What Is Put-Away?
Also known as: putaway, directed put-away
Definition
Put-away is the warehouse step that moves received goods from the receiving dock to a storage location and records that location in the system. Directed put-away uses rules to choose the best bin.
Put-Away Explained
After receiving and any inspection, goods sit in a receiving or quality location. Put-away moves them to storage and updates inventory by bin. Until that scan, the stock exists in the ERP but cannot be picked reliably.
Directed put-away rules choose bins by item attributes: size, weight, velocity, hazmat class, temperature, lot control or customer reservation. Simple rules assign a fixed home bin per item. More complex rules look for open capacity, consolidate partial pallets and keep fast movers near the dock.
In Infor LN, warehouse inbound procedures include storage tasks that generate put-away orders. SyteLine uses location transactions to move stock from a receiving location, and NetSuite supports bin put-away with its warehouse features. All of them depend on the receipt posting first, often tied to a purchase order or a work order completion.
The most common failure is delay or skipped scans. Goods get shelved in the nearest gap, the record shows the dock, and the next picker finds an empty bin.
Why It Matters
- Fast put-away shortens dock-to-stock time, which frees material for production and shipment.
- Correct bin records are the foundation of pick accuracy.
- Rule-based location choice reduces space waste and walking distance.
- Controlled put-away protects quarantine and lot-controlled stock from being picked early.
In Practice
Twenty pallets arrive on one truck. Without rules, the forklift driver uses whichever aisle is open and the clerk keys bin numbers later. With directed put-away on handhelds, the driver scans the pallet and the system returns a bin; the stock record updates at the moment of the scan.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is directed put-away?
It is a system-guided put-away where rules pick the storage bin and the operator confirms by scanning the item and the bin.
What is dock-to-stock time?
The elapsed time from arrival at the dock to the item being available in a pickable location. It is a standard warehouse KPI.
Why does put-away cause inventory inaccuracy?
Delayed or unrecorded moves leave the system showing stock in the wrong place. Pickers then cannot find it, and counts drift.
Related Terms
Warehouse Management System (WMS)
A warehouse management system (WMS) is software that directs and records warehouse work at bin level: receiving, put-away, replenishment, picking, packing and shipping. It tells operators where to go and what to scan, and posts the resulting stock movements to the ERP.
Cross-Docking
Cross-docking is a logistics practice where inbound goods are moved directly to outbound shipping with little or no storage in between. It cuts handling and holding cost but needs accurate inbound timing and known demand.
Wave Picking
Wave picking is a method where a warehouse releases orders to the floor in timed groups, called waves, chosen by carrier cut-off, priority, zone or order type. It lets planners balance workload across pickers and the dock.
Cycle Counting
Cycle counting is the practice of continuously verifying inventory accuracy by counting a small subset of items each day or week, rather than shutting down for one annual wall-to-wall physical inventory.
Warehouse Order
A warehouse order is the execution document in Infor LN Warehousing that carries out an inbound, outbound or transfer movement. It is generated from an originating order such as a sales, purchase, production or transfer order, and its order type defines the procedure steps.
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