Duration: 25:45
🧾 Analytical Summary
🚀 The Universal Warehouse Optimization Checklist
Antoan Lame, a supply chain expert at Odoo, opens with a relatable question: who needs a morning booster? Like coffee energizes our day, effective warehouse optimization energizes logistics operations. His mission: demonstrate that any warehouse can be optimized using the same three-point checklist, regardless of size or industry.
The presentation centers on optimizing the outbound process for a pre-configured database with multiple sales orders, walking through each optimization step systematically. The core message: standardized best practices, properly applied, transform warehouse performance.
✅ The Three-Point Outbound Checklist
1. Optimize the Picking Path: Ensure operators move efficiently through the warehouse without wasted steps.
2. Use the Right Picking Method: Select the appropriate strategy (single, batch, cluster, or wave picking) based on business needs.
3. Manage Transport Efficiently: Allocate docks, plan vehicle loads, and optimize delivery routes to minimize costs and time.
This checklist provides the structure for the entire demonstration.
🗺️ Point 1: Optimizing the Picking Path
The Warehouse Layout Challenge: Antoan presents a warehouse with four aisles (A, B, C, D), each containing different products. Multiple sales orders require picking from various locations, creating the classic question: what's the optimal path?
The Solution: For this layout, the optimal path moves down one side of an aisle and back up the other, repeating for each aisle. This eliminates backtracking and minimizes travel distance.
Implementation in Odoo: The key to translating this physical path into Odoo's system is understanding a critical principle: Odoo organizes locations in alphanumerical order. By naming locations following this logic (e.g., A01, A02, A05, A07, B03, C02, C06, C07, D05), you create a picking path that Odoo automatically follows.
When operators use the Barcode module, Odoo presents tasks in alphanumerical order, guiding them through the optimal path. The same logic applies to picking step screens—everything follows the configured location sequence, making path optimization a matter of proper setup rather than constant manual adjustment.
📦 Point 2: Understanding and Using Picking Methods
Before implementing picking strategies in Odoo, Antoan ensures everyone understands the fundamental picking methods using an accessible grocery shopping metaphor:
Single Picking: Shopping for yourself with your own shopping list. You pick products for one order at a time.
Batch Picking: Your mother calls and gives you her shopping list. Now you're picking for multiple orders simultaneously, grouping them together to improve efficiency.
Cluster Picking: You use two boxes in your trolley—one for your mother, one for yourself. As you pick, you sort products directly into the appropriate box for each order.
Wave Picking: You're shopping with your kids. You split the task—your son gets fruit, your daughter gets vegetables, and you handle bread. Each person completes their assigned portion simultaneously.
🌊 Applying Wave Picking to the Use Case
Antoan's database contains multiple sales orders with different carriers. Products fall into four categories, each stored in a specific aisle:
- Aisle A: Vegetables
- Aisle B: Refrigerated products
- Aisle C: Beverages
- Aisle D: Pastas
Given this structure, wave picking is optimal—splitting work by product category and assigning each category to a different operator.
Configuration in Odoo: Navigate to operation settings and enable automatic batches. Configure group waves by product categories, selecting vegetables, refrigerated, beverages, and pastas. Save the configuration.
Result: Confirming six sales orders generates 10 transfers (6 delivery orders) plus 4 automatic waves—one per product category. Each wave's description clearly indicates which product category it contains.
👥 Assigning Waves to Operators
Antoan assigns waves to specific operators:
- Antoan: Beverages wave
- Alice: Pastas wave
- Jill: Refrigerated products wave
- Rosali: Vegetables wave
Upon inspection, Rosali's wave contains very few products. Odoo 19 introduces the ability to merge waves—Antoan selects Alice's and Rosali's waves and merges them, creating a combined "Pastas & Vegetables" wave for Alice. This flexibility prevents operators from handling unnecessarily small batches.
📱 Picking with the Barcode Module
Opening the Barcode module reveals all transfers, with a Batches view showing the three active waves (after merging). Each wave displays its description, making it easy to identify.
Picking Process: Starting with the beverages wave, the Barcode module displays locations in the alphanumerical order configured earlier (C02, C06, C07, etc.). Operators follow this optimized sequence, scanning products at each location. The system validates after completing the wave.
The same process repeats for the merged pastas and vegetables wave—starting at A05, A07, then moving to aisle D. Finally, the refrigerated products wave is processed, with all products scanned systematically.
Outcome: Wave picking successfully split work among multiple operators, each following an optimized path. The warehouse completes picking efficiently.
🚚 Point 3: Managing Transport Efficiently
With products picked, the next stage is packing, but Antoan emphasizes starting transport management thinking earlier rather than later. Effective transport management requires addressing three critical elements:
1. Dock Allocation: Assign docks efficiently to avoid delays and congestion.
2. Load Planning: Ensure vehicle capacity matches the volume and weight of orders.
3. Route Optimization: Minimize distance, time, and fuel costs for deliveries.
🏢 Dock Allocation with Dispatch Management
Configuration: In operation settings, enable dispatch management. This unlocks critical functionality for dock assignment.
Antoan groups transfers by carrier to create two batches:
- Standard delivery orders
- Express delivery orders
The rationale: in his warehouse, express deliveries always use Dock A, while standard deliveries use Dock B.
Batch Processing: Opening the express delivery batch's dispatch interface, Antoan selects Dock A. Odoo immediately updates all destination locations for products in this batch to Dock A.
Odoo 19 Enhancement: Directly from the dispatch interface, Antoan can now pack products. Grouping by transfer, he selects stock move lines and uses "Put in Pack" to create packages for each transfer within the batch. This is significantly faster than navigating to individual transfers.
He repeats the process for the standard delivery batch, assigning it to Dock B and packing all products.
Auto-Batch Configuration: Before validating, Antoan configures automatic batching for the next step (outbound/delivery operation). He enables dispatch management automatic batches and sets batch grouping by source location (the dock). This ensures subsequent operations maintain dock-based organization.
Validating both batches creates two new batches for the outbound operation—automatically grouped by dock (A and B).
📐 Load Planning: Matching Vehicle Capacity
For each batch, Antoan must select the appropriate vehicle. He always prefers small trucks (lower cost) when possible.
Batch 1 (Dock A): Attempting to assign a small truck fails—volume exceeds capacity. He selects a large truck instead.
Batch 2 (Dock B): Same result—small truck insufficient, large truck required.
This demonstrates Odoo's automatic capacity checking—the system validates whether selected vehicles can handle the order volume and weight, preventing overloading errors.
🗺️ Route Optimization with the Map Interface
Odoo 19's Map Feature: Opening the map for the first batch displays the delivery route with stops in the order of the transfers. However, the default order isn't logical.
Manual Optimization: Antoan reorders stops to start in Mons, then proceed to Brussels. Adjusting the order in Brussels improves the sequence further. The map dynamically updates, showing the revised route. Users can open the route in Google Maps for turn-by-turn navigation.
Order Modification: Changing the map order automatically reorders the transfers in the batch—the delivery sequence now matches the optimized route.
Second Batch: This batch contains two deliveries to Liège—already optimally sequenced, requiring no changes.
Transfer Reassignment: Antoan notes that if a customer location doesn't fit logically in a batch (e.g., a Liège delivery in a batch heading elsewhere), you can remove transfers from one batch and add them to another, enabling fine-grained route optimization.
Final Validation: With routes optimized, truck drivers can now deliver efficiently. Antoan validates both batches, completing the outbound process.
💡 Key Takeaways and Q&A Insights
The Checklist Works Universally: Optimize picking paths with alphanumerical location naming, choose the right picking method (single, batch, cluster, or wave), and manage transport through dock allocation, load planning, and route optimization.
External Transport Companies: When using third-party transporters, leverage Odoo's standard API connectors or provide transport managers with Odoo access to collaborate on transport management.
Automating Order Picker Assignment: Not natively automated, but could potentially be achieved using AI prompts introduced in Odoo 19 for automation workflows.
Volume and Weight for Quotation Estimates: Delivery methods typically calculate cost based on weight and distance. Use estimated price on sales orders to quote customers upfront, or real cost to invoice actual transport expenses after delivery (based on actual packed weight).
Batch Delivery Orders: (Question unclear—follow up at inventory booth for specifics.)
Vehicle GPS Tracking: Odoo does not currently track vehicles in real-time via GPS. The map feature is for pre-delivery route planning and optimization by supply chain managers.
Transport Between Company Sites: Transport management features apply to customer deliveries, not internal transfers between warehouses or production sites.
Manual Route Reorganization: The map interface allows manual reordering of delivery stops, as demonstrated.
🎯 The Bottom Line: Boost Your Outbound Process
Whether you love morning coffee or not, the message is clear: boost your outbound process with this three-point checklist. It's applicable to any warehouse, any implementation. Remember:
- Optimize picking paths with alphanumerical location ordering
- Use the right picking method (single, batch, cluster, or wave)
- Manage transport efficiently (dock allocation, load planning, route optimization)
Apply this checklist in your warehouse or next implementation, and visit the Odoo Inventory Booth for specific questions and deeper dives.
🧠 Viewpoint: Odoo Perspective
⚠️ Disclaimer: AI-generated creative perspective inspired by Odoo's vision.
Antoan's presentation embodies our belief that complexity should never require complex solutions. The three-point checklist isn't revolutionary theory—it's operational reality distilled into actionable steps that work anywhere. The alphanumerical location ordering is elegant simplicity: work with the system's natural sorting logic rather than fighting it, and suddenly picking paths optimize themselves. Wave picking with automatic batching by product category shows how Odoo adapts to real warehouse constraints—aisles hold specific products, so dispatch operators accordingly. The dispatch management enhancements in Odoo 19—dock allocation, in-line packing, automatic batch propagation—aren't features for their own sake; they're responses to feedback from supply chain professionals who told us where friction existed. And the route optimization map? It's acknowledgment that logistics doesn't stop at the dock door. We're building Odoo to handle end-to-end logistics because that's the reality businesses face every day.
🏢 Viewpoint: Competitors (SAP / Microsoft / Others)
⚠️ Disclaimer: AI-generated fictional commentary. Not an official corporate statement.
Odoo's logistics demonstration covers fundamentals competently and shows meaningful progress in their warehouse management capabilities. The picking path optimization via alphanumerical location naming is straightforward but lacks the sophistication of dedicated WMS slotting algorithms that consider product velocity, seasonality, and dynamic reallocation. Wave picking by product category works for simple warehouses but doesn't address advanced strategies like multi-wave batch optimization, directed putaway, or replenishment wave triggering that high-volume distribution centers require. The dock allocation feature is useful for basic operations but lacks the appointment scheduling, cross-docking automation, and dock door utilization analytics that enterprise logistics demand. Load planning with vehicle capacity checks is essential but rudimentary—enterprises need 3D load optimization, mixed pallet configuration, weight distribution calculations, and integration with TMS systems for carrier selection and shipment consolidation. The map-based route optimization is visually appealing but manual—serious logistics operations use algorithmic route optimization with real-time traffic, delivery time windows, driver hours-of-service compliance, and dynamic rerouting. GPS tracking absence is a significant limitation for enterprise visibility requirements. Odoo is building competent SMB logistics capabilities, but calling this "end-to-end logistics" overlooks the complexity that enterprise supply chains navigate daily with specialized WMS, TMS, and YMS platforms.
Disclaimer: This article contains AI-generated summaries and fictionalized commentaries for illustrative purposes. Viewpoints labeled as "Odoo Perspective" or "Competitors" are simulated and do not represent any real statements or positions. All product names and trademarks belong to their respective owners.