Which technological layout is the most suitable for a specific space? What are the pros and cons of individual solutions? Should the choice of layout be thought about in the long term or can it be easily changed? Technological layouts of warehouses are an important topic when it comes to organizing work in the warehouse.
One of the key issues in warehouse processes is how specific zones in the facility are organized. Communication between employees and the way goods move around the building depend on this. Technological layouts of warehouses consist of organizing three zones: those responsible for receiving goods, those responsible for their storage, and also the goods issuing zone. Just as we have three zones to manage, we distinguish three layouts of these zones, each of which has its advantages and disadvantages. They are:
- through layout (flow-through),
- angular layout,
- U-shaped layout (sack layout) (with separate receiving and issuing zones or with a common receiving and issuing zone).
[grve_title title=”Through and angular layout” heading_tag=”h2″ heading=”h2″]
The through and angular layouts are essentially similar technological layouts of warehouses, and which one is used depends mainly on the premises conditions. In both cases, we separate the goods receiving and issuing zones with a storage zone. The difference is that in the case of the through layout, this happens due to the horizontal arrangement of rooms, and in the angular variant, we have the storage zone placed in the corner of the room and the receiving and issuing zones reaching it along the walls. The main advantages of these solutions are the mentioned separation of receiving zones from issuing zones. Thanks to this, there is no possibility of a mistake in these scopes. The disadvantage of through and angular layouts is that a large space is sacrificed, which could be intended e.g. for storage ; moreover, the organization of work at reloading stations itself is less effective. [grve_title title=”U-shaped (Sack) layout” heading_tag=”h2″ heading=”h2″]
In this case, the matter is simple. We have a storage zone, and next to it is the receiving and issuing zone, divided or not. This is an effective use of equipment, human resources, as well as space in the warehouse. The downside, however, is something that does not take place in the case of the above-described warehouse technological layouts – namely, a mistake may occur due to the direct proximity of the receiving and issuing zones (unless we are dealing with a separation of these zones). Heavy vehicular traffic in one place can also hinder work. [grve_title title=”Technological layouts of warehouses – which solution to choose?” heading_tag=”h2″ heading=”h2″]
The decision regarding which layout we choose will significantly affect the organization of warehouse processes and team work. One should take into account the transport technology, storage technology, and information technology that will be used in the warehouse. Thanks to this, we will determine how large individual zones will be, find out what stock we can buffer in the facility, how many internal transport means we need, and how many employees will be needed for efficient operation in the layout. The choice of solution is very important, so it should be based on specific criteria, such as square footage, economic or technological conditions. We should treat the choice in the long term and predict whether, for example, zones will be expanded in the future. Technological layouts of warehouses should be considered already at the stage of choosing the facility so that it meets the design assumptions. It should be remembered how traffic organization works outside the facility itself, so that the layout in the warehouse is adapted to road and rail traffic outside.