eBook - Warehouse Solutions (EM21060) - Book - Page 3
1
Establishing a
Warehouse Workflow
CHOOSING A LAYOUT THAT
BEST FITS THE APPLICATION
then shipped out? Maybe it’s a cross docking
facility with little to no storage requirements
and more of a focus on the staging and quick
transfer of material from one end to the other.
Or is your domain a manufacturing facility where
an inventory of parts is used to create a finished
product and requires consistent output?
The first step in establishing warehouse workflow
is to consider the layout of your existing or new
facility and how products move from receiving
to storage to shipping. It’s finding a way to store
and move products through your warehouse
space efficiently and effectively while maintaining
a safe environment for your warehouse
employees and pedestrians.
The second factor is the location of the facility’s
material and product entry and exit points.
There are three types of door placements. First
and most common, the dock doors are on the
same side of the building. The best layout for
this type of facility is typically a U-shaped flow
with shipping and receiving on parallel sides,
storage in the middle and the racks laid out
perpendicular to the doors.
This typically depends on two main factors. The
first is the purpose of the facility. For instance,
is it a distribution center where products
are temporarily stored before being sent to
customers or a fulfillment center where items
are picked to fulfill e-commerce orders and
Receiving
Shipping
Receiving
Shipping
Shipping
Shipping
Shipping
Receiving
Receiving
Receiving
Receiving
Shipping
Shipping
1
Receiving
