The traditional warehouse listing leaves prospective tenants to answer the question: what is the capacity of this large building? We advocate including a storage proof of concept in the listing to expedite approval by the buyer. Learn how we can do this for you here Step 1: Input 3DC requires a few known inputs to […]

What’s the best shape for a storage footprint? Of all the options, why does a width-to-depth ratio of 2-to-1 beat them all? The answer is travel distance. What is the Average Travel Distance? We establish the start and stop points for an average one-way trip. Since product storage could be anywhere, the travel start/stop within […]

Making change to a warehouse requires a business case. Financial justification takes the form of either higher revenue or lower costs. Examples of change include the following: Material Flows A business case involves measuring and improving the value of material flows: Example Business Cases Space: layout design, storage media, or slotting. Labor: Task interleaving, cross-training, […]

A complete assessment for warehouse design includes three cost factors that interact to deliver value: Space, Labor, and Equipment. Space Inventory analysis reveals appropriate storage solutions, including floor storage, standard rack, and deep rack. Space includes aisle widths for accessing storage and for traveling within the system. Labor Material handling labor contributes the highest cost. […]

What Comes First, Building or Inventory? The warehouse layout design challenge can occur before or after securing a building. Design for the Inventory Designing for inventory is “unconstrained”. Design the best storage solution that meets inventory requirements. Explore deep rack for high-volume SKUs. Leverage high-bay storage to take advantage of a high ceiling. Design for […]

Warehouse real estate listings typically don’t include pallet capacity. Yet the new tenant needs some idea of whether the warehouse will work for the inventory. Including pallet capacity in the listing can overcome inertia since the prospective tenant now has valuable information for decision-making.

How To Conduct a Warehouse Layout Design

The new warehouse risks being either too small or too large. If it’s too small, expect higher costs from congestion or off-site storage. If it’s too large, expect higher costs from excess rent, yes, but unnecessarily long travel distances can create larger hidden costs in terms of productivity and service cycle time.

Aisle Orientation Standard practice dictates placing storage rows perpendicular to the dock wall. The configuration allows for safe, efficient travel from dock staging into the storage system, and gives supervisors better visibility to the facility. It’s practical feng shui. Why do rows perpendicular to the dock wall make sense? Safety Visibility to the dock allows […]

Building Columns Obstruct Storage Layouts Make a plan to minimize lost storage locations. The images below are overhead views. As often as practical, bury columns between back-to-back storage locations. Tips for Minimizing Lost Space or Storage As needed, allow columns to pierce storage locations. Where possible, keep the obstruction to the outer end of a […]