Businesses in the production and manufacturing industries are increasingly turning to mezzanine flooring in order to remain competitive, but why are they such a good choice for these particular types of businesses?
First of all, if your company has got to the position where it has outgrown its current site then moving to a new property can be difficult. If demand is high then the idea of moving to a new site can seem intimidating. Would you lose business to competitors if you are forced to slow down your operations while you move to a new property? In comparison with a whole scale move, the time it takes to set up a mezzanine floor is minimal and will have minimal disruption on your activities.
Mezzanine flooring makes the most of space which would normally be wasted. Many warehouses and factories have high ceilings but they don’t make the most of them. In the manufacturing and production industries it is essential to be able to increase your productivity and using a mezzanine floor to house production and assembly lines can really help.
Here at Logical Storage we have plenty of experience with helping manufacturing businesses to move up rather than out. We offer a no obligation consultation where we can assess your individual needs and offer cost effective and practical solutions. Click here to find out more or alternatively you can call us on 0845 689 1300.
Whether you have moved to brand new premises and you need to make them more efficient to suit your needs, or you feel that your current office or warehouse is tired and outdated, office partitions are a clever way to remodel a workspace.
There are many different options for office partitions, which include aluminium demountable partitions, standard stud and track plasterboard, steel partition systems and glazed partitions. It is the latter which we are going to look at in some more detail in this article.
Glazed partitions are a noticeable way to transform your working space into a contemporary office, with plenty of light and space. They also provide you with privacy in the form of frosted glass or blinds and can reduce noise for discretion when meeting with employees or clients or making external phone calls.
They can therefore help you to achieve a well laid out and professional office, which can have a big impact on your staff and your clients, and can make your business more efficient and more productive in the long run.
Some of the key points about our fully or partially glazed partition systems are:
- They are constructed from toughened glass
- They utilise a stud and track system
- They feature colour coded edge beading to match corporate colours or interior decor
- They can be fitted with venetian blinds in a range of colours
For more information about Logical Storage’s Office Partitions, please go to the following page on our website: http://www.logicalstorage.co.uk/services/office-partition/ or call us on 0845 689 1300 for a tailored proposal.
While your racking systems and storage might appear to be working well and you might not see any obvious issues with their exterior, there may be a number of underlying issues that could be affecting the way they work, thus endangering both your products and your staff.
Throughout the day your racking can pick up an infinite number of knocks and scrapes. This could be through poor design or layout, overloading the racking, day-to-day damage by forklift trucks, or adjusting them without proper training.
It’s said that this type of damage to racking can reduce its load bearing capacity by as much as 40%. So it’s important that any issues are dealt with quickly in order to maintain the efficiency of your operations.
What’s more, when racking is damaged it can become unstable which means that you are risking both valuable stock and also the health and safety of your staff.
This is why it’s important to have a professional team inspect your racking on a regular basis. We recommend that racking inspections are carried out at least once a year.
To learn more about Logical Storage’s rack inspections, please click here, or contact us on 0845 689 1300 to discuss your needs.
Under the Corporate Manslaughter and Homicide Act (2007) and the Provisions of Use of Work Equipment Regulations (1998) employers have a responsibility to make sure that any equipment such as racking is safe to use and any risks to employees are planned for.
Unfortunately, many do not realise that the probability of a racking collapse is quite high and that damage is not uncommon. They might not also realise the effect that a piece of damaged equipment may be having on the efficiency of their business, especially when damage to racking can reduce load bearing capacity by as much as 40%.
Here are some of the common causes of damage to racking:
- Adjusting or re-assembling racking without proper training
- Continued use of damaged pallets which cause damage to beams
- Poor design or layout
- Overloading
- Damage by forklift trucks
In order to address these issues you should ensure that forklift truck drivers are given thorough training, racking bears only the weight it is designed to hold, broken or damaged pallets are removed from use immediately and that all of your racking is installed and repaired by trained professionals.
Key to ensuring a long lifespan for your racking is to undergo regular reviews, preventative maintenance and repairs of your racking, thus ensuring that both your stock and your employees are protected. Remember that racking damage is not always visible to the untrained eye and so reviews and repairs should be undertaken by an experienced company.
Logical Storage Solutions have extensive experience in performing racking inspections and can help guide businesses in meeting their legal duties and Health & Safety obligations. To learn more about a Logical Storage rack inspection, click here or call us on 0845 689 1300 to discuss your needs.
Every business is different and has its own individual need and requirements. However, some storage companies might not necessarily recommend the best type of racking for your company. Instead, they might try to sell you the one that is most expensive or old stock that they are trying to offload quickly.
While racking systems can dramatically speed up your operations and free up the floor space to available to you, you need to be confident that you have the right kind. For example if you choose a pallet racking system that uses a push back system, you will benefit from being able to store away lots of pallets but you may struggle to gain access to individual pallets as quickly as other forms of racking, which could be a problem if you need quick access to fulfil orders.
To decide the right type of racking that will improve the efficiency of your businesses you should consider the following questions.
1) How much floor space do you have available to you?
2) How much overhead space / ceiling space do you have available to you?
3) How often will you need to gain access to pallets?
4) What quantity of pallets do you need to store?
Here at Logical Storage we have extensive experience with helping businesses to find the right racking solutions which will increase capacity and help their businesses to operate with greater efficiency. To learn more about our racking solutions click here or call us on 0845 689 1300 to discuss your needs.
Here at Logical Storage one question that we are frequently asked is how often companies should have their racking systems inspected. In truth, there is no easy answer as every business is different, has different requirements, different equipment and different levels of operation. However, in general we advise that rack inspections take place at least once a year.
A key reason for this is that a rack inspection can highlight any serious flaws before they have chance to wreak havoc on your operations or risk the health and safety of your employees. Pallet racks are often under great strain from heavy goods and any beam damage or cracking needs to be dealt with quickly.
Under the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act (2007) companies and organisations can be found culpable for a breach of their duty of care. If poorly maintained racking results in an accident and it is discovered that you did not make adequate arrangements to have them regularly assessed, then you could be held to blame.
You are also required under the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (1998) to meet standards which apply to racking. This means ensuring that racking is suitable for use, safe, maintained and inspected. Equipment must only be used by employees with proper training and there must be reasonable safety measures in place such as warning signs, protective equipment and markings.
In terms of your operations, damage to your racking could actually result in reduced load bearing capacity by as much as 40% which is a great inefficiency. This is why it’s important to get your racking checked regularly and particularly prior to busy periods.
Logical Storage Solutions have extensive experience in performing racking inspections and can help guide businesses in meeting their legal duties and Health & Safety obligations. To learn more about a Logical Storage rack inspection click here or call us on 0845 689 1300 to discuss your needs.
It may sound obvious, but it is worth reminding ourselves that the efficiency of a business has a direct effect on a business’s profit margin. If you can reduce the amount of time and effort it takes to perform a task, there will be less waste and therefore productivity will increase. Warehouses are usually big buildings and are used for mass storage but that doesn’t mean that the operations carried out in them can’t be refined and transformed into a smoother, more productive system. Below are some tips on how to do this.
One of the first aspects of your warehouse that you will want to ensure is right is the floorplan. In an ideal scenario this should be done before the business is up and running. However, rearranging your layout is definitely worth considering even if you are fully operational because the time that can be saved in the long term could be hugely beneficial. Although changing the floorplan of your warehouse when you are up and running can cause some disruption to your business in the short term, the long term benefits greatly outweigh this, and it is also less disruptive than having to move to new premises.
Businesses tend to start small with a natural focus on generating sales and growing the business quickly. This often leads to the warehouse being forgotten about and before anyone realises it is bursting at the seams with the directors looking at bigger premises so that the business can continue to expand. If your business has got to this stage, you might be surprised to find that there actually is a lot of wasted space within the warehouse and if it was rearranged to be more efficient than the current premises would still be able to sustain the business perfectly.
So, by using the warehouse’s space more efficiently, your employees will be able to get more tasks done in the day as they will be able to complete them quicker. The business will also benefit from not relocating to larger premises unnecessarily.
Logical Storage Solutions specialise in both industrial and commercial storage equipment who offer a wide range of innovative products that can both increase your available storage space and improve productivity. Our experienced team can help your business transform your warehouse into an efficient environment that looks after your bottom line. For more information please click here to visit our website or alternatively, please call us on 0845 689 1300.
Christmas will arrive and be over before we know, but it offers an important time for reflection with an opportunity to think about how you can push your business forward in the year to come. One easy way that you can do this is by making sure that your warehouse is as efficient as possible.
You can start by thinking about which areas of the warehouse are operating efficiently and which could do with better organisation. The best place to start is by talking to your employees to find out what day to day problems they actually encounter. For example if staff are finding that one item is very popular could you utilize push back racking to allow easy access or could you install double-deep racking to increase your storage capacity for said item.
Identifying overstock is also very important. Items which are not needed, aren’t selling or are just overstocked should be cleared out or moved elsewhere so that you can use that space for more profitable stock. General housekeeping should also never be overlooked, as time spent searching for wrongly placed items or clearing boxes from aisles is wasted time.
A mezzanine floor could also make a big difference to your warehouse, allowing you to arrange your stock more efficiently, increase your storage capacity or even provide you with a dedicated picking and packing area, simply by utilising the upper areas of your building that would normally be wasted. There are infinite design possibilities with a mezzanine floor and they are always tailored towards the requirements of the business having them installed.
Office partitions are another way to improve productivity. They can be set up as admin areas providing you with a distraction free space to complete paperwork, conduct meetings and take phone calls, or alternatively they could be used as a space for staff to take their lunch.
Logical Storage’s experienced team can help your warehouse to perform to its maximum potential. For more information on our racking solutions, mezzanine floors and office partitions please visit http://www.logicalstorage.co.uk/. Alternatively, please call us on 0845 689 1300 for a tailored proposal.
One of the most important factors affecting warehouse productivity is the way that products are stored and retrieved. Taking the time to consider a different form of storage could help to improve your overall efficiency and give you a competitive edge over your rivals. One such racking system which can make a big difference to your operations is dynamic push back racking.
With this type of racking, you can hold up to six pallets and quickly retrieve them. Dynamic push back racking uses trolleys and steel guide channels to hold pallets, and loads them on a slight incline which means that when you remove one pallet, the other pallets move forward by themselves filling the remaining space.
This means that the fork-lift operator can quickly retrieve pallets, as they come to them rather than the other way round. Push back racking is quick and easy to install and is estimated to improve warehouse efficiency by up to 25% when compared with Drive-in racking.
Push back racking is a great solution for your business if you have high density storage, particularly if you are stocking high quantities of the same item. Push back racking uses a Last-In First-Out principle (LIFO) which means that each time you remove a pallet or load one in it will always remain at the front of your racking allowing you quick and easy access with no unnecessary handling.
Logical Storage’s experienced team can help your warehouse to perform to its maximum potential. For more information on our racking solutions please visit http://www.logicalstorage.co.uk/services/racking-solutions/. Alternatively, please call us on 0845 689 1300 for a tailored proposal.
Growing businesses are always on the lookout for ways that they can strengthen and build upon their existing operations, and for those businesses that operate in warehouses and distribution centres, a mezzanine floor can be the perfect solution.
Warehouses and storage environments can be filled very quickly and this happens not only in busy periods but also during slower times of the year.
While space can sometimes be freed up by regular checks and removing build-ups of unwanted stock, you can make a significant impact by installing a mezzanine floor.
Mezzanine floors free up space by utilizing the upper areas of your building, so called ‘wasted’ space. This means that you can store products above head height and free up space below to be used for new stock, or in other creative ways.
As well as allowing you to fit more stock, they could also be put to other uses, for example by creating a space for packing operations, administrative duties or even simply as a staff room for your employees to give them space to eat their lunch and relax in privacy.
With rising rental costs it makes sense to look at ways in which you can develop your existing premises and continue your operations with minimum disruption rather than relocate. The entire process of installing a mezzanine floor can sometimes take only a few weeks which is in stark contrast to the time it takes to find a new warehouse and complete all the logistical hurdles involved in uprooting your business.
Of course mezzanine floors aren’t the right solution for everyone and here at Logical Storage we know that not every business is the same and rarely has the same requirements. Another alternative to mezzanine floors which could greatly improve the efficiency of your warehouse is to review your racking. Here at Logical Storage we offer a wide range of racking solutions from wide aisle racking, very narrow aisle racking and cantilever racking to drive-in racking and dynamic push back racking, and it could be that your business may benefit from trying something new.
Logical Storage’s experienced team can help your warehouse to perform to its maximum potential. For more information on mezzanine floors please visit http://www.logicalstorage.co.uk/services/mezzanine-flooring/ or click here to learn more about our racking options. Alternatively, please call us on 0845 689 1300 for a tailored proposal.
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