What equipment do you need for your warehouse?
You have a brand new warehouse, full of products and pallets ready to be shipped to your customers. But it’s not that easy, in order to be able to move and manage your products, you need warehouse equipment and hardware. You will need everything from a diverse range of vehicles to tools and storage equipment. Typically, a warehouse is used to store items, and then move them to where they are needed. The easier it is to move items, the more efficient your warehouse can be. To increase efficiency, you need to have the right tools for the job. These will make your employee’s lives easier, and cut down on the backbreaking strain they’d otherwise be exposed to with improper equipment.
As such, if you want an efficient warehouse that is also profitable, you need to handle materials in an efficient manner. This means that you need to have essential material handling equipment. Without it, occurrences such as too much or too little inventory, poorly organized products, over-handling, and wrong shipments may interfere with your ability to operate effectively.
Time may be wasted because inventory is not moving fast enough and you also risk injuries to your employees because they are working under hazardous conditions without proper equipment. To avoid such scenarios, there are certain material handling solutions that every warehouse should have. Below are the 5 essential warehouse equipment.
Storage equipment
The type of equipment that you choose depends on whether you store entire pallets or smaller units of inventory. You need to be mindful of what types you typically have to ensure you get the equipment that meets your needs. Let’s give a few examples. A pallet rack is useful for storing inventory you place on pallets. Cantilever racks are useful for long and bulky items you cannot place on a pallet rack.
The other type of rack that you can get is a flow rack. This is useful for moving handing-stacked inventory being taken to a pick-up area. You can even purchase specialty racks to store different items that you want to keep safe until they are shipped.
Packaging equipment
Every warehouse needs packaging equipment for efficiently shipping products. Employees need such tools for everyday operations. These are also essential to reduce damaged goods that will impact your sales and reputation. Industrial scales are needed for weighing products in boxes and on pallets and strapping and banding equipment is recommended to bundle products for storage or shipment.
You can also get a stretch wrap machine, which would make your employees life much easier. Stretch wrap machines are useful for wrapping film around your products so they can be stored safely until they are shipped. Packing tables are helpful for when items need to be sorted or packed.
Containers & Bins
Bins and containers are also important to the operation of a warehouse because they help in organizing materials as well as finished products. They also allow you to put items in their proper place to store inventory and ship items. Bins and containers are also very versatile because they come in different sizes based on your needs. This makes them a great and flexible way of storying your products.
You can choose to either get plastic or metal bins. While the metal bins might be more expensive, they could prove to be a good investment as they will last for longer compared to the plastic bins. You may also need wire mesh baskets, which are collapsible containers that allow air, light, and debris to pass through.
Conveyors
While the implementation of conveyors around your warehouse can be very expensive, it might be a good investment for the future. They are are useful because they increase efficiency as well as quality control because they move inventory and products to their last destinations safely and with ease. Conveyors are available in different models so you can purchase one that suits your needs perfectly. Flexible conveyors expand during operation and contract during storage, allowing you to save valuable space.
Lifts and lift equipment
Lastly, and probably the most important equipment that you need in your warehouse – lift equipment. You definitely need a way to lift your items to store and move products safely and effectively. Your choice of lift equipment will depend on several factors. These factors can differ depending on whether you are moving pallets or small units of inventory and how high your shelves are stacked. Forklifts are able to move stock with little risk of being injured or damaging the product. You can also opt for pallet jacks, also known as hand trucks, as these are useful for manually lifting and moving pallets.
You can also opt for service carts, as these will make your employees lives easier. Your employees will be able to move full shipments to the shipping area with little difficulty.
Conclusion
There is no doubt that having the right lifting equipment will increase productivity in your warehouse. This will lead to quicker shipments and in turn more business and profit. Warehouse equipment can be very expensive, especially when starting a new business. However, it is an important investment that will make your employees work a lot easier and safer. It will also speed things up significantly, allowing you to push more products in and out of the warehouse, which translates to profit.
Having the right hardware equipment for your warehouse is essential. Just as essential as having the right software. For as long as technology existed, hardware and software always worked in tandem. As such, even if you have the best warehouse hardware equipment, you will need a good warehouse management software.
Our recommendation would be NVENTREE, our own in-house built software capable of bringing your warehouse to the next level. It allows you to print labels, invoices, create pick-waves for couriers and most importantly, it can help you manage your warehouse effortlessly. It also synchronises your stock across multiple e-commerce platforms in order to prevent overselling.
We believe that it is the ideal tool for any warehouse, small or large.
