In the past year I’ve toured manufacturing facilities that have office space right on the plant floor.  Those offices had been added as the company grew and needed more supervisors or engineers on the floor. They were using modular offices, of course. Later, I was fortunate to attend a training session on modular offices done by one of our suppliers, and it was amazing the forethought and engineering that goes into these modular buildings.

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Carton flow expedites pick operations by making stock accessible in an easily replenished first-in/first-out pattern. Gravity flow racks can reduce labor costs up to 75% in pick operations compared to static storage picking by delivering cartons and split case goods to the pick aisle rather pickers pulling from the static pallet rack storage. It is a commonly used storage/picking method in many operations, but there are many options and types of flow storage available. Which fits your need best?

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Our partners at Steel King sometimes release information on specialized steel bulk containers, and we like to pass it along when they do. This heavy-duty industrial recycling container was the company’s container of the month for February 2015. It’s equipped with rollover fork legs, crane eyes, and has valves for oil draining. It’s stackable and can be equipped with casters for easy movement (even if loaded). It can also be constructed water tight on request. If it fits your application, contact us for quick assistance.

Most operations maintain at least some numbers on the most critical aspects of the business. For order picking operations, you might track number of orders picked per day, hours per pick, cost-per-pick, on-time rates — and error rates. The question is this: how accurate are those numbers? For instance, if your system reports 50 order picking errors a week, does that represent half your errors? All of them? Most of them? It’s can be difficult to understand.

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Steel guard rail is one of the best–and most economical–accident prevention tools in a facility’s safety arsenal. It helps keep workers safe from forklift traffic, protects valuable equipment from potential damage, and even guards ends of pallet rack rows. But there may be times when you need forklift or cart access to protected areas (or simply don’t want to step over or around railing). How do you handle those situations? How often are you having to remove your guard rail and then reassemble? There’s a better way available — lift-out rail systems.

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This short video details some common-sense tactics for safer pallet rack operations. Remember, pallet racks are designed for specific capacities and loads. If you are working on a rack application and aren’t sure of any of your load factors, contact us for assistance today. Also see our related infographic: “Safer Rack Operations”.

 What is high profile Span-Track?

UNEX’s high profile Span-Track was the first full-width roller track in the industry. Span-Track made its debut in 1992 and revolutionized the carton flow industry. High profile Span-Track increases efficiency by providing better flow, fewer hang-ups, and greater storage density than the alternatives—plastic wheel rails or other carton flow solutions.

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It’s an exciting year in the world of manufacturing. With the Internet of Things (IoT) becoming increasingly pervasive and innovations and new technologies paving the way for more efficient, productive, and intelligent industrial operations, manufacturers have the opportunity to continue with the forward momentum the industry experienced in 2014.

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When people enter a warehouse, many see just the shelves, pallets, racks, lift trucks, and boxes. They may overlook the numerous scenarios that can easily cause serious injuries — or worse. Safety is all too frequently disregarded due to insufficient time, inadequate resources, lack of management focus, or an opportunity to cut corners in an attempt to save money.

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Resolutions like losing a pound (or 20!), learning to play a musical instrument, starting an exercise program, giving up smoking, or learning a new language are notoriously difficult to stick with. Worthwhile goals tend to be that way. When you’re thinking about what you’d like to do in 2015, save a resolution for your professional life. When it comes to your warehouse operation, since you work on it all day, every day, January is a good time to look at improvements you can make.

What could you resolve to improve in your warehouse this year?

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