DESIGN OF WAREHOUSE
AND LAYOUT
Summary
Upon purchase of this service, the customer receives from a logistical point of view, completely prepared proposals for a new warehouse, expansion or other major change including plans for layout, processes and equipment. The design work is characterized by a quest for the logistically most efficient solution with the lowest total cost that best suits the customer's needs and conditions.
The results obtained provide a very good basis for the customer's next step towards a new solution. A step that often involves procurement of, for example, building, racks and manual or automated material handling equipment.
Below is a detailed description of an example of what the service may contain,
for those who want to know more.
Introduction
Some of the most common reasons why companies turn to Sim Logistics
and need help are:
- they have decided to build a new warehouse but do not know what dimensions the building should have, how it should be designed and placed on the plot or how the layout and processes should look.
- they have decided to expand their existing warehouse but do not know how to best design and integrate with the existing operations.
- for various reasons, they are not satisfied with the solution and layout of their existing warehouse, but do not know which changes are likely to improve the situation.
In all the above cases, we can help the customer by jointly carrying out an investigation that follows our elaborated and successful approach to addressing these kinds of challenges. The results from the investigation give the customer answers to their questions and the help they need.
A project relating to the dimensioning and design of a new warehouse or expansion of an existing always contains some kind of data analysis to get the correct facts for the design. You can read more about the analysis of internal logistic business data here.
Limitations and conceptual suggestions
In terms of design, it is important that, in addition to all dimensioning and activity-specific data as well as requirements for the new solution, also be fully aware of the limitations that many times exist. In terms of site and building location, there are a number of factors with possible constraints that may affect solution and logistics and therefore need to be considered, for example:
- The size of the plot
- Allowable area and height for construction
- Allowed distance from building to plot border
- Placement of existing and / or planned access roads
- Placement of media (sewage, water, IT) and power lines in both ground and air
- The stability of the ground
- Ground slope and water drainage (underwater collections)
- Absorption capacity of the water system
- Fire protection authority access to the building
- Weather conditions with the most common wind direction
- Shadow risk (high bay warehouses and nearby private property)
- Yard for maneuvering and parking of trucks, access to docks and possible storage of goods
Detailed knowledge of the more construction engineering factors is beyond Sim Logistics's expertise. It is therefore good if the customer has established contact with the municipality regarding detailed planning questions and a construction consultant or similar regarding matters relating to land, building and construction. In this early part of the project, access to good drawings of land and detailed plans as well as existing buildings in development is a must.
Rough solutions are developed at the conceptual level with the shape and location of the warehouse on the plot. The solutions are based on the found needs, requirements, dimensioning data and external conditions and also constraints.
Building and logistics
After having sorted out the proposals considered most interesting to proceed with, the next phase will take place where the solution proposals are designed in more detail. Now, the following examples of factors that may affect inventory logistics are considered in addition to the initial ones:
- The flow of goods to and from and also through the building.
- Building design (impact from, for example, steel / concrete frames, roof beams and roof, floor and wall materials, discussed on overall level):
> Initial building dimensions (length, width height) that may change later on
> pillar and pillar row distances
> the roof truss
> roof pitch and roof beam span
- Snow pockets
- Free internal height based on the permitted and desirable height of the building, the roof pitch and dimensions.
- Number of docks for unloading and loading of goods and their placing.
- Gate with ramp to and from the yard.
- Placement of goods tracks and platform as well as their length.
- Location of the sprinkler water tank.
- Canopies
Warehouse layout
By now, one or more solution proposals have been designed. They include a logistic plan for the flow of goods to, from and through the property, the approximate layout of the warehouse and the rough dimensions as well as its location on the plot.
The next natural step is to detailize the warehouse layout. Here too, a number of factors are considered:
- First and foremost the overall logistic plan for the intended goods flow to, from and through the property.
- Suitable storage types for different groupings of goods with different physics, flow and frequency and also handling needs.
- Dimensioning of the respective storage type with the number of locations based on the data analysis performed.
- Appropriate handling equipment based on the physics, flow and handling needs of the goods.
- Automation equipment for handling and moving goods.
- Placement of storage types and goods based on the goods volume flow and handling frequency.
- Mezzanine floor
- System support level
other surface needs such as:
- Warehouse office
- Waste
- Empty load carriers
- Goods reception
- Outgoing goods, dispatch area
- Value-added services
- Packing
- Returns
- Trucks (Yard layout)
- Truck loading and parking (Yard layout)
- Driver compartments
- Pause / lunch room, dressing room, toilets and shower
- Crossdocking / transhipment
This part results in layout and warehouse dimensions on decimeters and centimeters detail level. Sometimes it means that earlier more roughly designed dimensions for building now need to be adjusted.
One or several of the most interesting proposals are modeled in 3D visualization tool. This is done for a clear and common image that reduces the risk of misunderstandings and is easier to communicate internally and externally. Read more about 3D visualization here.
Final proposals
Now one or more solution proposals are ready for a new or expanded warehouse with associated layout and processes for goods flow that match the needs of the business.
Many times, the customer now wishes to proceed to a deeper analysis of what the proposal means regarding resource needs in the form of staff and handling equipment, queue risk, flow capacity and operational costs. This can be done roughly in a SWOT analysis with assumptions and rough calculations or significantly more accurate using flow simulation in advanced simulation programs. How the latter option goes to is described under Flow simulation.
Call +46 761 618384 or email info@simlogistics.se
for more information!
