Waves

A wave is a batch of orders picked together to optimize warehouse flow. Rather than picking each order individually (traveling to the same location multiple times), wave picking consolidates picks by product for efficiency.

Wave Statuses

Pending → InProgress → Completed
                    ↘ Cancelled

Status	Description
Pending	Wave is created but not yet started. Orders can still be added.
InProgress	Wave has started. Workers are picking. Pick tasks cannot be changed.
Completed	All pick tasks have been picked or skipped.
Cancelled	Wave was cancelled before completion. Orders return to Pending.

Creating a Wave

1. Navigate to Waves in the dashboard.
2. Click Create Wave.
3. Enter a descriptive name.
4. Select one or more pending orders to include.
5. Click Create.

The wave starts in Pending status. You can add more orders before starting.

Starting a Wave

When you start a wave:

1. Click Start Wave on the wave detail page.
2. Assign a worker to the wave.
3. ScanPick consolidates all items across all orders by product:
   • If Order A needs 5 Widgets and Order B needs 3 Widgets, one pick task for 8 Widgets is created.
4. Pick tasks are sorted in optimized walking order (aisle → rack → shelf).
5. The wave transitions to InProgress.

After starting, the assigned worker sees the wave on their mobile app and can begin picking.

Monitoring Progress

The wave detail page shows:

• Progress bar — percentage of pick tasks completed
• Picked / Total — picked quantity vs. total quantity
• Skipped — tasks flagged with a reason (damaged, out of stock, etc.)
• Active worker — who is currently assigned

Updates are real-time via SignalR. No page refresh needed.

Completing a Wave

When all pick tasks are picked or skipped, click Complete Wave. The wave transitions to Completed.

Any skipped tasks are recorded as discrepancies. Review them from the dashboard to reconcile inventory.

Cancelling a Wave

A Pending or InProgress wave can be cancelled. Cancelling an InProgress wave marks all incomplete pick tasks as skipped and returns the included orders to Pending status.

Wave Consolidation Detail

Consolidation is the key efficiency gain in wave picking:

Without consolidation (single-order picking):

• Worker travels to Location A for Order 1, picks 2 Widgets
• Worker travels to Location A for Order 2, picks 3 Widgets
• Same location visited twice

With consolidation (wave picking):

• Worker travels to Location A once
• Picks 5 Widgets (total from all orders)
• Quantities are recorded per-order internally

This reduces travel time by up to 40% in high-density warehouses.