Is lack of space limiting your expansion plans?
Using the right materials handling equipment may be an alternative to additional manpower
In order to increase throughput, some parcel carriers and retailers choose to expand their facilities and add more doors, while others opt for three-shift systems.
If you decide to expand your facilities and add more doors, you can manage more trucks and containers simultaneously. But modernizing your facility is a pricey affair, and if it stands alone, you'll also need to hire more people to handle the cargo coming in and out, thus exposing yourself to more manual interactions and the inherent risks of human error.
The same can be said for option number two – a three-shift system. You might be able to accept and manage despatching loose-loaded cargo trucks around the clock, but you will not see any efficiency increase per container.
Perhaps you're able to achieve greater efficiency with the facility and the teams you have...
Achieving greater efficiency with the current set-up
Instead of increasing the number of people on your payroll, you can deploy Telescopic Conveyors to load and unload vehicles and containers.
Typically, a Telescopic Conveyor will reduce the trailer turnaround time by 30-50 percent, says Jens Erik Langdahl, Product Manager at Caljan A/S.
Telescopic Conveyors can extend into the container without floor support. So, instead of having five people running between the container and the conveyor belt, you only need one person at each end of the Telescopic. They can unload faster and with much better work posture.
Mobilizing a Telescopic means it can serve multiple doors. This flexibility means you can handle an increasing volume of loose cargo in a facility predominantly designed for palletized goods.
By choosing the right equipment, you will achieve substantial efficiency improvements. And not just in the short term. Right now, the market is changing rapidly and we see a significant increase in the number of packages being shipped locally and globally. Therefore, your solution needs to be flexible – providing room for growth, Jens Erik Langdahl explains.
Scan or label as an integral part of unloading/loading and increase throughput. Goods-in can be validated against orders. Goods-out can be wrapped and labelled.
Shipping documents can be printed and added to the shipment automatically. It is even possible to load parcels and polybags into trucks automatically.
Short & Simple; unload and label
Items are identified during the unloading process. The bar code ID/location label is printed then swiftly applied, as the goods enter the warehouse.
Combining two processes in one; with a Labelling Unit fitted onto the Telescopic Conveyor, will save you time as well as space.
If the solution is mobilized — you get even greater flexibility.