An efficient warehouse is critical for customer satisfaction as it helps ensure quick, accurate shipments. Improving warehouse efficiency is as much about common sense and the proper storage equipment as fancy picking algorithms.
Follow these simple tips and watch your efficiency soar:
1) Optimising Free Space
Are you feeling like the factory floor is getting more and more cramped? Or perhaps, you were thinking about expanding your warehouse? Before you go any further, consider making better use of vertical space. For instance, you can add taller storage units and opt for the right equipment to store materials in higher places.
Furthermore, think about the type and variety of shelving being used. For instance, storing small items on pallet racks wastes space and makes it easy to misplace items. Rather than using the same racks throughout your warehouse, use various types of shelving for different materials.
2) Simplify Your Processes
Take a look at your physical processes on the floor. Over the years, have you been layering new functions over the older ones? Does the product & order flow no longer make sense to you? These can be a telltale sign that your processes have been getting too complicated, thus hindering your efficiency.
Generally speaking, fewer steps = lower costs = reduced time and increased efficiency. So, simplify your physical process by adding bag filling machine to your assembly line! One machine can multitask and perform several things at once, thus helping you to simplify your processes.
3) Enable New Technology
With the rise of Industry 4.0, more companies are opting to add automation to their processes — and packaging processes are no exception. This increasingly common tactic is driven by the same reasons that automation and robotics were first brought to the manufacturing workplace — to free human workers from dangerous packaging jobs, eliminate errors, and cut costs. This has led to companies implementing automation technologies such as industrial packaging machines to replace their old assembly lines, therefore gaining access to new production models and levels of efficiency.
4) Better Organisation of Workstations
Organising workstations improve productivity because workers do not have to search for tools or equipment. Use the “5S” method from lean manufacturing to ensure your workstations are as organised as possible. It consists of: Sort; Set in order; Shine; Standardize; and Sustain — all techniques designed to keep clutter at bay, reduce errors, and improve safety and organisation.
5) Optimise Workforce Efficiency
Businesses need to measure everything and do post mortems of their promotions and results. So, perform an assessment, work out a plan, set your objectives and accountability for improvement, review progress, and start again!
Now that you’ve fully understood how to improve the efficiency of your warehouse, the next question is – how can you get started with automating processes within your operation? The first step is by connecting your machines so that you can collect data, process it, and make decisions. When in doubt, minimize complexity, follow sound engineering principles, and work with Custom automation solutions vendors that provide good customer service.
If you are looking for mechanical surveyor, bagging machine for sale, or open mouth bag filler, you can contact Aurora Process Solutions.
