Order picking is one of the most critical activities in warehousing and fulfillment operations. At its core, order picking is the process of locating and retrieving products from storage to fulfill customer orders. It is the point where inventory strategy becomes operational reality and where warehouse performance is most visible. Across distribution centers, eCommerce fulfillment operations, retail replenishment environments, and third-party logistics facilities, order picking consistently accounts for the largest share of labor and represents one of the greatest opportunities for efficiency gains.
Order picking is performed by warehouse associates and supported by supervisors and operations leaders who are responsible for hitting throughput targets while maintaining accuracy and service levels. As order volumes increase and SKU assortments grow more complex, order picking operations are placed under greater strain. Inefficient order picking leads to longer travel distances, congested aisles, inconsistent pick faces, higher error rates, and rising labor costs without a corresponding increase in output.
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In many cases, these challenges are not caused by picking methods or workforce performance alone. They are the result of storage systems that were not designed to support fast, repeatable order picking. Improving order picking efficiency requires a closer look at how inventory is stored, accessed, and presented to the picker. This is where dynamic storage solutions become essential.
What Are Dynamic Storage Solutions and Why They Matter for Order Picking
Dynamic storage solutions like carton flow, high-density storage, and pallet flow are warehouse storage systems designed to improve access to inventory by using movement, density, and flow. Unlike static shelving, dynamic storage keeps products positioned for faster picking and replenishment. These systems are engineered to reduce wasted motion, improve organization, and increase throughput within the same footprint.
Dynamic storage is widely used by operations that manage high order volumes, diverse SKU profiles, or tight fulfillment windows. Dynamic storage helps warehouses increase order picking speed while maintaining accuracy and control. Instead of forcing pickers to work around storage constraints, dynamic storage solutions are built to support the picking process itself.
Selecting the right dynamic storage medium is critical because not all SKUs behave the same way. High-velocity products require quick access and consistent pick faces, while slower-moving inventory benefits from compact, space-efficient storage. When all SKUs are stored using the same approach, order picking efficiency suffers. Dynamic storage allows warehouses to right-size storage by SKU velocity, which directly improves picking speed, accuracy, and throughput.
How Dynamic Storage Improves Order Picking Efficiency
Order picking efficiency is driven by how much time pickers spend walking, searching for products, and handling inventory. In many warehouses, travel time makes up the largest portion of the pick cycle. Dynamic storage reduces this inefficiency by increasing storage density and consolidating pick locations, allowing pickers to access more inventory within a smaller area.
When dynamic storage solutions are used, pick faces remain organized throughout the shift. Product is consistently positioned at the front of the pick face, visibility improves, and pickers are not required to reorganize inventory while picking. This consistency reduces pick time, improves accuracy, and supports higher sustained productivity throughout the day.
Dynamic storage also improves order picking by supporting better replenishment and inventory rotation practices. For example, carton flow racks promote FIFO (first-in, first-out) inventory rotation, separating replenishment from picking. While pickers retrieve SKUs from the front of the rack, workers replenish them from the back, so these two critical operations never interfere with one another. As a result, pickers can maintain a steady pace even during peak shipping periods.
Most importantly, dynamic storage creates a predictable picking environment. When pick locations are consistent and accessible, order picking becomes easier to manage and easier to scale as volume grows.
Dynamic Storage and Order Picking Methods
Warehouses use a range of order picking methods depending on order profiles, SKU velocity, and service requirements. Dynamic storage solutions enhance these methods by improving the physical environment for picking.
In discrete order picking operations, dynamic storage reduces travel distance and improves pick face organization, allowing pickers to complete orders more efficiently. In batch and wave picking environments, higher storage density and consistent access to inventory reduce the time spent locating product and support higher throughput. In zone picking operations, dynamic storage enables each zone to support more picks within a smaller footprint, improving overall flow across the facility.
Rather than forcing warehouses into a specific picking method, dynamic storage adapts to existing order picking strategies and strengthens their performance. This flexibility makes dynamic storage a foundational element of efficient order picking design.
UNEX Solutions Designed to Improve Order Picking Performance
UNEX offers dynamic storage solutions purpose-built to enable faster, more accurate order picking. These solutions integrate into existing rack structures, allowing operations to increase efficiency without major disruption. Each system addresses different order picking challenges, enabling storage strategies to align with actual SKU behavior and throughput demands.
SpanTrack Carton Flow
SpanTrack carton flow uses gravity to move cartons or totes forward to the pick face, ensuring product is always positioned for fast access. As items are picked, the next carton advances automatically, maintaining a clean and consistent pick face.
SpanTrack improves order picking by:
- Keeping product at the pick face at all times, eliminating dead zones
- Improving pick accuracy through clear and consistent SKU presentation
- Supporting FIFO inventory rotation
- Reducing manual handling and maintenance costs
- Allowing replenishment from the back to eliminate pick disruption in the front
SpanTrack Lane
SpanTrack Lane is an engineered-to-order carton flow roller solution designed to drop into new or existing pallet rack with no shelves or intermediate support required. It is built to handle products with a wide variation in size and weight, and is designed for demanding, high-activity environments. SpanTrack Lane is engineered to maximize surface contact for optimal flow, eliminating hang-ups and improving throughput, including up to 300% more product contact than plastic wheel rails.
SpanTrack Lane features include a drop-in design for easy installation, freezer/cooler rating to below zero, and light, standard, and heavy-duty options to match SKU requirements. It also offers knuckled end treatment for improved ergonomic each picking, interior notching to save vertical space, and availability in to-the-inch increments.
SpanTrack Wheel Bed
SpanTrack Wheel Bed is a versatile, engineered-to-order carton flow bed that also installs into new or existing pallet racking with no shelves or intermediate support required, while delivering superior flexibility for operations with changing SKU profiles. Its full-width wheel design handles cartons of any size, and it is engineered to increase SKU accessibility, storage density, and picking speed. SpanTrack Wheel Bed also reduces flow interruptions by delivering 300% more product contact than plastic wheel rails and reducing order picker travel time.
SpanTrack Wheel Bed offers the same core installation and environmental advantages, including drop-in installation, freezer/cooler rating to below zero, and light, standard, and heavy-duty capacity options, along with knuckled-end treatment options and customizable end treatments. Where these universal carton flow beds stand out is flexibility for fast changeovers, including maximum left-to-right flexibility for easy re-slotting, shark fin infeed guides to ease replenishment, and a hex hub wheel design engineered for optimal flow.
SpeedCell High-Density Storage
SpeedCell is a high-density storage solution designed to store a large number of SKUs in a compact footprint. By converting underutilized rack space into organized pick locations, SpeedCell helps warehouses keep more inventory closer to the picker, which directly supports faster, more efficient order picking. It is especially valuable in high-SKU environments where pick speed, organization, and space utilization all need to improve at the same time.
SpeedCell improves order picking by:
- Significantly increasing SKU density without expanding footprint
- Reducing picker travel by consolidating more pick locations into a smaller area
- Improving pick face organization and SKU separation for better accuracy
- Supporting right-sized storage locations that are easier to slot and maintain
- Making replenishment and inventory control more consistent in high-SKU operations
SpeedCell columns are available in six standard sizes, ranging from XSl to XXL, and can be installed in new or existing pallet racking. The system is ergonomically designed and constructed from durable materials that resist flame and mold, and SpeedCell operates in temperatures from -20 degrees to 180 degrees Fahrenheit, making it suitable for a variety of warehouse environments. Each cell has a unique location label holder that supports basic picking methods as well as advanced directed picking technologies such as scanners, pick-to-light, or RFID systems.
UNEX also offers SpeedCell Ready Bay, which includes SpeedCell columns, plus a preassembled steel set and welded upright racks for standalone SpeedCell bays. With a five-year warranty and capacities up to 35 pounds per cell and up to 240 pounds per column, SpeedCell provides a durable, long-term storage solution that improves order picking accuracy and throughput without expanding warehouse footprint.
SpeedCell dynamic high-density storage is ideal for warehousing and order fulfillment operations, retail backrooms, omnichannel distribution centers, and other environments where increasing SKU locations, reducing travel time, and improving pick accuracy directly impact operational performance.
Pallet Track Pallet Flow
Pallet Track is a dynamic pallet flow system that uses gravity rollers or wheel rails installed on a slight incline to automatically advance pallets from the loading side to the picking side. It creates an ideal FIFO storage system where the next pallet flows into place at the pick face, reducing forklift traffic, improving access, and increasing overall throughput in order picking operations.
Pallet Track improves order picking by:
- Creating an ideal FIFO storage system that supports consistent inventory rotation and accessibility
- Increasing storage density by converting static pallet locations into pallet flow lanes
- Reducing forklift travel, congestion, and labor costs by keeping pallets positioned for efficient picking
- Reducing damage to inventory by minimizing repositioning and unnecessary handling
- Supporting a safer work environment with gravity-powered, energy-free pallet flow
Pallet Track systems can be configured in single or double-deep pallet handling lanes and are available in lengths ranging from 48 to 144 inches in 1-inch increments to fit a wide range of operations. They can be floor-mounted or supported by pallet rack beams, and include features such as spring-loaded rear stops to prevent accidental pallet rollback and unique end treatments to further customize the system to your facility's needs.
Roller Track
Pallet Track Roller Track uses durable pallet rollers for gravity-fed pallet flow and is well-suited for handling pallets with bottom boards parallel to the flow direction. This option is especially effective for heavier loads or pallet types such as single-face pallets, Euro-style pallets, and plastic pallets with feet.
Wheel Track
Pallet Track Wheel Track features staggered wheel-type flow rails commonly used to handle GMA-style wooden pallets with bottom boards perpendicular to the flow direction. Wheel Track is a versatile option for pallet types that may not align perfectly with roller lanes.
Pallet Track is ideal for high-throughput distribution centers, fulfillment operations, retail warehouses, manufacturing environments, and 3PL facilities where faster pallet access, improved storage density, and reliable FIFO rotation are essential to maintaining order picking performance and throughput.
Increase Order Picking Efficiency with UNEX Dynamic Storage Solutions
Order picking is the backbone of warehousing and fulfillment operations, and it is often the most labor-intensive and performance-sensitive process. Improving order picking efficiency requires more than incremental labor adjustments. It requires storage systems that actively support speed, accuracy, and flow.
Dynamic storage solutions improve order picking by keeping inventory organized, accessible, and positioned for efficient picking. UNEX solutions such as SpanTrack carton flow, SpeedCell high-density storage, and Pallet Track pallet flow allow warehouses to design pick environments around real operational demands rather than work around storage limitations.
If your operation is looking to increase order picking throughput, reduce labor strain, and make better use of available space, dynamic storage is a proven path forward. UNEX works with operations to design storage solutions that align with SKU profiles, order volumes, and growth plans.
Contact UNEX today to learn how dynamic storage solutions can transform your order picking operation and deliver measurable performance improvements where they matter most.
