METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR A VISUAL TRIGGER FOR WAREHOUSE INVENTORY REPLENISHMENT

1 : A method for warehouse inventory replenishment, comprising:

providing a kanban card comprising multiple field areas;

associating the kanban card with an internal product line;

assigning a color representative of the internal product line to the kanban card;

designating a supplier for a part associated with the kanban card;

identifying a material type for the part on the kanban card;

calculating a lot size for the part based on lead time, part dimensions, rack clearance, and demand; determining an appropriate number of kanban cards to support loading levels;

indicating a lead time for purchase orders for the part on the kanban card;

specifying a pallet type for the part on the kanban card;

defining warehouse locations for the part indicated on the kanban card as “pick” and “reserve”;

encoding a barcode corresponding to the part number on the kanban card;

displaying a color coded loading level associated with the kanban card;

using the color coded loading level as a visual trigger for inventory shortages;

reporting inventory shortages indicated by the visual trigger to an enterprise resource planning analyst;

ordering additional parts associated with the inventory shortages; and

restoring supply to meet loading level requirements based on the ordered additional parts.

2 : An apparatus for warehouse inventory replenishment, comprising:

a kanban card comprising multiple field areas;

means for associating the kanban card with an internal product line;

means for assigning a color representative of the internal product line to the kanban card;

means for designating a supplier for a part associated with the kanban card;

means for identifying a material type for the part on the kanban card;

means for calculating a lot size for the part based on lead time, part dimensions, rack clearance, and demand;

means for determining an appropriate number of kanban cards to support loading levels;

means for indicating a lead time for purchase orders for the part on the kanban card;

means for specifying a pallet type for the part on the kanban card;

means for defining warehouse locations for the part indicated on the kanban card as “pick” and “reserve”;

means for encoding a barcode corresponding to the part number on the kanban card;

means for displaying a color coded loading level associated with the kanban card;

means for using the color coded loading level as a visual trigger for inventory shortages;

means for reporting inventory shortages indicated by the visual trigger to an enterprise resource planning analyst;

means for ordering additional parts associated with the inventory shortages; and

means for restoring supply to meet loading level requirements based on the ordered additional parts.

3 : A kanban card for warehouse inventory replenishment, comprising:

a first field area indicating an internal product line associated with the card;

a second field area indicating a supplier for a part associated with the card;

a third field area indicating a material type for the part;

a fourth field area indicating a calculated lot size for the part;

a fifth field area indicating an appropriate number of cards to support loading levels;

a sixth field area indicating a lead time for purchase orders for the part;

a seventh field area indicating a pallet type for the part;

an eighth field area indicating warehouse locations for the part as “pick” and “reserve”;

a ninth field area providing a barcode corresponding to the part number;

a tenth field area displaying a color coded loading level associated with the card; and

an eleventh field area showing a printed date of the card.

4 : A method for identifying inventory shortages in a warehouse, comprising:

displaying a plurality of kanban cards, each card associated with a warehouse part;

indicating a color coded loading level on each kanban card;

using the color coded loading level as a visual trigger;

identifying a first loading level corresponding to a first color on a kanban card;

identifying a second loading level corresponding to a second color on a kanban card;

recognizing that the second loading level is lower than the first loading level;

reporting a shortage of parts associated with the second loading level to an enterprise resource planning analyst; and

ordering additional parts to restore supply and meet a first loading level requirement.