A(top)
Absorption Costing
Applying variable and fixed costs to the value of inventory.
Activity-Based Costing
An accounting system that measures cost and performance of specific logistics activities.
Ad Hoc Order
Urgent order that needs to be fulfilled in a short time and without prior notice
AGR (Arrival Goods Notice)
A report that contains detail arrival goods information.
Aisle
A passageway between racks or blocks of inventory.
ALES (Axapta Logistics Execution System)
A logistics management system that combines features of ERP & SCM.
Ambient area
Warehouse with normal room temperature ≦32o C & relative humidity≦80%
APS (Advanced Planning and Scheduling)
A subcomponent of supply chain planning, typically contextually describing manufacturing
planning and scheduling.
ASN (Advanced Ship Notice)
Electronic message, including electronic data interchange (EDI) or Extensible Markup Language
(XML), giving notification of product due prior to receipt.
ATO (Assemble-to-Order)
Strategy allowing a product or service to be made to specific order, where a large number of
products can be assembled in various forms from common components. This requires sophisticated
planning processes to anticipate changing demand for internal components or accessories while
focusing on mass customization of the final products to individual customers.
ATP (Available-to-Promise)
Uncommitted inventory and planned production in master scheduling to support customer order
promises.
Automated Storage and Retrieval System (AS/RS)
Computer-driven highrise system used to store and select cases or items automatically. A system
typically consists of highrise shelving, multi-level conveyors, and highrise industrial truck
equipment.
Automatic Replenishment
An extension of QR and CR where suppliers assume responsibility for retail inventories and
replenishment
Automation
The combination of hardware (computer), software (programs and design), and machines (conveyors,
etc.) to accomplish a series of deci-sions and interrelated physical tasks in a logical sequence
(e.g., storage and replenishment, case selection, and automatic sorting).
Average Inventory
The average inventory level over a period of time.
B (top) B/O/H
Balance-On-Hand – an inventory of product in the warehouse shown as warehouse total, reserve
total, and pick location total.
B2B (Business-to-Business)
e-commerce term for communications between companies and their suppliers
B2C (Business-to-Consumer)
e-commerce term for communications between companies and their customers
B2G (Business-to-Government)
Business activity between business entity and government
Back Order
The automatic addition of the out-of-stocks listed on one order to another shipment being
delivered to a retail store. There are two types of back orders: 1) receiving – coming from a
supplier or vendor (the back order is sent with the next order), and 2) shipping – going to a
customer (send the back order with the next order).
Backhaul
In a distribution center operation, a merchandise shipment (usually from a supplier) brought
back to the wholesale facility on the return trip of a truck that has made deliveries to retail
stores.
Barge
A flat-bottomed vessel towed or pushed by another craft for transporting freight in rivers.
Batch Picking (Batch Selection)
A method of order selection in which several orders for different cus-tomers, or a
"batch" of them, are picked together. Generally, a number of selectors work at the
same time in different sections of the facility to pick the batch.
Benchmarking
The comparison of performance against practices of leading companies for the purpose of
improving performance.
Best Practice
State-of-industry performance or application.
Bill of Lading
A document issued by a carrier that records the receipt of goods for shipment and the contract
terms. It is not an invoice.
Block Stack
Goods on a pallet and are stacked up one by one without racks.
Break-Bulk
The separation of consolidated bulk load into smaller individual shipments.
Broker
A person or agency that acts as the agent for another.
Build-to-Order
Product or service to be made upon receiving order.
C (top) Call Center
A service center with customer service staff in responding to customer’s day-to-day inquiries.
Capable-to-Promise (CTP)
Refers to a system that allows an enterprise to commit orders against available capacity, as
well as inventory. These systems are evolving to include multiple sites, as well as the entire
distribution network.
Capacity Planning
Capacity planning specifies the level of resources (e.g., facilities, equipment and labor force
size) that best supports the enterprise's competitive strategy for production.
Cargo
The freight carred by a ship, aircraft, truck or other vessel or vehicle.
Carrier
Any individual, company, or corporation engaged in transporting goods.
Carrousel
A type of equipment used for selection with trays that rotate in a circular motion and bring the
product directly to the selector.
Cart
A manually pushed or pulled platform that has a handle and four wheels. It is used to move
merchandise in the facility.
Case
The storage case that is taken in at receiving. This can vary from a ven-dor case when it is
split during receiving. The column in a table repre-sents the number of retail units in a case.
Case Cube
The cubic size (usually in cubic feet) of a case computed by multiply-ing the length times the
width times the height of the case (L x W x H).
Case Cube Arrangement
An approach to merchandise layout in which case dimensions are the criteria. All products
packaged in the same-size shipping containers are grouped and stored near one another. This
arrangement helps selectors build solid pallet loads.
Case Lot
A complete, unopened case of goods. Case lot also refers to a group of cases of goods purchased
at one price, instead of being priced by the case.
Case Pack
The number of selling units in a shipping case.
CBM (Cube Meter)
The cubic size of goods computed by Length x Width X Height in the unit of meter.
C-Commerce
Refers to collaborative, electronically enabled business interactions among an enterprise's
internal personnel, business partners and customers throughout a trading community. The trading
community could be an industry, industry segment, supply chain or supply chain segment (see
Research Note SPA-08-5311).
Central Warehouse
A warehouse that all goods are gathered at one place and then distribute to different points.
Claim
A document that provides evidence needed to prove loss due to damage, shortage, or overcharge.
Clear Height (Stacking Height)
The functional height of the facility – the maximum height to which pallets of merchandise can
be safely and conveniently stacked. A three-foot open space must always be maintained above the
clear height.
Code-Dated
Merchandise bearing a date code indicating when a product was pack-aged, placed on display, or
should be sold. Code dates facilitate rotation and help prevent the sale of off-quality items.
Collaborative Commerce
suppliers, retailers and logistics companies sharing information for optimum supply chain
efficiency
Collaborative Planning Forecasting and Replenishment (CPFR)
Data and process model standards developed for collaboration between suppliers and an enterprise
with proscribed methods for planning (agreement between the trading partners to conduct business
in a certain way); forecasting (agreed-to methods, technology and timing for sales, promotions,
and order forecasting); and replenishment (order generation and order fulfillment). The
Voluntary Inter-Industry Commerce Standards (VICS) committee, a group dedicated to the adoption
of bar-coding and EDI in the department store/mass merchandise industries, has established CPFR
standards for the consumer goods industry that are published by the Uniform Code Council (UCC).
Commodities
Basic food items, many of which are raw materials from which pro-cessed foods are made. These
are the speculative items of the food industry (e.g., wheat, corn).
Commodity Grouping (Family Grouping)
Collection of merchandise, similar in nature and arranged together in a retail store (e.g., pet
foods in the dry grocery category).
Common Carrier
A for-hire carrier that serve general public at reasonable rates.
Compartmentalized Trailer
A trailer divided into three sections to accommodate combination loads. There is one section for
frozen foods, another for refrigerated perishables, and a third for non-refrigerated products
(e.g., dry grocer-ies).
Component
A part of a system or mechanism.
Consignee
The receiver of a freight shipment.
Consignor
The sender of a freight shipment, usually the seller.
Consolidation
The act of assembling less-than-truckload (LTL) shipments into truck-load (TL) shipments.
Continuous Moves
Normally used in conjunction with private truck fleets in process industries to keep the trucks
moving with different loads and driver crews on regular routes with just-in-time materials. This
concept is being adopted by public fleets to utilize their assets more effectively.
Conveyor
A flexible band or belt used to transport cases or products from one place in a facility to
another.
Conveyor Pick-To-Belt System
A pick method used by selectors to move cases or items out of storage. The merchandise may move
to sorting and consolidation areas or go directly into trailers for delivery to retail stores.
Coordinates (X,Y,Z)
The distance (in inches) from the warehouse origin point (0,0,0) along the X-, Y-, or Z-axis,
identifying a specific location.
Core Competency
A company's primary functions which is essential to its success.
Cost and Freight(CNF)
price includes goods and transport.
Counterbalanced Forklift
A type of industrial lift truck that can carry heavy loads on forks extending in front of the
unit. The truck's weight, plus the weight at the back end of the machine, counter-balances the
weight of the pallet it picks up. Because this equipment has a wide turning radius, it requires
aisles 10 to 12 feet (3 – 3.7 meters) wide.
CRM (Customer Relationship Management)
The management of maintaining long-term business relationship between business and customers.
Cross Aisle Passage
An access aisle used by selectors to avoid going to the end of a long aisle. This aisle crosses
perpendicular to the selection aisles.
Cross Aisle Pick Pattern
A selection method where the selector works back and forth on alter-nate sides of an aisle.
Cross Docking
Product (usually in pallet quantities) is designated for certain customers before or at the time
of delivery. The product is taken directly from the inbound dock to the outbound dock. Note: The
received quantity is not added into the inventory.
Cube
The total capacity of a warehouse, truck, back room, re-pack room, pal-let, shelf, or product,
including vertical and horizontal dimensions.
Customization
A product or service is modified according to customer’s requirement.
Customs
The process of inspecting imported or exported goods to determine if and how much duty is
required.
Customs Duties
Taxes collected by states upon imports to their territory.
Cycle Count
Periodical stock check to ensure the accuracy between physical inventory and book record.
Cycle Time
The amount of time it takes to complete a business process.
