Working the warehouse better

In our March issue we carried a special feature on space optimisation, which includes Office Depot offering best practice advice on configuring your warehouse layout to optimise processes and, ultimately, save money.

We also have disturbing news about what can happen when the warehouse is left empty and poorly guarded. One sizeable warehouse in Bedfordshire had tonnes of waste dumped in it by a criminal gang. It beggars belief that no one noticed the gang cutting a truck sized hole in the side of the facility and then dumping what must have been many lorry loads of waste inside. This was a determined and large scale criminal operation and we appeal to anyone with information to contact the police or the Environment Agency.

As if that wasn’t enough to worry about, research commissioned by the Business Sprinkler Alliance shows warehouse fires cause a direct financial loss to businesses in England and Wales of £232 million a year. The BSA is campaigning to persuade the Government to do more to encourage the greater use of sprinkler systems in UK warehouses. In terms of regulations, the UK is more laissez-faire than some other major European countries, for example Germany. On the other hand, the UK body representing third party logistics, UKWA, favours a light touch approach to sprinkler regs.

My opinion is the Government, with its aversion to red tape, is unlikely to regulate more tightly and will be happy to let market forces take the lead. That said, it is an issue to be aware of as tighter regs will add cost and complexity to any new warehouse developments. Of course, these may be balanced by cost savings offered by sprinkler systems damping down a fire in your warehouse.

Don’t miss the forklifts supplement that comes with the March issue. This detailed magazine-within-a-magazine covers every aspect of every type of forklift truck, attachments, ancillaries, engines, batteries and chargers to improve productivity, profitability and safety. It also includes a round-up of the FLTA Awards detailing the latest innovations.

This month, we continue our Safer Logistics Campaign, with a focus on Safety in the Warehouse. A big thanks to our partner this month Impact Handling who have provided an excellent article outlining tips to boost warehouse safety. We would urge managers to use every tool in the box to prevent complacency taking hold in the workplace, including utilising the expertise of suppliers.

In the Forklifts supplement, we also carry shocking news of a serious crush accident caused when a forklift dropped its load. This poorly maintained forklift had a litany of faults and was the proverbial accident waiting to happen. This brings home once again that complacency is the main obstacle to better logistics safety. All workers in the logistics environment must feel empowered to challenge poor practice as and when they see it.

Doing so might be an unpopular move, it might be resented by management, but when acted upon, it could easily save someone from serious injury, or even save a life.

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