There is nothing more exciting and more promising than your company taking off. Constantly having to fill orders while the workday seemingly flies by makes going to the office or the warehouse more exciting. But if your workspace is not organized properly, it can look as if a bomb went off when the day is over, making it necessary for you to reorganize everything before going home.
Creating consistency within your office or warehouse is key. With a company to run and orders to fill, the last thing you want to do be doing is clean up. Here are some tips that will help you clean up your clutter, leading to a more smoothly functioning business.
Warehouse Optimization - Where it All Starts
It’s best to start where the warehouse system itself starts, which is where the products come in. When you have a large amount of supplies coming in, it is easy to just ignore it and decide to unpack it later. However, this is a really bad habit. Make a point to unload all your products and break down the boxes, clearing space on your floor. If you don’t practice this, boxes will begin piling up in random places, making it harder to find things and move around.
Another good idea is to mark on the calendar when certain shipments are coming in. If you know what day or week certain things will arrive, you can plan out time to unload everything. This will help keep your warehouse running properly.
Make your Product Placement Smart
When managing a warehouse, optimizing your picking process is key to being fast. Therefore, it is smart to keep your best-selling products near the shipping area. This allows you to quickly find what you are looking for. Keeping these products clearly labeled adds to your speed of order fulfillment because it simplifies the process of locating products.
Review your Stock Layout
If certain products consistently go out together, wouldn't it be smart to store them by each other? Take a look at your warehouse layout to determine whether or not you are traveling an unneeded distance for products that consistently go out simultaneously.
No Road Blocks
Everyone hates getting stuck in traffic. Traffic problems should be nonexistent in your warehouse. Regularly walk through and check that there are no large obstacles blocking the machines you use for transportation. Clogged pathways can result in slower work time as employees attempt to avoid these obstacles.
Talk to Your Employees
The easiest way to discover things to help optimize your warehouse is by talking to the people that actually work in it. Routinely meet with your personnel to go over what is working and what could be fixed. The job of these individuals is to keep things moving quickly. They most likely know more about it than you do, so listen to them and trust their suggestions.
By following these easy steps your warehouse will be optimized and running smoothly in no time.
