Industry
E-commerce & Logistics (Grocery)
Need End-to-End Warehouse Operations?
Let's discuss how our Operations Traceability Platform can automate your procurement, warehouse, and delivery workflows
BigBasket
End-to-End Warehouse Operations Platform
India's largest online grocer—650 locations, 1000+ IoT devices deployed
Scale
40 sourcing centers, 30 fulfillment centers, 600+ dark stores, 2.5M crates/pallets, 1000+ IoT devices
Solutions Deployed
11 Complete Workflows—Procurement to Last-Mile Delivery
The Challenge
BigBasket sources fresh fruits, vegetables, and meat from thousands of farmers across India daily, then processes, labels, and delivers to millions of customers through 650 locations (40 sourcing centers, 30 fulfillment centers, and 600+ dark stores). The end-to-end operation faced multiple challenges:
- Manual data entry at sourcing centers—farmers' produce weighed, quality checked, and data typed into tablets by hand
- No real-time visibility into procurement, stock transfers, or warehouse operations across 650 locations
- Labeling errors and manual pricing updates across hundreds of packing stations causing customer complaints and wastage
- No farm-to-fork traceability—unable to trace produce back to source farm
- 2.5 million returnable crates and pallets constantly moving across sourcing centers, fulfillment centers, and dark stores with zero visibility, causing millions in annual losses
- Manual delivery person payouts with complex incentive structures taking days to calculate
- Inventory discrepancies between physical stock and ERP records
- Hours of delay between physical operations and system updates
As we say: "ERPs Repeat The Lies We Tell Them". BigBasket needed a single platform to automate and trace every step from farm gate to customer doorstep.
The IoTReady Solution
Complete end-to-end warehouse operations platform covering 11 integrated workflows
1. Procurement at Sourcing Centers
Real-time data capture at 40 collection centers:
- WiFi-enabled weight scales auto-capture weight and sync directly to cloud platform
- Barcode/QR scanners identify farmer, crate, and produce type instantly
- Mobile app workflow guides operators through quality checks with green/red light feedback
- Instant GRN generation synced to WMS in under 3 seconds
Watch: Farmer selling leafy vegetables at BigBasket collection center—scanned, weighed, and validated in under 3 seconds
2. Stock Transfers (Audited)
Complete audit trail for all material movements:
- Transfer Out workflow with QR scanning and operator authentication
- Transfer In verification at receiving location
- Discrepancy detection between sent and received quantities
- Real-time WMS updates for every transfer
3. Dump Management
Track and record rejected or spoiled produce:
- QR-based dump recording with reason codes and quantities
- Traceability to source for quality feedback to farmers and suppliers
- Wastage analytics by SKU, supplier, and location
4. Centralised Labeling Solution (650 Locations, 1000+ Devices)
India's largest automated labeling deployment—farm-to-fork traceability for fruits, vegetables, and meat across all BigBasket distribution centers and dark stores:
- 1000+ IoT-enabled devices deployed across 650 locations—all sourcing centers, fulfillment centers, and dark stores
- IoT-enabled label printers integrated with WiFi scales at packing stations achieving 25-30 packs per minute
- Centralized label management—pricing and SKU updates sync automatically to all 1000+ printers nationwide
- 100% elimination of labeling errors—no more printing labels with yesterday's prices
- Farm-to-fork traceability with barcodes linking produce to source farm, batch, and quality checks
- Automatic weight capture detecting wastage and over-packing by 90%
- Real-time production tracking—~6 hours saved per packing station weekly
Learn more about automated labeling →
5. Packed Material Transfer
Move labeled goods from packing to storage:
- Batch scanning of labeled items for bulk transfers
- Operator authentication and timestamp recording
- Location tracking through warehouse zones
6. Palletisation
Organize crates and packages for efficient movement:
- Pallet ID assignment with QR codes
- Crate/box scanning to build pallet manifest
- Mixed-SKU pallets with complete contents tracking
7. Pallet/Crate Putaway
Track storage locations in warehouse:
- QR-based location assignment for racks, zones, and bins
- Real-time WMS updates on putaway completion
- Aging alerts for perishable items nearing expiry
8. Bulk Weighment
Verification weighing for quality and compliance:
- WiFi scales for outbound shipment verification
- Weight validation against expected quantities
- Discrepancy alerts for investigation
9. Cycle Count
Regular inventory audits without disrupting operations:
- QR-based cycle counting with handheld scanners
- System-guided counting by location or SKU
- Automatic variance detection and reconciliation workflows
- 99% inventory accuracy vs 85% with manual tracking
10. Delivery Person Tracking & Payouts
Complete last-mile delivery management:
- Real-time delivery tracking with GPS and mobile app
- 30+ incentive structures—on-time delivery, ratings, distance, order count, etc.
- Automated payout calculations—from days to minutes
- Driver dashboard showing earnings, performance metrics, and incentive progress
- Proof of delivery with customer signature and photo capture
11. Crate & Pallet Asset Management
Track 2.5 million returnable crates and pallets across 670+ locations:
- QR codes on every crate and pallet for individual identification
- Check-in/check-out at every handoff point—sourcing center, fulfillment center, dark store, customer
- Real-time inventory and asset traceability across entire network showing which crates/pallets are at which facilities
- Aging and utilization analytics to identify idle or lost assets
- 30% reduction in asset losses saving millions annually
- Automated return workflows from customers to fulfillment centers
Business Impact
99%
Inventory Accuracy
Up from 85% with manual tracking
100%
Labeling Error Elimination
No more wrong prices on labels
90%
Wastage Reduction
From over-packing detection
30%
Reduction in Asset Losses
Crates & pallets—saving millions annually
Real-Time
WMS Updates
From hours of delay to instant sync
Farm-to-Fork
Complete Traceability
Every item traced to source
Technologies Deployed
IoT Weight Scales
WiFi-enabled scales at sourcing centers and packing stations for auto-capture and real-time sync
QR Codes & Barcode Scanners
Crate/pallet identification, farmer ID, SKU scanning, and inventory/asset traceability across 670+ locations
IoT Label Printers
WiFi-enabled printers with centralized management for farm-to-fork traceability labels
Mobile Apps
Android apps for operators, delivery personnel, and managers with workflow guidance and real-time feedback
GPS Tracking
Real-time delivery person tracking and route optimization
Cloud Platform
Centralized label management, analytics dashboards, and WMS integration
Rapid Deployment & Scalability
From pilot to 40 sourcing centers, 30 fulfillment centers, and 600+ dark stores in under 2 years. New locations go live in days, not months.
IoTReady's low-code platform allowed BigBasket to adapt workflows without waiting for vendor change requests. Add new incentive structures, update workflows, and modify business rules with minimal code.
Related Solutions
Inventory Management
Automated inventory capture from procurement to dispatch with real-time WMS/ERP sync.
Asset Management
Complete lifecycle management of returnable containers, tools, and equipment—track, maintain, optimize, retire.
Productivity Monitoring
Track operator activities and ensure SOP compliance at collection centers and warehouses.