How do wave picking and zone picking differ in an FC?

• A. Wave picking minimizes labeling steps.
• B. Zone picking assigns pickers to specific zones; waves can cross zones.
• C. Wave picking groups orders into waves based on priorities; zone picking assigns pickers to specific zones; waves can cover multiple zones.
• D. Wave picking is used for inbound receiving; zone picking is used for outbound.

Answer: (C)

The main idea here is to understand how work is organized for pulling outbound orders. Wave picking groups orders into time-based batches (waves) that are planned around priorities, due times, or other rules, and a single wave can include items from multiple zones so pickers may move across different areas to complete the batch efficiently. Zone picking, on the other hand, fixes each picker to a specific physical zone; they focus on items within that zone, with items for a single order potentially coming from several zones and requiring handoffs to consolidate. So, waves emphasize flexible, prioritized batching that can span multiple zones, while zone picking emphasizes specialization by area. The combination described—waves defined by priorities and able to cover multiple zones, and zone picking assigning pickers to zones—best captures how these two approaches interact in an FC.