotting creates inefficiencies that add up fast.
The Cost of Poor Slotting:
- Increased shorts – Misplaced inventory means customers don’t get what they ordered.
- Increased replenishments – Greater chance of forks getting behind.
- Extra walking time – Unnecessary steps due to inefficient layouts.
- Slower picking speeds – Poor slotting creates aisle congestion and bottlenecks.
- Increased Fatigue & Injury Risk – Selectors bend, stretch, and lift more than necessary.
- Selection Errors – Similar items next to each other create confusion.
Each of these increase your expenses, increase employee turnover, and create operational headaches for your warehouse team.
3 Common Slotting Mistakes
Now that we know why slotting is important, let’s look at some common mistakes that kill efficiency.
- Keeping Fast-Moving Items in the Wrong Locations
- Your fast-movers should be easily accessible, in larger slots.
- FIX: Track order history and slot fast-movers in prime locations.
- Treating Slotting as a One-Time Task
- Many warehouses slot once and never adjust. Demand Changes!
- FIX: Audit slotting quarterly (minimum) and adjust for seasonal shifts and new items.
- Ignoring Ergonomics
- Unnecessary bending, climbing or reaching slows down the employees and increases the chances of an injury.
- FIX: Place faster moving items in the waist-to-shoulder zone for easy access.
The Bottom Line: Smart Slotting Saves Money
Warehouse slotting isn’t just an organizational tactic– it’s a profit strategy. If you’re not actively optimizing slotting, you’re leaving money on the table.
The good news? You don’t need a fancy system to get started. Even small slotting improvements can make a HUGE impact on efficiency.
What’s Next?
In upcoming posts, we’ll cover:
- How to audit your warehouse slotting
- Slotting best practices
- Improve selection speed without a WMS
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