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Tote Picking for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
When a single pick run covers items for multiple orders, keeping those orders separate is the challenge. The traditional answer is paper pick lists, post-pick sorting, or dedicated pick runs per order, all of which add time and introduce error. Warehouse Insight’s tote picking solves this by allowing workers to scan each picked item directly into its assigned tote during the pick run. One pass through the warehouse. Every order in the right tote. No sorting required afterward.
At a Glance
- Assign one or more totes to each source document on the pick before starting, either on the device or in advance in Business Central
- Scan item, scan tote: each picked item is immediately assigned to the correct order’s container as you work through the pick
- Multiple orders fulfilled in a single warehouse pass, with no post-pick sorting step required
- Totes are reusable and tracked as license plates in Business Central, with a scan at shipping linking the tote directly to the associated warehouse shipment
Key Capabilities
- Tote assignment before picking begins. Before starting a pick run, workers open the Tote Assignment dialog from the pick document menu and assign totes to each source document on the pick. Each tote is a reusable license plate scanned by barcode. One tote can be assigned to only one source document, keeping order separation clear. A single order can have multiple totes assigned if the order volume requires it.
- Scan item, scan tote workflow. During the pick run, the scan sequence adds one step: after scanning the bin and item, the worker scans the tote that the item belongs to. Warehouse Insight confirms the tote assignment and records the placement. If the wrong tote is scanned, the device immediately displays an error and prompts the worker to scan again before the line is accepted.
- Pre-assignment in Business Central. Totes can be pre-assigned to source documents in Business Central before the worker opens the pick on their device. For operations where supervisors plan pick runs in advance, tote assignments can be prepared alongside the pick document, with no additional steps on the warehouse floor.
- Reusable totes, not shipping containers. Totes in Warehouse Insight are purpose-built, reusable license plates that are flagged as totes in Business Central. They are designed to be returned and reused between pick runs, not shipped out with orders. If outbound containers need to be tracked through to shipping and carrier label generation, the standard license plate picking workflow handles that separately.
- Tote scan at shipping. Once the pick is posted, the tote barcode can be scanned directly in the shipping application to bring up the associated warehouse shipment. The relationship between the tote and the source document carries through from pick to ship, so the shipping worker does not need to search for the shipment manually.
- Works within the standard pick workflow. Tote picking is available for warehouse shipments in Business Central. It runs inside the existing Warehouse Insight pick application with no separate application required. Workers who already know the standard pick workflow can learn tote picking in a single additional step.
How Tote Picking Works in Warehouse Insight
Tote picking begins before the worker leaves the staging area. With the pick document open on the device, the worker presses Menu and selects Assign Totes. The Tote Assignment dialog opens and displays each unique source document on the pick. The worker selects a source document line and scans the tote’s barcode to assign it. If an order needs multiple totes, the worker scans additional totes against the same line. Once assignments are complete, the worker begins picking.
During the pick run, the workflow follows the standard scan sequence: scan the bin, scan the item. At that point, rather than confirming quantity and moving on, the device prompts the worker to scan the tote for that item. The tote assignment configured earlier tells the system which tote is correct for each source document. If the worker scans the right tote, the pick line is confirmed, and the item is recorded as placed in that tote. If the wrong tote is scanned, the device displays an error immediately, and the worker must scan the correct tote before the line advances.
When the pick is posted, the tote license plate records in Business Central are updated with the associated warehouse shipment document number. At the shipping station, the worker scans the tote barcode to retrieve the warehouse shipment directly, without searching by document number or customer name.
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Why Tote Picking Improves Multi-Order Pick Efficiency
Multi-order picking without a segregation mechanism creates a sorting problem after the pick is complete. Items from multiple orders arrive at the shipping station mixed together, and someone has to sort them by order before packing and shipping can begin. That sorting step adds labor time, introduces the possibility of mis-packing, and slows outbound throughput.
Tote picking moves the segregation step into the pick run itself, where it costs almost nothing in additional time: one extra scan per pick line. The result is that each tote arrives at the shipping area already containing exactly the items for one order. The shipping worker scans the tote, confirms the shipment, and processes it. There is no sorting, no reconciliation, and no risk of items from one order ending up in another order’s shipment.
For operations running batch picks that combine multiple orders into a single warehouse pass, this is a meaningful throughput improvement at the shipping stage.
Who Uses Tote Picking
Pick-and-pack operations that batch multiple orders into a single pick run use tote picking to keep orders separated throughout the process, without reverting to per-order pick runs. Shipping staff benefits directly: totes arrive at the shipping station already organized by order, and a single barcode scan on the tote retrieves the associated warehouse shipment. Warehouse supervisors who plan pick runs in advance can pre-assign totes to source documents in Business Central, so workers begin their pick run with assignments already in place.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Tote picking is a feature within Warehouse Insight’s pick application that allows workers to fulfill multiple orders in a single pick run while keeping each order’s items in a designated tote. Workers assign reusable tote containers to source documents before picking begins, then scan each item into its assigned tote during the pick run. This eliminates post-pick sorting and ensures that each tote arriving at the shipping station contains items for exactly one order.
Totes are a specific license plate type in Business Central, with the Tote flag set to Yes on the license plate record. They are designed to be reusable between pick runs and are not intended to be shipped out with orders. Standard license plates used in the picking process are for building outbound pallets or boxes that will be confirmed at shipping and carried through to carrier label generation via Dynamic Ship. If the goal is to track outbound shipping containers through to carrier labels and packing slips, standard license plate picking is the appropriate workflow.
Yes. Tote assignments can be made in Business Central before the pick document is opened on the device. Supervisors or planners can assign totes to source documents during the pick planning process. When the worker opens the pick document on their device, the tote assignments are already in place, and the pick run can begin immediately without the on-device assignment step.
The device displays an error immediately when an incorrect tote is scanned. The pick line does not advance, and the placement is not recorded. The worker must scan the correct tote before the system accepts the line. This verification step ensures that segregation errors are caught at the point of picking, not discovered later at the shipping station.
Tote picking is supported on picks associated with warehouse shipments in Business Central. It is not available for inventory picks or picks not linked to a warehouse shipment document. For operations that use warehouse shipments as their standard outbound process, tote picking is available in the existing pick application, with no additional setup beyond creating the tote license plates in Business Central and assigning them to source documents before picking begins.
Watch the on-demand demo at dmsiworks.com/apps/warehouse-insight#demo, or reach out to your Microsoft Partner to see how Warehouse Insight fits your operation.