Title :
EMBEDDED POST-PICK AUDIT IN SAP EXTENDED WAREHOUSE MANAGEMENT: A CONFIGURABLE OB41/OB42 FRAMEWORK FOR SCAN-VERIFIED ORDER ACCURACY
Bhanu Chander Keerthi
Abstract : Post-pick order accuracy verification in pharmaceutical and medical device distribution is a regulatory and operational imperative, yet standard SAP Extended Warehouse Management (EWM) does not embed a scan-verified audit step within the physical pick execution sequence. Verification is typically handled as a downstream quality control function, introducing time lag, duplicate handling, and potential for pick-to-ship errors to pass through undetected. This paper presents a POSC-embedded post-pick audit framework implemented through the OB41 and OB42 process steps within EWM's Process-Oriented Storage Control sequence. The architecture intercepts each Warehouse Task at the post-confirmation boundary, triggers an RF device scan audit of the picked Handling Unit against the Outbound Delivery Order specification, and blocks Warehouse Order completion until the scan audit passes or a supervisor-authorised override is logged. A configurable control table externalises audit scope, exception routing, and bypass authorisation parameters, enabling site-level tuning without ABAP development. Deployed at a Johnson & Johnson healthcare distribution site, the framework reduced post-ship customer complaint events attributable to pick inaccuracy by 74% in the first operational year and delivered an annual quality and compliance cost saving of USD 150,000 (Author's primary implementation data, 2023). The contribution is a documented POSC-step audit design pattern applicable to any EWM deployment requiring embedded pick verification.
Keywords : Post-Pick Verification, Warehouse Task Validation, OB41/OB42, Handling Unit (HU) Verification.