ED Warehouse is a user friendly simulation software application developed with the ED simulation software which assists you in building and setting up a detailed warehouse model. When completed, experiments can be run to analyze the transportation flows and processes within the warehouse. Processes in warehouses are often complex and very dynamic, making simulation a useful method to analyze them. While the simulation is running, you can view the warehouse processes in 2D as well as in 3D and look real-time at the different performance indicators. A great effort has been made in realizing a neat 3D visualization with the use of realistic 3D truck models and detailed truck movements.

ED Warehouse is suitable for non-simulation experts and does not require any scripting. A user friendly graphical user interface (GUI) enables you to build and setup an existing or future warehouse in just a couple of hours. One step of the GUI is the section layout where you can create and set-up the different sections within the warehouse. The sections can be easily positioned using an imported AutoCAD drawing. ED Warehouse currently contains the following sections: Storage, Staging, Shipping and Receiving, Battery Charging/Changing, Parking and Miscellaneous. The latter can be used for processes like wrapping and packing. The storage section contains four different types of storage: Adjustable pallet racks (APR), double deep APR, drive-in racking and block stacking.

Inbound and outbound flows can be filled in by either using discrete distributions or by manually filling in an arrival and departure table. Outbound flows can contain full pallets as well as order-pick lists for smaller packages. Products can be transported by one of the five major forklift truck types: order picker, very narrow aisle, reach, power pallet and counterbalance trucks. Of these truck types different model designations can be easily created and imported by filling in their settings in a supplied VDI sheet in Excel. You can also add your own 3D models and 2D pictures to make the models look very realistic.

After running a simulation experiment the results can be analyzed. Results can be easily captured in screenshots for usage in other (presentation) programs. You can run different experiments by making changes in the settings or the layout. The results can be compared and analysed in order to improve and test the performance of the (future) warehouse. Questions that can be answered with ED Warehouse are amongst others:

• What is the utilization of my trucks and drivers over the day?
• What type of forklift trucks do I require and how many do I need?
• Are there any congestion areas?
• What is the pallet flow through and utilization of the different areas?
• Can I ship the desired number of pallet loads on time?
• What is my cost per pallet location?
• Can I improve my performance by changing my pallet storage configuration, i.e. where can I best store specific product types or classes?

ED Warehouse is available as a standalone product and comes with an extensive help file.