Storage logistics and warehousing are integral parts of many businesses in the UK and getting the right operational processes in place is key, not only for improving efficiency but for keeping costs down too.
These are two areas of distribution that are deeply dependant on each other:
- Warehousing is the physical structure where goods are stored, the focal point from which all your distribution takes place. It’s largely a physical, limited space.
- On the other side, storage logistics is concerned with how these goods are moved around and prepared for transport and the challenge of getting them from A to B.
It’s important if you are a business that transports goods to review your storage logistics and warehousing to make sure they are up to speed and meet your needs
Business Warehousing Options
The most important aspect of any warehouse is that it needs to be safe for the storage of goods. Access is also important and it’s worth looking at how your storage logistics procedure fits in with getting goods to customers on time.
Potential areas where you can improve include:
- Is if your warehouse is in the right location? Could you reduce delivery time by setting up somewhere nearer to your customers?
- Are your warehouse inventory measures up to speed and do you know how much stock you have in place at any one time?
Switching to a more efficient warehouse operation can help you reduce costs, but it should also deliver more streamlined processes. The type of warehouse your business can also make a big difference depending on what type of goods you store and transport. It’s also critical to make sure that you are based in a location that meets your needs and the warehouse itself is suitable.
Ambient storage works at normal room temperature but can be a bad choice for some products. Automated warehousing is becoming increasingly popular and cuts down on human operational costs. There are also short-term warehousing options to consider such as distribution centres that can be used as a stopgap for some deliveries. On top of that, there are cold storage warehouses and those that are designed to deal with hazardous products.
Storage Logistics
It’s also important to review your storage logistics in combination with your warehousing set-up because of their close connection. There are several questions that you should be asking at regular intervals:
- What type of vehicles are you using for moving goods? Are they on pallets?
- Is the movement of goods optimised? Is there a more efficient way to transport them, not only within the warehouse itself but when the goods go out on the road?
- Would switching to mobile shelving in your warehouse give you a better opportunity to more efficiently organise your stock?
- Are you taking good advantage of the space you have, for example, using all the vertical space you have? Would installing a mezzanine increase your options?
Business Options
Reviewing your warehousing and storage logistics strategy can help you spot areas where you can improve efficiency and lower costs as well as speed up the service to your customers. The expert team at Equator Worldwide can efficiently and effectively ensure you have the best options for your business needs.