JP7783066B2 - Warehouse work management system, warehouse work management method and program - Google Patents

Description

This invention relates to technology that is effective in pre-optimizing warehouse operations.

Systems for optimizing warehouse work have been proposed in the past. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a work planning system that can create and optimize an overall work plan, including resource allocation, for work in response to multiple shipping orders.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2021-33873

However, even if a warehouse work plan is made, on the day, a warehouse worker may be unable to come to work due to illness or other reasons, resulting in changes to the warehouse workforce, or a shipping order may be generated that requires an emergency response, causing a change in the amount of work, and the planned warehouse work plan may fall apart on the day.
In this case, it is necessary to change the original work plan to accommodate the shipping order, but even in such a case, it is desirable that the profit from the warehouse work on that day does not deviate significantly from the original work plan.
Therefore, the inventors focused on a system that grasps the attendance status of warehouse workers on that day, and when a change in the work plan is necessary, simulates and provides how the work plan should be changed to maximize profits from warehouse work on that day.

The objective of the present invention is to provide a warehouse work management system, warehouse work management method, and program that enables the quick creation of optimal warehouse work plans even when there are sudden changes in warehouse staffing or warehouse work volume.

The present invention is a warehouse operation management system that manages the number of workers in each process of warehouse operations and the shipping volume based on shipping orders,
a change receiving unit that receives changes to the number of workers and/or work content for a work plan created in advance;
a creation unit that creates a recovery plan for the operation plan based on the received changes;
a simulator that simulates the created recovery plan and calculates the profit of the entire work for that day based on the recovery plan;
The present invention provides a warehouse operation management system comprising:

According to the present invention, a warehouse operation management system that manages shipping volumes based on the number of workers and shipping orders at each stage of warehouse operations accepts changes to the number of workers and/or work content for a pre-created work plan, creates a recovery plan for the work plan based on the accepted changes, simulates the created recovery plan, and calculates the overall profit for the day's work based on the recovery plan.

This invention is categorized as a system, but methods and programs also have the same effects and benefits.

This invention makes it possible to quickly create optimal warehouse work plans even when there are sudden changes in warehouse staffing or warehouse work volume.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an overview of a warehouse operation management system 1. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of a warehouse operation management system 1. FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a shipping order acquisition process executed by the warehouse operation management system 1. FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a work plan acquisition process executed by the warehouse work management system 1. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a personnel shortage notification process executed by the warehouse operation management system 1. FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a recovery plan creation process executed by the warehouse operation management system 1. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a change input UI 60 displayed on the administrator terminal 40. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a change input UI 66 displayed on the administrator terminal 40. FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a work plan determination process executed by the warehouse work management system 1. FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of a simulation result. FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of a simulation result in which rearrangement is performed. FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of a simulation result in which rearrangement is performed. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a simulation result 70 output to the administrator terminal 40. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a simulation result 70 output to the administrator terminal 40. FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of a simulation result 70 output to the administrator terminal 40. FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of a simulation result 70 output to the administrator terminal 40. FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a process of notifying the warehouse operation management system 1 that the work can be advanced.

Hereinafter, a detailed description of an embodiment of the present invention (hereinafter, "embodiment") will be given with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following drawings, the same elements are designated by the same numbers or symbols throughout the description of the embodiment.

[Basic concept/basic configuration]
1 is a diagram illustrating an overview of a warehouse operation management system 1. The warehouse operation management system 1 is a system equipped with at least a computer 10 and managing the number of workers in each process of warehouse operations and the shipping volume based on shipping orders.
In this embodiment, the warehouse operation management system 1 is a system connected so as to be able to perform data communications with a computer 10, a WMS (Warehouse Management System) 20 that manages shipping orders, an RCS (Resource Control System) 30 that manages work plans, a manager terminal 40 carried by a manager that manages warehouse workers and work contents, and a shift management system 50 that is an attendance management system that manages the working status of each warehouse worker, such as attendance, working hours, lateness, early departure, breaks, and absences, using shift data and the like.

This embodiment assumes that a work plan for the day has been created or saved in advance, and that this work plan is used. It is desirable that the work plan be automatically created by the RCS 30 and automatically output to the computer 10, but this is not the only possible configuration. While warehouse work processes are assumed to include receiving, storing, picking, distribution processing, packaging, and shipping, these processes are not limited to these. In this specification, profit includes not only simple gross profit, but also sales, expenses, income and expenditure, and profit margins.

The following explains, with reference to Figure 1, an overview of the processing steps that the warehouse operation management system 1 takes when calculating the overall profit for a day's work based on changes to the number of workers and/or work content.

The computer 10 acquires the shipping orders and work plans for the day (step S0).
The shipping order is data including, for example, a product ID, a shipping quantity, and a deadline. The work plan is, for example, the number of warehouse workers to work in each process in the warehouse and the work content (for example, work time and work volume).
The WMS 20 receives shipping orders from an administrator via the administrator terminal 40. The WMS 20 transmits the shipping orders for the current day from among the received shipping orders to the computer 10. The WMS 20 can also be configured to transmit shipping orders acquired from a customer system managed by the customer to the computer 10.
The RCS 30 transmits the work plan for the day among the work plans that have been created or saved to the computer 10 .
The computer 10 receives these shipping orders and work plans from the WMS 20 or the RCS 30, thereby obtaining the shipping orders and work plans for the current day.

The computer 10 accepts changes to the workers and/or work content for the acquired work plan (step S1).
The shift management system 50 transmits the shift data for the day to the computer 10.
The computer 10 receives this shift data and detects whether there are shortages of warehouse workers for that day. A shortage of workers is a warehouse worker who is unable to perform some or all of the warehouse work assigned to him/her for that day due to reasons such as lateness, early departure, or absence. A worker is a warehouse worker who is able to perform the warehouse work assigned to him/her for that day.
When the computer 10 detects a shortage of personnel, it notifies the manager terminal 40 of the number of shortage personnel and the work content for that day assigned to the shortage personnel. More preferably, the computer 10 simulates a plan in which the work is carried out without making up for the shortage of personnel, calculates an expected profit for the entire work for that day, and notifies the manager terminal 40 of the overtime work. Here, if the result is that the time specified in the shipping order is exceeded, an error may be displayed indicating that the plan is difficult.
The manager checks the notification of the profit loss or error etc. notified to the manager terminal 40 and judges whether it is necessary to input a change in the allocation of workers and/or a change in the work content. The manager terminal 40 can accept input of a change in the allocation of workers and/or a change in the work content, and if the manager judges that a change in the work content is necessary, he inputs the change details.
The specific changes are as follows:
For example, there are plans to reassign tasks assigned to understaffed workers at the start of the work to other workers, plans to divide the day into morning and afternoon, and maintain the original work assignments in the morning except for the understaffed workers, but to reassign tasks assigned to understaffed workers in the afternoon, plans to extract tasks that will not cause problems or will cause few problems if the number of workers is reduced from the tasks originally assigned to multiple people and reassign workers from those tasks to understaffed workers, plans to extract tasks that will not cause problems if performed the following day or later, and reassign those tasks to the following day or later, consolidate them into tasks that can be performed by the current workers, and re-create the tasks and reassign them, etc. The administrator terminal 40 may accept such change plans input one by one, or may be capable of inputting multiple plans, or may be capable of inputting multiple plans along with their priorities.
The administrator terminal 40 transmits the changes received for the above-mentioned purposes to the computer 10 .
By receiving the changes, the computer 10 accepts changes to the workers and/or work content for the work plan acquired in advance.

The computer 10 creates a recovery plan for the work plan based on the received changes (step S2).
Based on these changes, the computer 10 creates a recovery plan, which is a work plan to make up for the shortage of personnel in the original work plan for that day. This recovery plan reflects the above-mentioned changes in the original work plan for that day.

The computer 10 simulates the created recovery plan and calculates the profit for the entire work for that day based on the recovery plan (step S3).
The computer 10 simulates the created recovery plan and calculates sales and expenses for the recovery plan. The computer 10 subtracts expenses from the calculated sales to calculate income and expenditures. The computer 10 calculates profits by performing these calculations. Furthermore, the computer 10 calculates the work efficiency (total required time, cut time margin, margin rate, excess man-hours) for the recovery plan.
The total required time is the time taken in the simulation results (the time it would actually take if warehouse work were carried out according to this recovery plan). The cut time is the deadline set for each shipment, and is the time required from the start time of work to the end time of work. The cut time slack time is the time obtained by subtracting the total required time from the cut time (the time between the end time of work and the cut time). The slack rate is the ratio of the cut time slack time to this cut time. The excess manpower time is the number of people required per unit time when the cut time slack time is negative.

The computer 10 determines the work plan for the day based on the recovery plan obtained in this way. Warehouse workers perform actual warehouse work in accordance with the determined work plan for the day.
While the above description is based on an example in which a worker accepts a change to the work plan acquired by the computer 10, the same applies to a case in which the amount of work changes. The computer 10 notifies the manager terminal 40 of the change in the amount of work, and notifies the manager terminal 40 of whether the work can be completed within the scheduled work time, and more preferably, calculates the profit and notifies the manager terminal 40 of the deviation from the initial plan (profit loss).

This warehouse operation management system 1 makes it possible to quickly create an optimal warehouse operation plan even when there is a sudden change in warehouse staffing or warehouse work volume. Furthermore, if the manpower plan and work plan predicted the previous day differ from the shipping order for that day, it is possible to recommend how to change the predicted manpower plan and work plan to meet the shipping order, and even perform a balance sheet simulation in that case.

[Functional configuration]
The functional configuration of the warehouse operation management system 1 will be described with reference to FIG.
The warehouse operation management system 1 includes at least a computer 10, which is connected to a WMS 20 that manages shipping orders, an RCS 30 that manages work plans, a manager terminal 40 carried by a manager that manages warehouse workers and work contents, and a shift management system 50 that is an attendance management system that manages the working status of each warehouse worker using shift data, etc., via a network 9 such as a public line network or an intranet, so that data can be communicated.
The warehouse operation management system 1 may include a WMS 20, an RCS 30, a manager terminal 40, a shift management system 50, other terminals, devices, etc. in addition to the computer 10. In this case, the warehouse operation management system 1 executes the processes described below using any one or a combination of the included terminals, devices, systems, etc.

The computer 10 is a computer with server functionality, a personal computer, or the like, and manages the number of workers in each process of warehouse operations and the shipping volume based on shipping orders.
The computer 10 may be realized, for example, by a single computer, or by multiple computers, such as a cloud computer. The cloud computer in this specification may refer to either a computer that uses any computer in a scalable manner to perform a specific function, or a computer that includes multiple functional modules to realize a system and uses the functions in any combination.

The computer 10 includes a control unit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and a ROM (Read Only Memory), and includes a communication unit such as a device that enables communication with other terminals and devices, and a change reception unit 11 that receives changes to the workers and work content.
The computer 10 also includes a data storage unit such as a hard disk, semiconductor memory, storage medium, or memory card as a memory unit.
The computer 10 also includes, as processing units, various devices that execute various processes, a creation unit 12 that creates a recovery plan, a simulator 13 that simulates the recovery plan and calculates profits, and the like.

In the computer 10, the control unit reads a specified program and works in cooperation with the communication unit to realize a shipping order acquisition module, a work plan acquisition module, a shift data acquisition module, a personnel shortage notification module, a change acceptance module, a recovery plan output module, a selection acceptance module, and an advancement possibility notification module.
In addition, in the computer 10, the control unit reads a predetermined program, and in cooperation with the storage unit, realizes a shipping order storage module, a work plan storage module, and a recovery plan storage module.
In addition, in the computer 10, the control unit reads a specified program and works in cooperation with the processing unit to realize a shortage personnel detection module, a shortage personnel judgment module, a shortage personnel assignment work identification module, a recovery plan creation module, a simulation module, a profit calculation module, a work efficiency calculation module, a simulation result creation module, a sorting module, a work plan determination module, and an early termination judgment module.

The WMS 20 may be any general-purpose system that manages the inflow and outflow of goods from a warehouse, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.
The RCS 30 may be any system that manages general-purpose warehouse facilities, and details thereof will be omitted.
The administrator terminal 40 is a terminal such as a mobile terminal, such as a mobile phone, smartphone, tablet terminal, or personal computer owned by the administrator, and is equipped with a CPU, GPU, RAM, ROM, etc. as a terminal control unit, devices for enabling communication with the computer 10 as a communication unit, and various devices for performing input and output of screens, data, etc. as an input/output unit.
The shift management system 50 may be a general-purpose system that manages the working status of warehouse workers, and details thereof will be omitted.

Below, each process executed by the warehouse operation management system 1 will be explained together with the process executed by each of the modules described above.
In this embodiment, the processes assumed in warehouse operations include receiving goods, storing goods, picking, distribution processing, packaging, shipping, etc., and profit includes not only simple gross profit but also sales, expenses, income and expenditure, and profit margin.

[Shipping Order Acquisition Process Executed by Computer 10]
The shipping order acquisition process executed by the computer 10 will be described with reference to Fig. 3. The figure shows a flowchart of the shipping order acquisition process executed by the computer 10. The shipping order acquisition process is a detailed flow related to the shipping order acquisition process among the above-mentioned processes for acquiring shipping orders and work plans (step S0).

The shipping order acquisition module acquires shipping orders for the day (step S10).
As described above, the shipping order is data including the product ID, shipping quantity, deadline date and time, etc.
The manager terminal 40 receives a shipping order from the manager and transmits the received shipping order to the WMS 20 .
The WMS 20 receives this shipping order and stores it in its own storage unit, etc. The WMS 20 extracts shipping orders for the current day from the stored shipping orders and transmits them to the computer 10. Note that the WMS 20 can also be configured to transmit shipping orders obtained from a customer system managed by the customer to the computer 10.
The shipping order acquisition module receives this shipping order and acquires the shipping order for that day.

The shipping order storage module stores the acquired shipping order (step S11).
The shipping order storage module stores the acquired shipping order in association with the identifier of this shipping order (name, ID, management number, serial number, etc.).

This completes the shipping order acquisition process.
The shipping order acquisition process is a process that is performed whenever a shipping order is updated, at predetermined intervals, or whenever a shipping order is completed, etc. The computer 10 executes the process described below using the shipping order acquired by the above-described shipping order acquisition process.
The computer 10 may be configured to execute the process described below without storing the shipping order in the shipping order acquisition process. In this case, the acquired shipping order may be used as is in the process described below.

[Work Plan Acquisition Process Executed by Computer 10]
The work plan acquisition process executed by the computer 10 will be described with reference to Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a flowchart of the work plan acquisition process executed by the computer 10. The work plan acquisition process is a detailed flow related to the work plan acquisition process of the above-mentioned process (step S0) for acquiring a shipping order and a work plan.

The work plan acquisition module acquires the work plan for the day (step S20).
As described above, the work plan includes the number of warehouse workers to work in each process in the warehouse, the work content (for example, work time, work volume), etc.
The RCS 30 extracts the work plan for the current day from the work plans created in advance and transmits it to the computer 10 .
The work plan acquisition module receives the work plan and acquires the work plan for the day. Note that the source of the work plan is not limited to the RCS 30.

The work plan storage module stores the acquired work plan (step S21).
The work plan storage module stores the acquired work plan in association with the identifier (name, ID, management number, serial number, etc.) of the work plan.

This completes the work plan acquisition process.
The work plan acquisition process is a process that is performed whenever the work plan is updated, at predetermined intervals, a predetermined time before the work start time, after the work end time, etc. The computer 10 executes the process described below using the work plan acquired by the above-mentioned work plan acquisition process.
Note that the computer 10 may be configured to execute the process described below without storing the work plan in the work plan acquisition process. In this case, the acquired work plan may be used as is in the process described below.

[Personnel Shortage Notification Process Executed by Computer 10]
The personnel shortage notification process executed by the computer 10 will be described with reference to Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a flowchart of the personnel shortage notification process executed by the computer 10. The personnel shortage notification process is a process related to the above-mentioned process of accepting changes to workers and/or work content (step S1).

The shift data acquisition module acquires the shift data for the current day (step S30).
The shift management system 50 extracts the shift data for the current day and transmits it to the computer 10.
The shift data acquisition module receives this shift data and acquires the shift data for the day.

The staff shortage detection module detects staff shortages in the acquired shift data for the day (step S31).
The shortage detection module analyzes the acquired shift data for the day, and among the warehouse workers for that day, if there are any changes such as absence, lateness, or early departure, it detects warehouse workers who are unable to perform some or all of the warehouse work assigned to them for that day as shortage personnel, and detects other warehouse workers who are on duty as workers who are able to perform the scheduled work.

The manpower shortage determination module determines whether or not there is a manpower shortage based on the detection result (step S32).
If the personnel shortage determination module determines that there is no personnel shortage (step S32: NO), the computer 10 ends the personnel shortage notification process.
In this case, the computer 10 does not execute the processing related to the recovery plan, which will be described later.

On the other hand, if the manpower shortage detection module determines that a manpower shortage exists based on the detection result (step S32: YES), the manpower shortage assignment task identification module identifies the task content assigned to the detected manpower shortage (step S33).
The understaffed work assignment specification module refers to the work plan acquired by the above-mentioned work plan acquisition process and specifies the work content assigned to the detected understaffed work. Note that the understaffed work assignment specification module may also refer to the acquired shift data and specify the work content assigned to the detected understaffed work.

The staff shortage notification module notifies the staff shortage (step S34).
The personnel shortage notification module transmits the number of personnel shortages, the work content and period of work assigned to the personnel shortages for the day to the manager terminal 40. The period is one day if the personnel shortage is due to absence, and is morning, afternoon, a specified time period, etc. if the personnel shortage is due to lateness or early departure.
The manager terminal 40 receives the number of personnel shortages, the work contents and periods assigned to the personnel shortages for the day, and displays them on its own display unit.
The personnel shortage notification module notifies the manager of the personnel shortage by displaying on the manager terminal 40 the number of personnel shortages, the work content and period of work assigned to the personnel shortages for the day.

This completes the personnel shortage notification process.

[Recovery Plan Creation Process Executed by Computer 10]
The recovery plan creation process executed by the computer 10 will be described with reference to Fig. 6. The figure shows a flowchart of the recovery plan creation process executed by the computer 10. The recovery plan creation process is details of the above-mentioned worker and/or work content change acceptance process (step S1) and recovery plan creation process (step S2), and is a process performed after the above-mentioned personnel shortage notification process.

The change acceptance module accepts changes to the workers and/or work content (step S40).
The manager terminal 40 accepts input of changes to the number of workers and/or the work content from the manager who viewed the notice of the shortage of workers. The manager terminal 40 accepts input of changes to the allocation of workers and/or the work content to make up for the work content based on the number of shortage of workers notified by the above-mentioned shortage of workers notice process, and the work content and period assigned to the shortage of workers.
In addition, changes to work content may be necessary not only when there is a shortage of personnel, but also when there is a discrepancy between the workforce plan and work plan drawn up the day before and the actual shipping order.
An example of when such a change in work plan is necessary is when the actual shipping orders for that day differ from the personnel plan and work plan that were created when the shipping orders for the next day were predicted the day before. Specifically, if the number of shipping orders is significantly higher than predicted, the work content planned for the next day's shipping must be canceled and changed to the work content for that day's shipping, or worker adjustments (e.g., overtime work) must be made. Furthermore, if there are more shipping orders that require manual work than predicted, it may be necessary to reduce the number of workers performing automated work and increase the number of workers performing manual work. Furthermore, if there are more shipping orders with faster cut times than predicted, it may be necessary to concentrate workers from shipping orders with longer cut times to those with shorter cut times so that the work can be completed quickly. Input for changes in worker allocation and/or work content to resolve these issues is also accepted.
The changes that can be input are, for example, as follows:
That is, tasks that were assigned to the shortage of personnel at the start of work are reassigned to other workers; a day is divided into morning and afternoon, and the work assignments initially assigned to the morning are maintained except for the shortage of personnel, but the work assigned to the shortage of personnel in the afternoon is separately compensated for and reassigned; from the tasks that were initially assigned to multiple people, tasks that will not cause problems or will cause few problems even if the number of people is reduced are extracted, and workers from those tasks are assigned to the shortage of personnel and reassigned; tasks that can be performed the following day or later are extracted and reassigned to the following day or later, and then consolidated into tasks that can be performed by the current workers, and the work tasks are recreated and reassigned. In addition to these, if there are significantly more shipping orders than predicted, the work for the next day's shipments will be canceled and changed to work for that day's shipments, the number of workers for automated work will be reduced and the number of workers for manual work will be increased, if there are more shipping orders that must be done manually than predicted, the number of workers for automated work will be reduced and the number of workers for manual work will be increased, and if there are more shipping orders with faster cut times than predicted, the number of workers will be concentrated on these shipping orders instead of the shipping orders with slower cut times so that the work can be completed sooner.
The administrator terminal 40 may be a type that accepts input of such change plans one at a time, or may be a type that allows input of multiple plans, or may be a type that allows input of multiple plans together with their priorities.

The changes accepted by the change acceptance module will be described below.
When the manager terminal 40 is notified that the number of workers in the picking section is one and the period is one day, the manager terminal 40 accepts an input to change a predetermined number of packing workers (e.g., one worker) to picking (see FIG. 7). The manager terminal 40 also accepts an input to change a predetermined number of distribution processing and packing workers (e.g., one worker each) to picking in the afternoon (see FIG. 7). The manager terminal 40 also accepts an input to reduce the workload for shipments from the next day onwards (see FIG. 8). When the computer 10 detects a shortage of workers in any one or a combination of processes, the manager terminal 40 similarly accepts a change in the allocation of workers and changes in the work content from processes where a shortage of workers has not been detected.

7, a description will be given of a UI (User Interface) when the manager terminal 40 accepts input for changes to the number of workers. The figure is a diagram that schematically shows an example of a change input UI that is displayed when the manager terminal 40 accepts input for changes to the number of workers.
The administrator terminal 40 displays the change input UI 60 on its own display unit and accepts input from the administrator.
The manager terminal 40 accepts input of the identifier of the worker to whom the worker is to be assigned in the worker input field 61. Here, the manager terminal 40 accepts input to the icon 64 and accepts the selection input of the worker using a pull-down menu.
The manager terminal 40 accepts input of the process to which the worker is to be assigned in the process input field 62. Here, the manager terminal 40 accepts input to the icon 64 and accepts the selection input of the process using a pull-down menu.
The manager terminal 40 accepts input of the period for which the worker is assigned in the time input field 63. Here, the manager terminal 40 accepts input to the icon 64, and accepts the selection and input of the start time and end time of the period using a pull-down menu.
Note that this change input UI is merely an example, and the display contents, display order, input contents, etc. are not limited to the UI shown in Fig. 7. For example, it does not have to be a pull-down menu using icons 64, and other display contents, display order, input contents, etc. are also possible.

The UI when the administrator terminal 40 accepts input for changes to work content will be described with reference to Fig. 8. This figure is a diagram that schematically shows an example of a change input UI that is displayed when the administrator terminal 40 accepts input for changes to work content.
The administrator terminal 40 displays the change input UI 66 on its own display unit and accepts input from the administrator. This change input UI 66 is based on the created shipping order.
The manager terminal 40 accepts input for shipping orders for the next day and thereafter that will reduce the amount of work. Specifically, the manager accepts input for the shipping orders to be reduced by accepting selection input for the shipping orders desired by the manager from among the shipping orders displayed in the change input UI 66. The manager terminal 40 indicates that the input has been accepted by adding a check mark to the box in the date field 67 of the shipping order for which input has been accepted in the change input UI 66.
Note that this change input UI is merely an example, and the display content, display order, input content, etc. are not limited to the UI shown in Fig. 8. For example, check marks may not be added, and other display content, display order, input content, etc. are also possible.

Returning to FIG. 6, the continuation of the processing of step S40 in the recovery plan creation processing will be explained.
The administrator terminal 40 transmits the inputted changes to the computer 10 .
The change acceptance module receives the change content and accepts the change of the workers and/or the work content.
If the change reception module receives only one change from the administrator terminal 40, it performs the processing described below for only that one change. If the change reception module receives multiple changes, it performs the processing described below for each change. If the change reception module receives changes along with their priority, it performs the processing according to that priority.
Although the change acceptance module has been described as accepting changes via the administrator terminal 40, the change acceptance module may also be configured to accept changes directly. For example, the change acceptance module may learn the correlation between the work content and the number of workers, and accept changes to the number of workers and/or the work content when a manpower shortage is detected based on the learning results. Furthermore, when a manpower shortage is detected, the change acceptance module may accept changes to the number of workers and/or the work content based on preset manpower and/or work content.

The recovery plan creation module creates a recovery plan for the work plan based on the received changes (step S41).
The recovery plan creation module creates a recovery plan that reflects the accepted changes in the original work plan for the day. That is, the recovery plan created by the recovery plan creation module reflects the accepted changes in the work personnel and/or work content in the original work plan for the day.
If only one change is received, the recovery plan creation module creates one recovery plan based on this one change, and if multiple change contents are received, the recovery plan creation module creates multiple recovery plans based on each of the change contents.
In the following explanation, the recovery plan creation module will be described as creating recovery plan 1, which changes the number of distribution processing workers to one and picking, creating recovery plan 2, which changes the number of distribution processing workers to one and packaging workers to picking in the afternoon, and creating recovery plan 3, which reduces the amount of work for shipments from the next day onwards.
The number of recovery plans is not limited to the above, and may be greater or less than that, and is created as appropriate depending on the number of workers and/or work contents accepted.
Furthermore, although the recovery plan creation module has been described as being configured to create a recovery plan, it may also be configured to acquire a recovery plan created by an administrator. For example, the administrator terminal 40 accepts input of a recovery plan created by an administrator, or the administrator terminal 40 creates a recovery plan based on the changes accepted as input, and sends this recovery plan to the computer 10. The computer 10 can also be configured to be considered to have created a recovery plan by receiving this recovery plan.

The recovery plan storage module stores the created recovery plan (step S42).
The recovery plan storage module stores the created recovery plan in association with the identifier of this recovery plan (name, ID, management number, serial number, etc.). The recovery plan storage module stores recovery plan 1, recovery plan 2, and recovery plan 3.

This completes the recovery plan creation process.
The computer 10 executes the processing described below using the recovery plan created by the recovery plan creation processing.
Furthermore, the computer 10 can also be configured to execute the processing described below without storing a recovery plan in the recovery plan creation processing, in which case the created recovery plan can be used as is in the processing described below.

[Work Plan Determination Process Executed by Computer 10]
The work plan determination process executed by the computer 10 will be described with reference to Fig. 9. The figure shows a flowchart of the work plan determination process executed by the computer 10. The work plan determination process is a detailed description of the process for calculating the profit of the entire work for the day (step S3), and is a process that is performed after the recovery plan creation process described above.

The simulation module executes a simulation of the created recovery plan (step S50).
The simulate module executes a simulation of the recovery plan created by the above-described recovery plan creation process. The content of the simulation executed by the simulate module may be any content that simulates each process performed by workers in the created recovery plan. The simulate module simultaneously simulates recovery plan 1, recovery plan 2, and recovery plan 3.
If only one recovery plan has been created, the simulation module simulates this one recovery plan, and if multiple recovery plans have been created, the simulation module simulates multiple recovery plans simultaneously.

The profit calculation module calculates the profit for the entire work for the day based on the recovery plan (step S51).
The profit calculation module calculates sales, expenditures, and balance for each process in the recovery plan. Here, expenditures are synonymous with expenses, and balances are synonymous with profits, and balances are calculated by subtracting expenditures from sales. Here, sales for each process are the delivery costs paid by the shipper allocated to each process or allocated to each process in advance. Furthermore, expenditures are the labor costs of the workers assigned to each process.
The profit calculation module calculates sales, expenses, and income/expenses for each process: receiving, warehousing, picking, distribution processing, packaging, and shipping. The profit calculation module calculates the sum of sales, the sum of expenses, and the sum of income/expenses for each of these processes. The profit calculation module divides the sum of income/expenses by the sum of sales and calculates the calculated value as a percentage as the profit rate. Based on these calculation results, the profit calculation module calculates the sales, expenses, income/expenses, and profit rate for the entire work for that day based on the recovery plan as the total income/expenses.
The profit calculation module calculates the sales for all work on that day based on recovery plan 1 to be 420,000 yen, expenses to be 383,040 yen, income and expenditure to be 36,960 yen, and a profit margin to be 8.8%; the sales for all work on that day based on recovery plan 2 to be 450,000 yen, expenses to be 390,600 yen, income and expenditure to be 59,400 yen, and a profit margin to be 13.2%; and the sales for all work on that day based on recovery plan 3 to be 434,786 yen, expenses to be 382,354 yen, income and expenditure to be 52,432 yen, and a profit margin to be 12.1%.The following processing will be explained assuming this.
The numbers in each item are calculated appropriately according to the shipping order, work plan, accepted workers and/or work content, etc.

The work efficiency calculation module calculates the work efficiency of the entire work for the day based on the recovery plan (step S52).
Work efficiency is the total time required, cut time margin, margin rate, and excess man-hours.
The work efficiency calculation module calculates the amount of work for each process, such as receiving, warehousing, picking, distribution processing, packaging, and shipping. The work efficiency calculation module calculates the total required time based on the time required in the simulation results (the time it would actually take to perform warehouse work according to this recovery plan) . The cut time is the deadline set for each package to be shipped and is the time required from the start time to the end time of the work. The work efficiency calculation module calculates the cut time slack based on the time obtained by subtracting the total required time from the cut time. The work efficiency calculation module also calculates the slack rate as the ratio of the cut time slack to the cut time. A positive value for the cut time slack means there is slack in the work time, and a negative value for the cut time slack means there is insufficient work time. The work efficiency calculation module calculates excess man-hours as the number of people required per unit time when the cut time slack is negative.
In this embodiment, the work efficiency calculation module calculates the total required time for all work on that day based on recovery plan 1 to be 12 hours 7 minutes (12 hours 7 minutes), the cut time margin to be -4:07 (minus 4 hours 7 minutes), the margin rate to be -17.5%, and the excess man-hours to be 13 man-hours; the total required time for all work on that day based on recovery plan 2 to be 9 hours 14 minutes (9 hours 14 minutes), the cut time margin to be -1:14 (minus 1 hour 14 minutes), the margin rate to be -13.4%, and the excess man-hours to be 6 man-hours; and the total required time for all work on that day based on recovery plan 3 to be 7 hours 57 minutes (7 hours 57 minutes), the cut time margin to be 0:03 (0 hours 3 minutes), the margin rate to be 0.6%, and the excess man-hours to be 0 man-hours. The following processing will be explained.
The numbers in each item are calculated appropriately according to the shipping order, work plan, accepted workers and/or work content, etc.

The simulation result creation module creates the simulation result (step S53).
The simulation result creation module creates a simulation result that summarizes the profits and work efficiency for each recovery plan calculated by the processing of steps S51 and S52 described above for each recovery plan. The simulation result creation module creates a simulation result that summarizes the identifier of each recovery plan, the changes in the number of workers and/or work content in this recovery plan, the sales, expenses, balance, and profit margin (including the sales, expenses, and balance for each process) for the day calculated for this recovery plan, the total required time, cut time slack time, slack rate, excess man-hours for the day calculated for this recovery plan, and the simulation content of each recovery plan such as overall progress (the amount of work in each process, the rate of work completion, etc.), processing capacity, and personnel allocation, visualized in graphs, tables, etc. (see FIG. 10 ).
In Figure 10, the simulation result creation module creates a simulation result that compiles the name of each recovery plan, the change content, the work efficiency and profit margin for the entire work for that day in this recovery plan, and a detailed icon 68 linked to other content.
The simulation results created by the simulation result creation module are not limited to those shown in Fig. 10, and may include other content, or may include any one or a combination of these. Also, instead of displaying the results as detailed icons 68, the other content itself may be displayed.

Returning to FIG. 9, the rest of the work plan determination process will be described.
The sorting module sorts the recovery plans in the created simulation results into a predetermined order (step S54).
The predetermined order is based on profit and/or work efficiency. Specifically, in the case of profit, it is the order that maximizes the overall profit (profit rate) of the day's work. In the case of work efficiency, it is the order that optimizes work efficiency, and is one or a combination of the optimal total required time order, optimal cut time slack order, optimal excess man-hour order, and optimal slack rate order. In addition, if multiple changes are accepted by the administrator along with priorities, the items are rearranged according to the priorities.
An example of the sorting performed by the sorting module will now be described.
The sorting module sorts the order of the recovery plans in the created simulation results in order of the largest profit for the entire work for that day, based on the profit calculated for each recovery plan (see Fig. 11). In Fig. 11, the sorting module sorts the order of the recovery plans in the simulation results shown in Fig. 10 in order of the largest profit rate: recovery plan 2, recovery plan 3, recovery plan 1.
Furthermore, the rearrangement module rearranges the order of the recovery plans in the created simulation results to the order of the optimal cutoff time margins based on the cutoff time margins calculated for each recovery plan (see Fig. 12). In Fig. 12, the rearrangement module rearranges the order of the recovery plans in the simulation results shown in Fig. 10 to the order in which the cutoff time margins of recovery plan 3, recovery plan 2, and recovery plan 1 are optimal.
The sorting module can also sort the order of recovery plans in the created simulation results to the order of the contents of optimal work efficiency based on the contents of work efficiency calculated in each recovery plan, for other work efficiency contents as well.
The sorting module can be configured not only to sort the order of recovery plans in the created simulation results based on only one content, but also to sort the order of recovery plans based on a combination of multiple contents. For example, the sorting module can be configured to sort the order of recovery plans in order of greatest profit and optimal cutoff time margin. When sorting the order of recovery plans based on multiple contents like this, it is sufficient to set priorities, thresholds, etc. for each content and sort based on the priorities, thresholds, etc.

Returning to FIG. 9, the rest of the work plan determination process will be described.
The recovery plan output module outputs the simulated recovery plan (step S55).
The recovery plan output module transmits the simulation results, which have been rearranged in the above-mentioned predetermined order (such as the order of greatest profit for the entire work for that day, the order of optimal work efficiency for the entire work for that day, etc.), to the manager terminal 40. In this embodiment, the recovery plan output module will be described as transmitting the results, which have been rearranged in the order of cut time margin time shown in FIG.
The administrator terminal 40 receives the simulation results and displays them on its own display unit or the like (see FIG. 13).
The recovery plan output module outputs the simulated recovery plan by displaying the simulation results on the administrator terminal 40.

The simulation results displayed on the manager terminal 40 will be described with reference to Fig. 13. Fig. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the simulation results displayed on the manager terminal 40.
The manager terminal 40 displays the simulation result 70 on its display unit based on the received simulation result. The manager terminal 40 accepts input such as a tap operation on the detail icon 71, and transitions to a screen showing the simulation content associated with the detail icon 71, such as graphs of overall progress, processing capacity, personnel allocation, etc., overall progress, progress of each process, overall balance, balance of each process, etc. (see FIGS. 14 and 15 ).
FIG. 14 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of a screen displaying the simulation results 70. In FIG. 14, the administrator terminal 40 displays, as simulation results 70, the recovery plan identifier, changes to the workforce and/or work content in the recovery plan, the calculated profit margin for the day in the recovery plan, the calculated total required time for the day in the recovery plan, cut time margin, margin rate, excess man-hours, overall progress (e.g., the amount of work in each process, the work completion rate), processing capacity, and personnel allocation, all visualized in graphs and tables. Furthermore, by accepting a predetermined input, the administrator terminal 40 changes the content displayed in the simulation results 70 to the content shown in FIG. 15. Furthermore, by accepting a predetermined input, the administrator terminal 40 changes the content displayed in the simulation results 70 to the content shown in FIG. 13.
FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displaying the simulation results 70. In FIG. 15, the administrator terminal 40 displays, as simulation results 70, the recovery plan identifier, changes to the workforce and/or work content in the recovery plan, the calculated sales, expenses, balance, and profit margin for the day in the recovery plan (including the sales, expenses, and balance for each process), the calculated total required time for the day in the recovery plan, cut time margin, margin rate, excess man-hours, and the simulated contents of each recovery plan, such as overall progress, processing capacity, and personnel allocation, all visualized in graphs and tables. Furthermore, the administrator terminal 40 changes the content displayed in the simulation results 70 to the content shown in FIG. 14 by accepting a predetermined input. Furthermore, the administrator terminal 40 changes the content displayed in the simulation results 70 to the content shown in FIG. 13 by accepting a predetermined input.

In the above explanation, the computer 10 is configured to output all simulated recovery plans, but it may also be configured to output a recovery plan in which all work processes in the warehouse are completed on the same day. Specifically, the recovery plan output module extracts from the simulation results only those recovery plans for which the calculated cut time margin is 0 minutes or more, and outputs the simulation results of only the extracted recovery plans to the administrator terminal 40. In the case of this embodiment, the recovery plan output module extracts only recovery plan 3 from the simulation results and outputs the simulation results of only recovery plan 3 to the administrator terminal 40 (see FIG. 16).

Returning to FIG. 9, the rest of the work plan determination process will be described.
The selection receiving module receives a selection for the output recovery plan (step S56).
The administrator terminal 40 accepts a selection input for a recovery plan desired by the administrator from among the simulation results displayed on the administrator terminal 40, and transmits the accepted recovery plan to the computer 10. The administrator terminal 40 accepts a selection input for a recovery plan in the simulation results 70 shown in FIG. 13, and transmits the accepted recovery plan to the computer 10.
The selection receiving module receives this recovery plan and thereby receives a selection for the output recovery plan.

The work plan determination module determines the received recovery plan as the work plan for the day (step S57).
The work plan determination module changes the original work plan for the day acquired in the work plan acquisition process described above to the workers and work content in the accepted recovery plan, and determines this as the work plan for the day.

The above is the work plan determination process.
The computer 10 may notify the warehouse workers or managers of the determined work plan, thereby making the warehouse workers or managers aware of the new work plan, or may execute processing related to adjusting the operation of equipment related to warehouse work based on the determined work plan.

[Process for notifying that work can be advanced, executed by the computer 10]
The process of notifying that work can be moved forward, which is executed by the computer 10, will be described with reference to Fig. 17. Fig. 17 is a flowchart of the process of notifying that work can be moved forward, which is executed by the computer 10. The process of notifying that work can be moved forward is related to the work plan determination process described above, and is performed after the process of step S56 described above.

The early termination determination module determines whether the selected recovery plan is a recovery plan in which the work end time for that day will be completed earlier than the normally set work end time (step S60).
The normally set work end time is the work end time in the original work plan or a work end time that has been set in advance.
The early termination judgment module judges whether the cut time margin in the selected recovery plan is a positive time. At this time, if the cut time margin is positive, the early termination judgment module does not need to consider the length of that time, but preferably judges whether the cut time margin is a positive amount of time that the specified work content in the shipping order and work plan for the next day and thereafter can be executed.
When the early termination determination module determines that the selected recovery plan is not a recovery plan in which the work end time for the day is completed earlier than the normally set work end time (step S60 NO), the computer 10 terminates the advance work possibility notification process.

On the other hand, if the early termination judgment module determines that the selected recovery plan is a recovery plan in which the end time of the work for that day will be completed earlier than the normally set end time of the work (step S60 YES), the advancement possibility notification module notifies that the work content for the following day and beyond can be carried forward (step S61).
The advancement possibility notification module creates a notification that the work contents for the next day and thereafter can be carried forward, and transmits this notification to the manager terminal 40.
The administrator terminal 40 receives this notification and displays it on its own display unit.
The advancement possibility notification module notifies the manager that the work contents for the following day and thereafter can be advanced by displaying this notification on the manager terminal 40. By viewing this notification, the manager can understand that the work contents for the following day and thereafter can be advanced. As a result, this also leads to the manager making further changes to the work plan for that day.

In the above explanation, the computer 10 determines whether the selected recovery plan will finish earlier than the end time. However, the configuration may also be such that it determines whether the selected recovery plan will finish earlier than the end time for all simulated recovery plans, not just the selected recovery plan. In this case, the early completion determination module determines whether the cut time margin for each simulated recovery plan is positive. The advancement possibility notification module can be configured to include the identifier of a positive recovery plan in a notification that the work content for the next day or later can be advanced, and output this to the administrator terminal 40.

This completes the notification process for when work can be advanced.

Although each of the above processes is described as a separate process, the computer 10 can also be configured to execute a combination of some or all of the above processes. Furthermore, the computer 10 can also be configured to execute each process at a timing other than that described.

The above-mentioned means and functions are realized by a computer (including a CPU, information processing device, and various terminals) loading and executing a specified program. The program may be provided, for example, from the computer via a network (Software as a Service (SaaS)) or as a cloud service. The program may also be provided in a form recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. In this case, the computer reads the program from the recording medium, transfers it to an internal or external recording device, records it, and executes it. The program may also be pre-recorded on a recording device (recording medium) and provided from the recording device to the computer via a communication line.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these above-mentioned embodiments. Furthermore, the effects described in the embodiments of the present invention are merely a list of the most favorable effects resulting from the present invention, and the effects of the present invention are not limited to those described in the embodiments of the present invention.

(1) A warehouse operation management system that manages the number of workers in each process of warehouse operations and the shipping volume based on shipping orders,
a change receiving unit (e.g., change receiving unit 11, change receiving module) that receives changes to the work personnel and/or work content for a work plan created in advance;
A creation unit (e.g., creation unit 12, recovery plan creation module) that creates a recovery plan for the operation plan based on the received change content;
A simulator (e.g., simulator 13, simulation module, profit calculation module) that simulates the created recovery plan and calculates the profit of the entire work for that day based on the recovery plan;
A warehouse operation management system comprising:

The invention of (1) makes it possible to quickly create an optimal warehouse work plan even when there is a sudden change in warehouse staffing or warehouse work volume. Furthermore, if the manpower plan and work plan predicted the previous day differ from the shipping order for that day, it is possible to recommend how to change the predicted manpower plan and work plan to meet the shipping order, and to perform a balance sheet simulation in that case.

(2) The creation unit creates a plurality of the recovery plans,
The simulator simulates the plurality of recovery plans and calculates the profit of the entire work for that day based on each recovery plan.
A warehouse operation management system as described in (1).

The invention (2) makes it possible to simulate multiple recovery plans and grasp the overall profit for the day's work based on each recovery plan.

(3) an output unit (e.g., a recovery plan output module) that simultaneously outputs the simulated recovery plans;
a selection receiving unit (e.g., a selection receiving module) that receives a selection from the plurality of output recovery plans;
a determination unit (for example, an operation plan determination module) that determines the selected recovery plan as the operation plan for the day;
The warehouse operation management system according to (2) further comprises:

According to the invention (3), the recovery plan decided by the administrator or other person among the created recovery plans can be used as the work plan.

(4) The output unit outputs the simulated recovery plans in descending order of overall profit for the day's work.
A warehouse operation management system as described in (3).

The invention (4) makes it easier for managers and others to understand recovery plans that are effective in ensuring profits.

(5) The output unit outputs the simulated recovery plans in order of optimal work efficiency for the entire work for that day.
A warehouse operation management system as described in (3).

The invention (5) makes it easier for managers and others to understand recovery plans that are effective in terms of work efficiency. Recovery plans that promote work efficiency can prevent work delays and discrepancies in progress.

(6) A notification unit (for example, an advancement possibility notification module) that notifies the user that the work content from the next day onwards can be advanced if the selected recovery plan is a recovery plan in which the work end time for the day is completed earlier than the normally set work end time;
The warehouse operation management system according to (3) further comprises:

Invention (6) makes it possible to advance work scheduled for the following day and beyond.

(7) A warehouse operation management method executed by a computer that manages the number of workers in each process of warehouse operations and the shipping volume based on shipping orders, comprising:
A step (e.g., step S40) of accepting changes to the work personnel and/or work content for a work plan created in advance;
A step of creating a recovery plan for the operation plan based on the received changes (e.g., step S41);
A step (e.g., steps S50 and S51) of simulating the created recovery plan and calculating the profit of the entire work for that day based on the recovery plan;
A warehouse operation management method comprising:

(8) A computer that manages the number of workers in each process of warehouse operations and the shipping amount based on the shipping order,
A step of accepting changes to the work personnel and/or work content for the work plan created in advance (e.g., step S40);
A step of creating a recovery plan for the operation plan based on the received changes (e.g., step S41);
A step of simulating the created recovery plan and calculating the profit of the entire work for that day based on the recovery plan (e.g., steps S50 and S51);
A computer-readable program for executing the program.

1 Warehouse operation management system 9 Network 10 Computer 20 WMS
30 RCS
40 Manager terminal 50 Shift management system 60, 66 Change input UI
61 Worker input field 62 Process input field 63 Time input field 64 Icon 67 Date field 68 Details icon 70 Simulation results 71 Details icon

Claims (8)

A warehouse operation management system that manages the number of workers in each process of warehouse operations and the shipping amount based on shipping orders,
a shift management department that detects shortages of personnel for warehouse work on the day and identifies work content assigned to the detected shortages of personnel;
a change receiving unit that receives a change to the number of workers and/or the work content corresponding to the shortage of workers detected by the shift management unit and the identified work content for the work plan for the day that has been created in advance;
a creation unit that creates a recovery plan for the work plan for the day based on the received changes;
a simulator that simulates the created recovery plan and calculates the profit of the entire work for that day based on the recovery plan;
A warehouse operation management system comprising: the change receiving unit receives a plurality of the changes;
The creation unit creates a plurality of recovery plans based on each change content,
The simulator simulates the plurality of recovery plans and calculates the profit of the entire work for that day based on each recovery plan.
The warehouse operation management system according to claim 1. an output unit that simultaneously outputs the plurality of simulated recovery plans;
a selection receiving unit that receives a selection from the plurality of output recovery plans;
a decision unit that decides the selected recovery plan as the operation plan for the day;
The warehouse operation management system according to claim 2 , further comprising: The output unit outputs the simulated recovery plans in descending order of overall profit for the day's work.
The warehouse operation management system according to claim 3 . The output unit outputs the simulated recovery plans in order of optimal work efficiency for the entire work for that day.
The warehouse operation management system according to claim 3 . a notification unit that notifies the user that work content from the next day onwards can be carried out ahead of schedule when the selected recovery plan is a recovery plan in which the work end time for that day is completed earlier than the normally set work end time;
The warehouse operation management system according to claim 3 , further comprising: A warehouse operation management method executed by a computer that manages the number of workers in each process of warehouse operations and the shipping volume based on shipping orders, comprising:
detecting shortages of personnel for warehouse work on that day and specifying work content assigned to the detected shortages of personnel;
a step of accepting changes to the number of workers and/or the work content corresponding to the detected shortage of workers and the identified work content for the work plan for the day that was created in advance;
creating a recovery plan for the work plan for the day based on the received changes;
A step of simulating the created recovery plan and calculating the profit of the entire work for that day based on the recovery plan;
A warehouse operation management method comprising: A computer that manages the number of workers in each process of warehouse operations and the shipping volume based on shipping orders.
A step of detecting a shortage of personnel for warehouse work on that day and specifying the work content assigned to the detected shortage of personnel;
a step of accepting changes to the number of workers and/or the work content corresponding to the detected shortage of workers and the identified work content for the work plan for the day that was created in advance;
creating a recovery plan for the work plan for the day based on the received changes;
a step of simulating the created recovery plan and calculating the profit of the entire work for that day based on the recovery plan;
A computer-readable program for executing the program.