In business warehouses, the lack of organization can easily lead to chaos. And the more chaos that exists from the lack of organization leads to inefficiency and extra costs arise for the business.
All business operations seek to maximize profits by minimizing the costs to their internal business operations. Pallet racking systems are popular solutions to improve the business’s operations and efficiency when it comes to managing large amounts of stock inventory. Businesses can seek out solutions from companies specializing in pallet racking.
Prior to the purchase and installation of pallet racking systems, there are a few things that need to be considered to avoid the common warehousing mistakes.
1. Holding excess inventory
This is one of the common areas as warehouses aim to purchase stock in bulk quantities in exchange for discounts and pricing markdowns. As tempting as it is to gain these bulk discounts, their money tends to be tied into the business stock if they receive it all at once. On one side, it is the investment cost into the stock for the potential future sale. Secondly, it is the inventory management cost that falls into the business’s supply chain management.
Ideally, businesses can negotiate to receive bulk orders in smaller quantities to still take advantage of the discounts and reduce their inventory management costs.
2. Not optimizing picking paths
To maximize productivity, the business needs to have optimal picking paths that will maximize the picking rate of the warehouse. Inefficient picking paths can add to the amount of labour, adding unnecessary supply chain costs. In an ideal scenario, the picking routes will be located close to the dispatch area of the warehouse. Although picking routes can be difficult to develop, it is worth taking the time and effort to ensure that the routes are efficient as possible.
3. Lazy housekeeping
When the warehouse isn’t being looked after when it comes to housekeeping, it can make the warehouse become untidy and lead to inefficiency in the warehouse’s supply chain management. It is important that the business is dedicated to eliminating clutter and mess in the loading docks and overfilled pallets.
4. Avoid overloading and the wrong use of pallets
It is important to understand and comply with rack capacities and to estimate the weight of each load. Ensure that processes are implemented to avoid any impacts to distribution and create the opportunity for staff to overload pallets.
5. Ensure proper installation and rack maintenance
It is extremely important to ensure that your pallet racks are securely installed to avoid any potential accidents. Work to implement processes that will have your pallet checks reviewed regularly to secure bolts in the frame, flooring and roof. Over time, it is possible that the bolts may have loosened. Ensure that you monitor your pallet racking system to avoid any risks that could lead to accidents.
6. Ignoring staff development
The investment into pallet racking systems will increase the warehouse efficiency only of the staff are well trained to carry out the process. Staff training can often fall into the lower realms of a business’s priority. To maximize the investment into your new warehouse structure and supply chain management, the business must commit to ongoing training and development that will empower staff and continue to improve employees practices that will make the warehouse and supply chain system more efficient over the long-term.
There are common warehousing mistakes that contribute to unnecessary supply chain costs and that can also lead to the risk of accidents that could affect the warehouse’s operation and financial viability. Identify and prepare measures to monitor and predict any potential risks that can be avoided.