How To Increase Your Warehouse Storage Capacity
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Whether you’re a huge global conglomerate or a small eCommerce start-up, optimising your warehouse is vital to your bottom line. From workflow to maximising space options on the ground and up high, working smarter with the space you have can increase your profits and make your operation more efficient.
The layout of your warehouse may need to grow with you. As you add more product lines, pivot your offering or staff numbers increase, you need to be able to accommodate the changes to the benefit of your business, not lose productivity because of it. There is, of course, the safety element of being inefficient, too. Overloading, racking and blocking fire exits, and so on are not viable, safe, or legal. And moving premises is costly and not always feasible, but there are many options available to you before you need to start packing boxes.
Type of racking
The type of racking you choose to use in your warehouse will naturally affect your warehouse capacity. Different styles are available to you, depending on your storage needs. You may even require a combination if you offer several other product lines to accommodate the size, storage need, pick frequency, and type.
The latter is a significant consideration, for example, where forklift picking is required but floor space is limited. In this case, Very Narrow Aisle Racking is ideal, allowing for more aisles, unused space optimisation and pallet racking for smaller areas. At the other end of the scale, smaller pick items benefit from Live Racking, which maximises space and optimises the pick by enabling new stock to be replenished either at the front and pushed back or at the back and pushed to the front. Live Racking is a big time and production cost-saver ideal for stock management and rotation and a popular option for FMCG, food and drinks distribution and pharmaceuticals. These are just two of the many systems and variables available to businesses of all kinds.
Our racking manufacturers
Here at Nene we stock all of the major industry leaders in racking manufacturing, such as:
It’s hard to find a manufacturer that we don’t do!
Optimum racking organisation
You’re happy with your racking but need something more? You can achieve further organisation and optimisation on the racking with our range of additional products to help you increase your warehouse storage capacity:
Storeganizer
The ultimate handpick optimiser, Storganizer is vertically stacked with multi-row vertically suspended pockets to accommodate small items. Made of flexible, durable coated textile, supporting up to 100kg, it’s the ideal system for small-item picking and space optimisation.
PALLITE PIX
Perhaps the most cost-effective solution for smaller pick optimisation, the Pallite Pix is made of paper and PVA glue, offering a super strong yet lightweight and mobile option to consolidate pick faces. It is ideal for seasonal products and where you need to make changes more often, with dividers available to optimise even more and is forklift friendly to boot—a true all-rounder.
Shelf Partitioning Systems
And on the subject of dividing, adjustable pallet racking or long-span shelving benefit from Nene’s Shelf Partitioning System – the robust and adjustable stock organisation solution that fits any standard system. Manufactured from high-grade galvanised steel, our dividers simply clip on and can be customised to suit your warehouse needs and requirements.
Make Use of vertical space with mezzanine floors
If there’s not much left on the ground, but the sky’s the limit, Mezzanine floors can be the perfect solution. Adding levels and layers to your existing set-up, you can add more storage space, pick fronts and even office spaces by going up rather than out.
Hugely cost-effective, Mezzanine Floors give additional space in areas that are often never used, with handrail and gate systems, and help increase your profits by supporting your business growth without the need to move premises. If vertical space allows, Mezzanine Floors are an essential addition to your facility.
Utilise outdoor space
If your products for storage can go outside, they should go outside. Our galvanised steel cantilever racking is durable, robust, and perfect for heavy and outsized items that can be stored outside, including timber, building materials, metals and protected pallets. You may have outside space going to waste, but you’re unsure how to optimise it. If this is the case, our design teams can help you configure what you have to make it work best for your business.
Temporarily increase capacity with racking hire
Need more space but not permanently? Racking hire is ideal for warehouses that need a temporary increase in storage capacity, whether because of expansion or seasonal product lines and changes. Hire doesn’t mean cheap or less quality, and it can provide you with the breathing space to assess your greater needs without losing productivity time on the shop floor. In addition, hire is safe, versatile and affordable, with options to hire anything from four weeks to five years, giving you a genuinely tailored solution.
Intelligent Warehouse design
Not all warehouses are the same, and nor should they be. Design may sound fanciful, but it is critical to optimise your space and ensure you have the correct racking and workflow to ensure everything runs smoothly. With over 45 years of experience, we tailor our warehouse design process carefully and specifically around the needs of your business, ensuring your warehousing and racking solutions work harder for you, maximising your ROI and optimising your business efficiency daily.
If you are looking for an entirely new fit-out or are moving premises, our site and warehouse turnkey solutions are for you – incorporating operational optimisation from the very beginning and ensuring it is a constant theme throughout.
Optimising space and operations is essential for any business of any size. We work with companies across the country to realise their growth, modernisation, and effectiveness objectives through our intelligent design, services, and systems. Contact us today to learn more about optimising your space to truly work for you.