Person To Goods System
Person-to-goods (P2G) is a warehouse order-picking method where the operator travels to the inventory location to retrieve SKUs, rather than inventory being delivered to a fixed workstation. Also called picker-to-goods, it is the manual opposite of goods-to-person automation, with workers walking aisles to collect items for orders. In industry usage, the term is often written as P2G or PtG and is considered the traditional baseline for manual order fulfillment.
In a manufacturing shop floor or warehouse, person-to-goods workflow means the picker walks aisles, zones, or reserve storage to collect components for a work order, kit, pallet build, or outbound shipment. For raw material tracking, the picker scans bin locations, lot codes, or pallet IDs at the storage face, then moves the material to a staging area, line-side supermarket, or packing conveyor for downstream use. The method is common in case picking, piece picking, and manual replenishment flows where inventory remains stationary and labor moves to it. Operational design typically uses directed routes, pick-to-pallet or pick-to-belt execution, and pick-assist tools such as carts, pick-to-light, or route-optimization software to reduce walking waste. Reported pick rates for person-to-goods are typically lower than goods-to-person; SSI Schaefer cites about 150–250 cases/hour for person-to-goods versus 350–650 cases/hour for goods-to-person.
- Excess walking time creates a throughput bottleneck: Long aisle travel consumes labor on non-value-added movement, reducing lines per hour and slowing order release completion. Route optimization and zone sequencing help but cannot eliminate the inherent travel cost of manual picking.
- Slotting and replenishment errors cause stockouts at the pick face: If reserve inventory is not replenished correctly, the picker finds an empty location, forcing backorders, substitutions, or unplanned search labor that stalls fulfillment.
- High SKU variability increases mis-picks and congestion: In dense manual zones, similar packaging, poor label visibility, or weak scan discipline cause wrong-item selection and repeated aisle traffic, especially during peak waves or urgent line-side pulls.
Is Person-to-Goods automated?
No, not by definition. It is the manual model where the worker moves to the stock; automation may assist with routing or picking aids, but the core travel pattern remains human-to-inventory.
Is Person-to-Goods the same as Goods-to-Person?
No. Goods-to-person brings inventory to a fixed station using ASRS, robots, shuttles, or conveyors, while person-to-goods requires the worker to walk to storage. They are opposite fulfillment architectures.
Where does person-to-goods fit in material flow design?
It is the baseline fulfillment architecture for manual warehouses and many hybrid operations, especially where SKU volumes, capital limits, or irregular item sizes make full automation impractical.