S3CO Warehouse and Warehousing Technology Glossary

Method used to stratify or categorize inventory into groups or sections based upon certain activity, request, or use characteristics. Examples of ABC stratifications would include ABC by order velocity (# of times item has been sold), ABC by sales volume, ABC by quantity sold / consumed, ABC by average inventory investment, ABC by margin, etc.

ABC stratifications are used to develop inventory planning policies, set count frequencies for cycle counting, slot inventory for optimized order picking, and other inventory management activities in an ICS. ABC codes are typically set by item.

Refers to the status of inventory as it relates to its ability to be sold or consumed. Availability calculations are used to determine this status. An example of an availability calculation would be:

[Quantity Available] = [Quantity On Hand] -[ Quantity On Hold] - [Quantity Allocated To Sales Orders] - [Quantity Allocated to Production Orders]

1. (v) to make a copy of a file or program for the purpose of restoring the data if the masters were to be lost, damaged, or otherwise unavailable for use.

2. (n) a copy of a master file or program. To be most effective from a security standpoint, backup files are frequently stored at off-site locations.

The amount of data that can be moved through a particular network interface in a given period of time, typically measured in megabits per second (Mbps).  For example, a regular Ethernet line has a bandwidth of 10 Mbps (10 million bits per second).  Note that bandwidth is sometimes measured as the bandwidth in one direction (half-duplex), and sometimes as the total in both directions (full-duplex). 

A test for a computer-related product prior to commercial release.  Beta testing is the last stage of testing and normally can involve sending the product to beta test sites (clients) outside the company for real-world exposure and feature enhancements.  Beta test sites typically benefit from their early exposure to new versions and their influence surrounding additional feature requests specifically targeting their operating environment - they receive the benefits of designing their own software without having to build it themselves.  Beta testing is often preceded by a round of testing called alpha testing.

1. The components that make up a computer system (which model and what peripherals)

2. The physical arrangement of those components (what is placed where)

3. The software settings of an application

The process of extracting data from an operational data source, transforming the data which can include cleansing, aggregation, summarization, integration, as well as transformation (e.g. 1 becomes “Male” 2 becomes “Female”), and loading the data into another database (e.g. ODS, enterprise data warehouse, data mart).  ETL can also refer to vendor software that performs these processes.

ETL processes extract data from source databases and copy it to target databases.  ETL can migrate data between databases, process data to form data marts and data warehouses, and convert data or databases from one format or type to another.

Designed for nickel-based battery, fast charging fills a battery pack in about one hour. Fast charging is preferred because of reduced crystalline formation (memory). Accurate full-charge detection is important. When full, the charger switches to topping and then trickle charge. Fast chargers are used for industrial devices such as two-way radios, power tools, forklifts, and computers.

Method for quickly recharging lift truck batteries on the vehicle during short periods where the vehicle is not being used (lunches, breaks, shift changes, etc). This process for "opportunity charging" eliminates the need to change batteries in multi-shift operations. 

Whether orders are received and released consistently or released from a blanket purchase order, this metric measures the percentage of ship-from-stock orders shipped within 24 hours of order "release." Make-to-stock schedules attempt to time the availability of finished goods to match forecasted customer orders or releases. Orders that were not shipped within 24 hours due to consolidation but were available for shipment within 24 hours are reported separately. In calculating elapsed time for order fill rates, the interval begins at ship release and ends when material is consigned for shipment.

Calculation: [Number of orders filled from stock shipped within 24 hours or order release] / [Total number of stock orders] The same concept of fill rates can be applied to order lines and individual products to provide statistics on percentage of lines shipped completely and percentage of products shipped completely.

An integrated package of software and hardware used in warehouse operations, and elsewhere, to monitor the quantity, location, and status of inventory. Additionally, shipping, receiving, picking, and putaway processes are also managed by inventory control systems. Modern inventory control systems rely upon barcodes, and potentially RFID tags, to provide automatic identification of inventory objects. To record an inventory transaction, the system uses a barcode scanner or RFID reader to automatically identify the inventory object, and then collects additional information from operators via fixed terminals or mobile computers.

An inventory control system may be used to automate a sales order fulfillment process. Such a system contains a list of order to be filled, and then prompts workers to pick the necessary items, and provides them with packaging and shipping information. Real-time inventory control systems use wireless, mobile terminals to record inventory transactions at the moment they occur utilizing a wireless LAN to transmit transaction information to a central administration point. Also typically includes physical inventory counting and cycle-counting features.

Internet Protocol - IP is the basic language of the Internet; it is a data packet-based (datagram) protocol for delivering data across networks. The IP datagram consists of an IP header followed by a message.  Most networks combine IP with a higher- level protocol called Transport Control Protocol (TCP), which establishes a virtual connection between a destination and a source. 

Key Performance Indicators (KPI) are financial and non-financial metrics (measurements) used to quantify objectives to reflect the strategic performance of a process or entity. A KPI is used to assess the present state of business and to prescribe the course of action. They help an organization measure progress towards their organizational goals.

A KPI is a key part of a measurable objective, which is made up of a direction, target and timeframe. For example, in 'Increase Average Revenue per Customer from $100 to $500 by December 2007', 'Average Revenue Per Customer' is the KPI.

Local Area Network, a typically IP-based network of machines capable of digital communication within an enclosed area such as an office, a home, or a small workgroup of computers. LAN also refers to the private portion of a network inside of a firewall, which may connect a LAN to the Internet, a WAN, or another LAN. 

LANs are further broken down into wired and wireless LANs.  Wired LANs use Ethernet cabling to connect network devices via network equipment, such as hubs, switches, and routers.  Wireless LANs (802.11X) use radio frequencies to connect wireless network devices to wired LANs or other wireless devices via a Wireless Access Point (WAP).

Metropolitan Area Networks (Metro Area Network) are large computer networks usually spanning a campus or a city. They typically use wireless infrastructure or optical fiber connections to link their sites. For instance a university or college may have a MAN that joins together many of their local area networks (LANs) situated around site of a fraction of a square kilometer. Then from their MAN they could have several wide area network (WAN) links to other universities or the Internet.

Some technologies used for this purpose are ATM, FDDI, and SMDS. These technologies are in the process of being displaced by Ethernet-based MANs (e.g. Metro Ethernet) in most areas. MAN links between LANs have traditionally been built without cables using microwave, radio, or infrared free-space optical communication links.

Also known as purchase cost or set up cost, order cost is the sum of the fixed costs that are incurred each time an item is ordered. These costs are not associated with the quantity ordered but primarily with physical activities required to process the order. For purchased items, these would include the cost to enter the purchase order and/or requisition, any approval steps, the cost to process the receipt, incoming inspection, invoice processing and vendor payment, and in some cases a portion of the inbound freight may also be included in order cost.

In manufacturing, the order cost would include the time to initiate the work order, time associated with picking and issuing components excluding time associated with counting and handling specific quantities, all production scheduling time, machine set up time, and inspection time. Order cost is used as part of most cost-based order quantity/lot sizing calculations.

Inventory order picking method where a warehouse is picked for the completion of a single order at a time.  Each warehouse operator is assigned an inventory order and that operator fulfills that order, picking each order line item in the most-intelligent way possible without back-tracking.