Making your warehouse storage more efficient is not necessarily just about improving your use of space, it is also about optimising your layout for maximum throughput and productivity. There are a number of ways to make sure your warehouse is operating at its best – here are a few of our favourites.
Install cantilever racking
This kind of racking is designed for longer items: fence panels, timber, pipes, etc. Using a cantilever rack instead of more traditional shelving-type storage means that you can access the items more quickly (improving your pick times), and you can organise different sizes or variants more easily. If you stock these kinds of oversized and heavy items, cantilever racking is simply the best solution for you.
Use purpose-built pallet racking
Pallets are great for storing and transporting heavy loads – there is no doubt about that. Once you get the pallets into the warehouse though, they can become problematic. The large pallet base, with often uneven or mis-shaped loads, can be difficult to store effectively – meaning you either have to unload and reload the pallets when you receive or ship goods, or you need to find the space around your site to leave a loaded pallet storage locker Victorville
The solution is to use dedicated pallet racking – these heavy-duty units are built for easy and efficient pallet storage; the forklift or pallet truck driver simply manoeuvres the pallet into position in the racking and you are good to go. You can find pallet racking built to hold anything from six to 24 pallets, fully laden – so do some research and get the right racking solution for your site.
Some suppliers can provide you with double-depth pallet racks – these let you store pallets back-to-back as well as adjacent to each other. Typically they are most effective for fast moving goods and you will need to make sure that first-in-first-out policies are being adhered to – use racking labels to monitor this.
Design your layout to suit your operations
You can make more of your space by designing your layout with more thought and care. If you instigate a one-way system, for example, you can make your aisles narrower and thus store more goods. What about your vertical space? Many warehouses just don’t use the airspace that they have, focusing instead on expanding the physical footprint. This can be costly – getting the right racking solutions in place from the start means that you can store upwards as well as outwards.
Don’t forget about any outdoor space you have – if this can be secured, then you should absolutely start storing goods outdoors if possible. Make sure that any racking you buy is suited for use in different weather conditions, and consider using canopies to cover any items that may be damaged by water.
Assess your stock levels
Are you constantly overstocked on slow-moving goods? This is taking valuable space from your faster-moving products – take the time to carefully assess your actual stock requirements and then implement stock levels that make more sense for your business.
