In food production, slotting isn’t just about warehouse efficiency—it’s about protecting product quality, ensuring compliance, and keeping pace with demand. From staging raw materials to shipping finished goods, how and where items are stored can significantly impact safety, freshness, and throughput.

Yet many food facilities still rely on static or manually adjusted slotting methods. The result?

• Wasted time searching for SKUs
• FIFO/LIFO inconsistencies
• Inefficient and disorganized pick paths
• Cross-contamination and sanitation risks

The solution? **Smart inventory slotting**, powered by **RF Plus™**, that applies handling rules, traceability logic, and real-time data to increase speed, reduce waste, and enhance Overall Operations Effectiveness (OOE).

Why Slotting Matters for Food OOE

Modern food production environments must handle:

• Multi-temperature SKUs
• Allergen and raw/ready-to-eat separation
• Expiry-sensitive products
• Complex, multi-format packaging
• Lot, batch, and serial tracking

Without dynamic slotting and enforcement:

• Older inventory may be buried behind newer stock
• Workers may cross sanitation boundaries or handle incompatible SKUs
• Pickers may walk hundreds of extra metres per shift
• Inventory flow slows—dragging down your OOE

Smart slotting closes these gaps by automating the logic, guiding execution, and keeping the system responsive to daily shifts in volume and velocity.

Smart Slotting Strategies: FIFO, LIFO & Zone Intelligence

RF Plus™ supports the execution of advanced slotting rules:

FIFO (First-In, First-Out)

• Prioritizes picking of oldest inventory
• Ideal for perishables (produce, dairy, protein)
• Prevents expiry-related spoilage
• Generates pick alerts for out-of-sequence scans

LIFO (Last-In, First-Out)

• Applied to non-expiry-based materials (e.g., raw packaging, flour, or stabilizers)
• Used for high-volume backstock and staging operations

Zone-Based Allergen & Compliance Control

• Slotting logic prevents allergens or raw items from being stored near ready-to-eat zones
• Avoids manual sorting errors that lead to sanitation breaches
• Enhances audit trail readiness and HACCP alignment

The result: Better flow, less risk, and greater inventory control—all contributing to higher OOE.

How RF Plus™ Brings Slotting to Life

RF Plus™ uses real-time data and ERP integration to intelligently assign and adjust bin locations.

Key features include:

• Expiry-based bin assignments for perishables
• Velocity-based optimization to keep high-movement SKUs close to pick faces
• Temperature zone support for chilled, frozen, and ambient goods
• Automated re-slotting triggers based on demand or capacity changes
• Live pick alerts for mismatches or incorrect inventory access

The impact? Faster picks, lower spoilage, more accurate orders—and improved inventory turnover.

TED™ Executes the Slotting Plan on the Floor

Slotting plans are only as good as their execution. **TED™ (Task Execution Dashboard)** bridges that gap by guiding floor teams through each task with precision.

TED™ enables:

• Smart pick path guidance based on updated bin locations
• Task prioritization aligned with expiry or risk level
• Missing inventory alerts when products are not at the expected location
• Zone control logic to avoid overlap during sanitation windows or allergen handling

Facilities using TED™ report:

• 30% fewer pick sequence errors
• Significant reductions in spoilage and compliance incidents
• Measurable OOE improvements within a single quarter

Smart Slotting = Higher OOE, Fewer Risks

These aren’t just efficiency gains—they’re business-critical outcomes that drive profitability, compliance, and customer trust.

Turn Slotting into a Competitive Advantage

Smart slotting is more than a layout strategy—it’s a cornerstone of modern food warehouse performance. With RF Plus™ and TED™, you can:

• Preserve freshness through real-time FIFO/LIFO logic
• Reduce labour waste with optimized pick sequencing
• Improve compliance with allergen and sanitation safeguards
• Respond faster to demand surges and SKU velocity shifts
• Maintain high OOE scores with minimal manual intervention

Slot smarter. Operate faster. Stay compliant.