5 Top Tips for Improving Warehouse Operations
Your warehouse is the hub of your supply chain. All of your inventory will come through your warehouse, and, as such, it needs to be operationally sound.
Improving warehouse operations should be an on-going process in your business. You should always be looking for new ways to handle and store your stock in a productive way.
What are the areas of warehouse operations that can be improved?
In this article, we’ll look at improving your warehouse operations.
1. Ensure Your Racking Is Safe to Use
Having safe racking is essential in any warehouse. The last thing you would want is for your racking to give way under your stock’s weight. Not only would this damage your inventory, but it could also injure someone.
Make sure that your racking is safe to use. All units should be firmly fixed in place, and you should make sure that shelving is not overloaded,
Carry out regular inspections to ensure your racking is safe and arrange repairs from a company such as this: take a look!
2. Consider Your Layout and Future Proof It
Think about the layout of your warehouse. You need to store your inventory in a way that will ensure that your team can quickly pick it.
Lay your products out in order of their SKU number. Make sure that popular items are all kept in positions where they can be easily picked.
You will get new lines into your warehouse from time-to-time. It is important that you have a system in place that allows you to add new SKUs as they arrive in your business.
3. Manage Your Inventory
Improve the speed and accuracy of your warehouse operations by ensuring that your stock levels are always accurate.
To do this, carry out rolling counts on a daily basis. Take a limited number of SKUs each day and count them. Then, carry out a full inventory check at least once a year.
4. Review Your Warehouse Efficiency
You should constantly review the efficiency of your warehouse operations. Put key performance indicators in place to make it easier to review performance.
Some examples of key performance indicators that you could use include picking speeds, pick accuracy, the accuracy of stock levels, and inventory turnover.
Monitor these performance indicators and clearly communicate the current performance levels to your teams. Review the results and make changes based on areas that could be improved upon.
5. Use the Right Warehouse Management Software
The right inventory management system will help you manage, forecast, and plan for your warehouse’s future performance. Invest in a system that allows you to track every aspect of your warehouse’s performance.
The right warehouse management software should be straightforward to use and adaptable to the needs of your business.
Improving Warehouse Operations
Improving warehouse operations is an on-going process. You should continually review the layout of your warehouse, manage your inventory, and review your processes.
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