Know Benefit of a well-organized warehouse

An efficient warehouse management system is essential for timely delivery of products whilst keeping low operational costs & driving profits. Effective organization & ideal shop display equipment can help you in more ways than you think. There are dozens of strategies to optimize warehouse operations and enhance your business’s bottom line. From researching warehouse organization & layout to selecting the perfect order picking strategies & shop display equipment, there are several innovative ways for shopfitting warehouse.

Warehouse management refers to all the procedures & decision-making that are involved in regular warehouse operations. It majorly includes inventory management, order picking, warehouse organization, workforce management & shipping coordination.

The ultimate aim of a shopfitting warehouse is to incorporate these factors effectively, improve efficiency, strip out complexity, and reduce costs- without compromising accuracy or quality.

Regardless of their size or the kind of industries they are serving, warehouse operations can be beneficial for your business, if carried out efficiently. Here are some of the tips that you can employ whilst organizing your warehouse:

1. Specify your purpose first

For shaping a successful warehouse management system, you must acquaint yourself with its objectives. You can map out the factors that can impact your warehouse management strategy majorly. Some of these factors might be incorporating storage for products that require refrigeration or considering specific order or delivery requirements for customers.

You can erect a well-organized warehouse once you set your purpose and priority.

2. Make safety your top priority

While employing shop display equipment or shopfitting warehouse, your topmost concern should be safety. Most warehouse accidents are avoidable as they tend to occur at the time when employees are in a hurry or lose sight of safety protocols.

You can train your staff on how to avoid hazards and dangerous behaviors so that they also feel more comfortable working in a safe environment.

3. Track KPIs (key performance indicators)

This is probably the most reliable way to record the improvement of your warehouse and the performance of your warehouse staff. KPI continually monitors and measures metrics, presenting to you the exact progressive numbers. Whether general metrics like cost per order shipped, or more particular objectives like inventory error rates, all the KPIs can be measured accurately. By keeping a track of these KPIs warehouse managers can encourage a culture of self-improvement and accountability that will ultimately result in more productive and efficient operation.

4. Keep it clean & clutter-free

The cleanliness of a warehouse significantly contributes to warehouse organization and consequently to its success. Weekly cleaning of a warehouse is advisable. However, deep cleans can be performed monthly given the staff or teams are tidy in their regular work.

Avoiding clutter can serve three purposes. Firstly, it creates a safer & efficient working environment for warehouse staff. Next, it can instill confidence by illustrating to visitors the controlled functioning of the warehouse. And finally, staff will take more pride in their work while operating in a clean, hygienic, safe, and uncluttered space.

5. Labeling is time-saving

A relatively small, almost negligible investment in labels can pay major dividends and maintain warehouse efficiency and staff morale. By simply labeling the items in consonance with the industrial standards, companies make sure that pickers are able to find the items easily and pick the right inventory.

This can reduce labor costs significantly and also eliminates the disappointment and frustration of not being able to find the correct items or losing crucial orders. Given the remarkable advancement in labeling technology, businesses can now obtain heat- and cold- resistant labels that are able to be read electronically & tracked in their warehouse management systems.

6. Consider flow & traffic patterns

An ideal warehouse provides ease of access for the inventory and free movement of the products between storage, receiving, packaging, and shipping. This results in a very smooth & cost-effective operation that avoids wastage and offers maximum fulfillment.

There are several kinds of layouts and traffic patterns that one can employ in their warehouse space in accordance with their business needs.

I'm Preben Paulsen and working with Planova and they are leading manufacturer and supplier of Shelving solutions, shop fitting, retail store displays and best space planners in Europe.