Some businesses might choose to utilize new employees in the shipping and receiving area, though they might be better served to assign professionals to handle these difficult tasks. Qualified people who understand and know the products seldom mix items that may look the same but are somewhat different and they know how to stock shelves and bins correctly and therefore, work much more effectively.
It is a good idea if you have new staff to start them out by filling orders. This provides them with an excellent chance to learn the products, paperwork and clients along with any electronic inventory system that could take some getting used to. In addition, it is easy to check their efficiency by going over their work orders once they are packed for shipment.
The next tip is to plan the truck arrival, since you really do not want all trucks to arrive at the same time. By scheduling arrivals and being organized, you would eliminate pressure on shippers and receivers and also eliminate excessive waiting time in the yard. The more efficiently you could schedule the arrival of your trucks, the less dock doors you would have to operate that will save you money on utilities in the long run.
If you can, work different shifts for shipping and receiving. One method is to receive products in one shift and separate the shipped products to a different shift. Organizing yourself in this manner could enable you to reduce the staging area requirements by 50%. You may also be able to eliminate time-wasting bottlenecks within the warehouse. In addition, by separating your shipping and receiving, you could keep track of orders more effectively and would know which shift to look over if any discrepancies occur down the road.
Speed up the unloading process. This will tremendously help you out because the longer a truck sits at your door for loading or unloading, the more congested your yard could become. Based on studies, about 60 percent of mass merchants are capable of unloading trucks in less than 60 minutes, whereas around 20 to 30 percent of the grocery business performs at a similar standard. Make time to observe and time operations to be able to see exactly how your facility measures up overall.
Floor maintenance is crucial as floor defects can cause lift truck operators to slow down or take detours. This can result in a reduction of productivity. Deteriorating floor section seams or uneven floors or potholes also cause vehicle damage and wheel wear. In certain situations, really damaged floors could lead to product damage and loads tipping.