In today’s fast-paced supply chain environment, good warehouse management practices are foundational for achieving business success. One major area of change, which is influencing some or all of these aspects, is the development of the warehouse racking system, which forms the basis for all storage systems in today’s modern warehouses. Advanced warehouse racking systems, such as selective and double deep racking systems, and mobile or automated racking systems, allow warehouses to make better use of vertical space, improve product retrieval flows and improve overall flows with the processing of goods. With the integration of technology and design with smart storage, businesses can develop mobility, flexibility, and responsiveness to the market.
The Foundation of Smart Storage: Contemporary Racking Systems
A racking system in a warehouse is not just a fixture for holding products; it is an ever-changing structure which influences the efficiency of movement, storage density, and accessibility.
Important characteristics of modern racking systems include:
- Selective Pallet Racking Systems: This type of racking system is suitable for a distribution center dealing with a mix of SKUs. The advantages of this system are that it provides direct access to each pallet and increased speed and accuracy.
- Push-Back Racking Systems: Push-back racking systems use a gravity-fed system, allowing pallets to automatically slide forward when a pallet is retrieved, thus reducing the time to retrieve pallets from the back.
- Mobile Racking Systems: Mobile racking systems are racking systems mounted on motorised bases, allowing access to different aisles as needed, and saving up to 40% of floor space.
A smartly designed racking system allows for fast, efficient material flow and eliminates excessive and unnecessary movement, both for human and mechanical, laying the platform for mobility and warehouse movement at the site.
The Significance of Mobility in Warehouses in Modern Supply Chains
Mobility in warehouses is defined as the movement of goods, personnel, and information efficiently within the warehouse environment. Mobility ensures that materials can be quickly located, accessed and moved without delay.
Some mobility examples include:
- Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) and Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) for internal logistics and pallet movement.
- Wireless inventory tracking systems for immediate location and quantity of inventory.
- Ergonomic material handling equipment for better worker safety and reduced fatigue.
Reach Trucks: Increasing Vertical Efficiency
Reach trucks are one of the most efficient mobility tools available in sophisticated warehouses. These specialised forklifts are designed specifically to operate in narrow-aisle environments and allow operators to safely and efficiently reach high racks.
The advantages of reach trucks consist of:
- Maximised vertical space: They can reach remarkable heights, enabling warehouses to house goods in a vertical space without sacrificing access to those goods or safety.
- Compact design: Their manoeuvrability in small footprints makes them very skilled at handling dense storage footprints, especially when space is limited.
- Energy efficiency: New electric reach trucks are both energy efficient and cost-effective.
- Accurate pinpointing: Newer sensors and controls provide precise control over the placement and retrieval of goods.
- Adding a reach truck(s) to warehouse processing will increase a business’s productivity while preserving the safety and precision needed to handle heavy and delicate items.
Combining Automated and Human Functions
The balance of human and machine in warehouse mobility is the future of warehousing. Certainly, robots and AI will perform operational tasks that are repetitive or require significant amounts of data to analyse, but human intelligence will still be needed for judgment, problem-solving, and flexibility. The maturity in the warehouse will be marked by the ability of businesses to develop collaborative robots that can safely work beside workers, smart sensors and IoT systems to improve inventory tracking, and digital training programs to upskill workers.
The Future of Mobility: Articulated Forklifts and Beyond
As warehouse operations begin to expand, we are seeing advanced mobility equipment like the forklift as a symbol of more efficient storage systems. Exploring beyond the traditional forklift, articulated fork lift is capable of driving through very narrow aisles and can even pivot their masts to access pallets directly with absolutely no need to turn the vehicle around at all. This design allows for maximisation of warehouse space by increasing the density of stored product and reducing the overall distance travelled, by way of increased travel efficiency, during movement in contained transitions in the use of space. Articulated forklifts can operate indoors and outdoors without the need for different mobility available in the warehouse space.
Conclusion
Advanced warehouse mobility is about the creation of smart, efficient ecosystems and smart trellising, where ‘smart mobility’ infers not only storage informatics, but also advanced storage options that incorporate the role of the human/machine interface. Building a strong racking platform, then adding reach trucks and progression to an articulated fork lift provides responsive supply chains that focus on productivity, speed, and utilises dexterity for innovation.
