Trace a recalled lot across storage, picking and shipments

Instruction: Create a trace summary with quantities, containment actions and ownership of unresolved items.

Context:

At 14:10, an internal notice identifies SKU A-16, lot L7, for a recall hold. All listed quantities are individual units, and the records below describe distinct quantities at that time. The original receipt shows 60 units of A-16/L7. Pallet P-10 also contains another SKU with the same lot text. A separate carton contains 6 units of A-16 whose lot label is unreadable. The site directs associates to hold identified or uncertain affected stock and report evidence; the recall coordinator owns scope, downstream notifications and release decisions. Explain the trace summary you would prepare.

Unit or shipmentLocation or statusSKULotQuantity
P-10Rack R-1A-16L718
T-11Packing, not shippedA-16L712
S-31DepartedA-16L720
S-32DepartedA-16L710
P-10Rack R-1, same palletB-22L78
P-20Rack R-2A-16L814
P-30Exception areaA-16Unreadable6

Optional work sample for experienced associates: Written working is welcome. This is not a universal warehouse interview requirement.

Updated

Example answer

I would report thirty confirmed affected units still here and thirty already departed, accounting for the sixty received. I would hold the identified local stock and hold the six unreadable-lot units separately until their lot is verified. The eight B-22 units share the lot text, but they are a different SKU. My trace summary would link each quantity to its item, lot, location or shipment, and I would send the recall coordinator any movement updates urgently.

Reasoning

Confirmed local affected stock is 18 + 12 = 30 units; departed affected stock is 20 + 10 = 30; together they reconcile to the 60-unit receipt. The six unreadable-lot units are uncertain and must not be silently added as six confirmed recalled units. A-16/L8 and B-22/L7 do not match the stated SKU-and-lot pair. The mixed pallet remains controlled until approved segregation or release instructions address its contents.

The trace artifact should include receipt reference, SKU, lot, quantity, physical unit identifier, current location or shipment reference, observation time, hold confirmation, evidence link and action owner. Preserve actual logistic-unit identifiers, including SSCCs where used. Dispatch verifies movements; the recall coordinator owns external notifications and scope changes.

Assessment criteria

  • Reconciles 30 local plus 30 departed to 60 confirmed affected units.
  • Separates the SKU-and-lot match from same-lot other SKU and unreadable-lot uncertainty.
  • Produces a traceable artifact with containment evidence and assigned owners.

Stronger answer: Checks the snapshot against current movements so a correct historical count does not conceal an uncontained shipment.

Acceptable alternatives: A concise table, movement log or structured verbal summary is acceptable if it preserves SKU, lot, quantity, location/shipment, observation time and ownership. Uncertain P-30 stock stays on hold and separate from the sixty confirmed units.

Material mistakes: Recalling B-22 merely because its lot text matches, adding P-30's six units as confirmed L7 without evidence, double-counting S-33 after its transfer, or making customer notifications outside the coordinator's role.

Follow-up question

Can the fourteen A-16/L8 units be released immediately?

They do not match the stated recall pair, but I would leave any existing hold in place until the authorized owner applies the notice and site release rules. I would not expand or narrow the recall scope myself.

Pressure test

Changed constraint: Dispatch confirms that 6 of T-11’s 12 units departed as shipment S-33 at 14:12 before the hold took effect.

Adaptive response: Update the trace to 18 + 6 = 24 affected units on site and 20 + 10 + 6 = 36 departed, still totaling 60. Link S-33 to T-11’s movement and send that urgent update to the recall coordinator. Confirm the remaining six in T-11 are held. Keep P-30’s uncertainty separate; do not count S-33 twice.

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