Archive for July, 2009

What do Warehouse Design Consultants Know

Thursday, July 30th, 2009

Our experts on professional warehousing and storage solutions here at Industrial and Commercial Design (ICD) having been recently fighting their way through a flood of emails about offering advice on reducing warehouse costs and giving excellent advice on the best storage solutions to maximise warehouse space.

Our consultants really know their stuff and model themselves on the word ‘Consultant’ which means ‘to discuss’. They pride themselves on being able to offer great advice and discuss plans with a wide range of clients.

So what would they advise on the most common question we get here at Industrial and Commercial Design (ICD).

How can I reduce warehouse costs?

Well if you have been coming to this website for a while you know we have been giving great advice through our news system but here are some brief points to consider:

  1. Use a good racking system
  2. Use the space you have currently by using better storage solutions
  3. Optimize your warehouse layout so it is more efficient and cost effective
  4. If you large space above head height why not look at building a mezzanine floor.

Categories: Warehouse Consultancy | No Comments »

What is a Mezzanine Floor

Thursday, July 23rd, 2009

A Mezzanine floor is a raised platform that is supported by columns and is independent of the host building. It allows for extra floorspace from high wasted air space above existing work and storage areas. These can double floor space available and tend to be the most cost effective  and efficient way to introduce more floorspace and storage capacity.

Mezzanine floors start from as small as 2m x 2m and can have multiple tiers with high standards or special staircases, lifts or access gates. You can have wood or steel decking and can be finished in special colours  meaning any conceivable option can be incorporated.

Advantages are:

    • Cost-efficient increased space
    • Fully demountable, so they can be relocated at a later date
    • Increased potential storage space
    • Avoids relocation costs by making use of available space
    • Flexible design option, can be used for many purposes
    • Excellent fire protection available
    • Lightweight, economic steel structure
    • Bespoke design to meet precise customer requirements
    • Seamless integration within existing environment
    • Fast-track construction, with minimum disruption
    • High quality, powder coated ancillaries in a wide choice of colours

Posted In:
Categories: Maximize Space, Mezzanine Floors | No Comments »

Optimise Warehouse for Efficiency

Monday, July 20th, 2009

Here at Industrial & Commercial Design we like to give the best advice and consultancy on warehouse efficiency.

We have visited many and the space problem is a universal one not related to size or financial status of the individual company. Here at ICD we have recommended one or more of the following solutions based on each individual situation, for freeing existing space in the current center rather than moving to a larger facility and improving warehouse efficiency and optimization..

1. Get rid of waste

Slow or non-moving products begin to cut into productive space. These need to be sold at discount, or donated to groups. There will be an accounting hit as value of inventory is reduced, but the loss can be justified by considering the real cost of storing and moving obsolete stock. Additionally, profit opportunities may have been postponed for lack of space, actually reducing return on investment.

2. Move excess and out-of-season product to other storage areas.

Use available secured yard space on the premises, storing product in trailers or tents. This is especially useful when it will not be needed for several months. Be sure to stretch or shrink wrap to prevent damage from leakage when tents are used.

Rent outside storage space in a sub-prime, low ceiling, unheated building for rarely used product or product that can be shipped independently from regular orders.

Ideally all products stored remotely should be in bulk, several pallet deep, floor stacking to provide the best cube utilization.

3. Clean up your returned goods area.

As much as 30% of prime floor area may be devoted to storing and processing returned goods. Consider moving the entire returns operation to lower cost off-site space, or subcontract returns to an outside service provider or handicapped-staffed workshop. Using both options simultaneously will definitely provide real cost savings, as well as release much needed space for productive purposes.

6. Ship Direct to Customers.

Drop shipping from supplier directly to customer has been used for years to save space and handling in the warehouse. A variation on this can be very efficiently used when importing products from other countries for major customers. Entire container loads of pre-selected and pre-marked products can be drop shipped to such a customer, who in turn will unload the container. Since he did not receive stretch wrapped, palletized loads, you will probably share some of the savings with him. However, in addition to eliminating the storage space, you have saved all in-country shipping and double handling

Categories: Warehouse Consolidation, Warehouse Consultancy, Warehouse Cost, Warehouse Design, Warehouse Optimisation | No Comments »

Warehouse recession beating advice

Wednesday, July 15th, 2009

A slower homebuilding market-plus new government tax incentives-are encouraging dealers and distributors to update warehouses, add more storage, and increase overall efficiency.

Companies are using the recession to slim down and become more efficient. A well-designed warehouse allows more work to be completed with fewer employees.
A new emphasis on remodeling contractors and d-i-yers is also encouraging dealers to organise their warehouses and invest in new rack systems.

The trend is to better serve these types of customers, especially since the property market has hit rock bottom,” said Mark Fritz. “These two groups want to see and touch products before buying. They also buy in smaller lots than big homebuilders, so proper storage is very important.”

Often, the first decision is to choose the right kind of racking for organising and storing heavy and bulky items. “Depending on what you’re storing in your warehouse, you may want to choose pallet racks over cantilever racks, or vice versa,” said Ed Frankson, “Pallet racks offer selective pallet racking, which is the best solution for warehouses where it is necessary to keep a wide variety of articles in pallets; cantilever racks are more suitable for storing long loads.”

Pallet rack shelving offers capacities of up to 24,000 lbs. per upright and 6,000 lbs. per pair of beams. Structural pallet racks have upright capacity to 45,000 lbs. and beam capacity to 15,000 lbs.

Both kinds offer:

- direct access to all stored pallets and easy stock control

- the ability to handle one pallet without moving others

- absolute load storage flexibility, both in terms of weight and volume

In comparison, cantilever racks are ideal for timbers, beams, profiles and pipes. This type of rack offers the ability to segregate each type of product by commodity and size, and problem-free, height-adjustment storage that keeps product off the ground.
For vertical display and storage of items up to 16 ft. long, A-frames are the right choice. They are a heavy-duty, versatile layback system for vertical display and storage of items such as trim moulding, gutters, piping, etc. Adjustable arms form a divider system that can be manipulated for a variety of compartment sizes.

Categories: Warehouse Consolidation, Warehouse Consultancy, Warehouse Cost, Warehouse Design, Warehouse Health & Safety, Warehouse Optimisation, Warehouse Racking Systems, Warehouse Shelving, Warehouse Storage | No Comments »

Mezzanine floors for extending office space

Friday, July 10th, 2009

If a business requires more space then there are many solutions available to make the most of the area. Space saving can be made in the office, the warehouse and the outside areas.

Many businesses have a huge office space where at least 50% of it is redundant or not being utilised properly. By installing storage systems and shelving systems, items can be stored at height rather than on the floor. This freed space can then be given to the warehouse or production room. By using steel partitions a business can separate areas, give more space to a certain area or block off an area for privacy. The steel partitions available today look smart, business like and can be painted to complement the existing surroundings. Many of these systems are made to the client’s exact specifications and come ready to bolt up quickly and easily saving a large amount on labour costs.

Mezzanine floors are another great way of making better use of space. Warehouses and units tend to have high ceilings so a huge percentage of the structure is not used. By installing a mezzanine flooring system, a business can create extra office, meeting room or staff room space without altering the main layout of the premises. Mezzanine flooring can also be made with 2 or more storeys and they can be moved, modified and dismantled quickly if necessary. The weight that mezzanine platforms can take is up to 10Kn so businesses needing to store heavy pallets can take advantage of these flooring systems too. Make sure the manufacturer or supplier of the mezzanine flooring units takes care of the Building Control Application for you.

The storage of pallets is always a problem for businesses. They take up a large amount of floor space. Space saving can be made by stalling a pallet racking system. These systems can be used for palletised and non-palletised items and come in wide aisle and narrow aisle models. Warehouse pallet racking can mean storage up to 4 levels.

So above there are many ways in which a business can make better use of its existing premises and more importantly, these options are practical, cheap and easy to install.

Categories: Mezzanine Floors | No Comments »

Save Warehouse Money and Space

Friday, July 3rd, 2009

By using wide span shelving you can save money and valuable warehouse space.

A lot of companies buy pallet racks but they can also use wide span shelving as well. Doing so will save them money and valuable warehouse space.

Many companies buy pallet racks for heavy duty shelving because they don�t load the with pallets but store products on wire or steel decks.

A more cost effective method is to use wide span shelving which is not only less expensive but saves valuable warehouse space.

Wide span shelving has lengths up to 8 fee long and upright are double slotted like pallet racks.

Wide span shelving has capacities up to 3000 lbs per shelf which in reality would support 80% of pallets since most pallets don�t weigh more then that.

A big advantage of wide span shelving which is overlooked is its space saving benefits. The other advantage is its vertical spacing as well where wide beams are only 1 – 2 high.

For more information why not contact a member of our team today.

Categories: Mezzanine Floors, Shelving Systems, Storage Equipment, Warehouse Shelving | No Comments »

Guide to Working with Warehouse Storage Services

Thursday, July 2nd, 2009

Warehouse storage is essential for a number of businesses from businesses that produces a physical product to businesses that just store peoples property. If some businesses don’t want to build and maintain a storage warehouse on-site then there are many warehouse storage services.

Working with warehouse storage services is a vital part of accessing products you would store. It can also be a more cost effective short-term solution in this current economic climate.

The main issues of working with warehouse storage providers is

  • What services the facility can offer you to help track inventory.
  • How the warehouse storage business coordinates shipping.
  • Does the business offer third party logistics (3PL)

We can help if you need advice in this area as Industrial & Commercial Design have vast experience dealing in this sector.

Categories: Warehouse Consultancy, Warehouse Storage | No Comments »