As an operator in the modern warehousing industry, your facility’s storage and processing capacity are based on the safe and efficient use of various types of mobile and stationary equipment. The types of equipment seen at work in your warehouse are determined by the product or material being stored and handled by your facility.
What is the Essential Equipment for your Warehousing Business Environment?
Below we have listed three common pieces of storage and processing equipment found in modern warehouses. The size and capacity of each piece correspond to the particular needs of your warehouse and your clients.
Conveyor Systems
The use of conveyor systems will streamline the operations in your warehouse many times over. Conveyor belt systems help reduce the processing time of orders, which in turn increases your facility’s operational efficiency and raises your profits. For top-quality conveyor solutions that are designed to optimize your business operations, visit fluentconveyors.com. As a warehouse owner you know that’s good business sense. Conveyor belt systems can be quite elaborate contraptions, yet they wrap around the needs of your business, literally. In some instances, large warehousing facilities can have miles of conveyor belting running up and down their interior and exterior.
These are four main conveyor systems you should consider for your warehouse:
Chain Flexible Conveyors
Gravity Conveyors
Roller Conveyors
Belt Conveyors.
Pallet Racking
Pallet racking (or pallet shelves) is one of the most common types of infrastructural equipment you are likely to come across in any warehouse. Pallet racking is essentially a material-handling system able to store palletized goods. Pallet racking systems store goods in horizontal rows, spanning multiple vertical levels. This material-handling system comes in a variety of shapes and sizes.
According to Oregon-based Speedrack West, choosing the correct pallet racking for your business is crucial. It also requires careful consideration, and a discussion with a specialist supplier and installer who should be able assist with the technical design, installation and custom fabrication of your pallet shelves and racking. The use of properly constructed pallet handling systems will increase your warehouse’s storage density and, therefore, its capacity.
There are too many types of pallet racking to list in a single article, so we have just listed the most common ones:
- Selective Racking
- Roll Formed
- Structural
- Drive-thru Racking
- LIFO type
- FIFO type
- Push-back Racking
- LIFO Type System
- Pallet Flow Racking
Forklifts
If you consider your warehousing operation an efficient one, then you know and appreciate the importance of forklifts. These machines are able to lift, lower, stack, push, pull and otherwise move palletized or crated and containerized goods from A to B inside and around the warehouse facility.
If you are yet to equip your warehouse with these heavy-duty machines, there are many different types to choose from. As you probably know, they vary by size and load capacity, fuel type, and functionality, so carefully choose a model that fits your specific requirements and budget. Forklifts are specialist pieces of kit and should be operated by qualified drivers. You can train your warehouse drivers so they can operate more than one type of forklift.
The term forklift is used as a word for a wide variety of lifting machines. Some are hand-operated, others fuel or electricity powered. You may have come across any of the following:
- Standard Warehouse Forklift
- Side Loader Forklift
- Counterbalance Forklift
- Telehandler
- Industrial Forklift
- Rough Terrain Forklift
- Pallet Jack
- Walkie Stalker
Running a warehouse business is a hands-on exercise. Choosing your equipment wisely will make a tremendous difference in your productivity and net profits, so take the time to do it right and you will reap the rewards for it.
