The warehouse is the real heart of any business carrying out online trade. Why? It is where all the processes involved in fulfilling orders placed online are carried out. Basic equipment for the warehouse includes pallet trucks and hand trucks, as well as warehouse racks. In this article, you will learn how to equip your warehouse so that it is functional and works reliably every day.
Warehouse equipment – does the industry matter?
The industry in which a particular commercial company operates is of great importance, especially with regard to the operation of a mail order warehouse. Depending on the size of the goods sold, the size of the warehouse racks has to be adapted and the capacity of the vehicles must be adapted so that the efficiency of the hall is maintained at an appropriate level.
Warehousing and shipping of small goods does not require warehouse equipment in the form of large forklift trucks or palletising racks. In this case, light racks for unit goods and tables designed for the work of warehousemen will be sufficient.
Companies that sell bulky goods, e.g. shipped exclusively on pallets, should invest in warehouse equipment adapted to the storage of large and heavy items.
Basic warehouse equipment – what does it need to work with?
Many entrepreneurs these days do not even realise, how to equip an e-commerce warehousewarehouse so that it can operate at maximum efficiency. Warehouse equipment such as:
- Pallet trucks – These are primarily used to move full pallets of goods around the warehouse. This makes it easy to manually relocate the goods received, without having to unpack the entire pallet.
- Platform trolleys – A good platform trolley is also an essential piece of equipment in every warehouse. With the help of such a vehicle, parcels or small goods pulled off the shelf during order packing can be transported conveniently.
- Warehouse furniture – This product category includes mainly shelving units, stools and platforms. In order to best organise the warehouse space for storing goods, it is best to opt for the purchase of professional warehouse racks.
- Warehouse accessories – are the standard equipment of a warehouse, or more precisely the workstation of every warehouse worker. Without accessories such as knives, measuring cups and scales, unpacking, picking and preparing goods for dispatch could be problematic.
- Packing tables – Is such warehouse equipment necessary? Definitely yes, especially if warehouse employees are involved in picking small goods and sealing them in cardboard boxes.
- Storage boxes and containers – Storage boxes and containers for storing and sorting goods are the standard when it comes to equipping a modern warehouse. Without them, picking orders or even storing products on shelves would not be comfortable.
This list is just a few of the essential accessories that should be included in your warehouse equipment. In order to choose the right articles, it is advisable to carefully plan the various storage sectors and create a work plan before starting the hall. This will make it easier to match up the necessary equipment, machines and vehicles to facilitate the work of the warehouse workers.
Or maybe you are just about to buy a warehouse trolley and are having trouble choosing the right one for your company? If so, check out our guide, how to choose a pallet truck. In it, we suggest what to look out for and explain the use of the different types of warehouse trolleys.
Warehouse equipment and operating materials
The smooth operation of a warehouse does not only depend on how modern and functional the warehouse equipment is. It is also important to invest in proven operating materials for packing parcels. Warehousemen employed by the company should have access to products such as:
- Cardboard packaging – preferably made of 3-, 5- or 7-ply corrugated cardboard in various sizes. The more cardboard boxes at the back of the warehouse, the better. This makes packing goods into parcels and preparing them for shipping much easier.
- Stretch films and packing tapes – this is another group of operating materials, without which packing pallets for shipment would be impossible. It is worth choosing materials from reputable manufacturers, which are a guarantee of high quality and tear resistance.
- Bubble wrap – can be said to be an essential operating material, especially when it comes to shipping sensitive goods. Alternatively, you can also stock your warehouse with parcel fillers and kraft packing paper.
- Stickers and preprinted parcel labels – Without them, preparing parcels for collection by the courier would take considerably more time. Warehousemen using ready-made stickers can easily inform the courier of the need to handle the parcel with care.
Innovative systems for the production of paper fillers. This not only allows the company to act quickly, but also reduces the cost of using parcel fillers. Any damaged cardboard boxes can be processed directly on the warehouse floor into finished filler.
If you want to make sure you are buying the best warehouse equipment on the market, it is essential to contact a reliable distributor. In the RAJA offer you will find professional accessories, trolleys and other equipmentwhich improves the work of the warehouse and also contributes to reducing the costs of trading and shipping.
How much does basic warehouse equipment cost?
It is virtually impossible to give a clear indication of how much a full warehouse equipment costs. Every company is different and has completely different needs. However, it can be assumed that the average cost of equipping an average-sized warehouse ranges from several to even several dozen thousand zlotys.
The total cost is influenced by the industry in which the trading company with its own shipping warehouse operates. The larger the size of goods, the higher the cost of equipping the hall with the necessary equipment, accessories and, most importantly, shelving.