Master Warehouse Organization: Proven Strategies for Efficiency & Profit

“A place for everything, and everything in its place.” That old saying is a tried-and-true core piece of advice — whether organizing your home garage or your multi-thousand square foot warehouse full of inventory.

As the busy manager of a supply chain warehouse, you know how important it is to be organized. Profit and loss statements depend on the efficient use of resources in managing your inventory, so it gets into your customers’ hands on time and in good condition. But loss prevention is only half the battle in running an efficient industrial or commercial warehouse facility. The other half is organizing your stock inventory, making it economically accounted for, easily accessible and safely stored.

Getting practical warehouse management ideas and warehouse organization tips are part of your responsibility as a storage and distribution facility operator. Good managers always strive for new ways to improve and organize their businesses. That includes being open and receptive to creative suggestions on how to set up warehouse inventory. Whether youneed parts or warehouse sorting tips or ideas for a manufacturing facility that holds inventory for production and final distribution, there are always old and new ways to increase efficiency.

At Cherry’s Industrial Equipment, we know the impact proper organization has on your business’s bottom line. We understand that supplying you with the right industrial and commercial warehouse equipment greatly improves your efficiency and delivery of goods to satisfied customers. We partner with you to get the best use of our material handling systems along with providing greater worker safety that leads to excellent morale. Here are some practical ways to make this possible utilizing the following organizational tools:

CONTAINERS

Containers are the most efficient way to organize your warehouse stock. Having every stocked item placed in a proper container lets you know where your inventory is. It also allows you to access it quickly when needed. Containers come in every shape and size, but the most effective and efficient containers safely hold your inventory and let you look inside easily.

1. Use Wire Mesh Baskets to Sort by Type

This is where wire mesh containers excel — sleek design, strong, and transparent. Your stock is organized and easily accessible. Consider the benefits welded wire mesh containers offer:

• Easy access: Wire mesh containers have optional drop-down front gates so you can open the containers while they’re stacked and retrieve the contents. There’s no lifting up multiple containers from on top of each other. You simply unlatch the gate, drop it down and pick out your stock.
• Great visibility: Cherry’s Industrial welded wire mesh containers have a 2-inch by 2-inch That’s proven the most efficient size to confidently contain the majority of stocked items. Even small pieces can easily be held inside this size of grid. This perfect grid pattern also allows you excellent visibility into what’s held in the container.
• Vertical storage: Welded wire mesh containers are designed to stack vertically. You can place up to four container units on top of each other without risk of collapse or instability. Each of Cherry’s Industrial’s wire mesh containers is made to hold up to 4,000 lbs. By organizing your stock vertically, you can safely contain up to 16,000 lbs. in a 40-inch by 48-inch or even a 40-inch by 32-inch footprint depending on the wire container you choose.
• Collapsible design: Another clear benefit to wire mesh containers is their ability to collapse or fold down when not in use. That saves an enormous amount of space that can be used for active inventory organization.

Collapsible wire mesh containers are one of the most popular storage items in the warehouse industry. They’re available in standard sizes that Cherry’s Industrial keeps in stock. Or, if stocked sizes don’t meet your organizational needs, we can work with you to provide custom wire mesh containers.

2. Organize With Plastic Containers

If welded wire mesh containers don’t meet your needs, consider using containers manufactured from plastic. Many food and beverage or medical supply industries prefer plastic containers because of their strength and hygienic properties. Plastic storage containers are easy to clean if contaminated. They’re also durable and long-lasting.

Organizing your inventory with plastic collapsible containers is as efficient as using metal ones. Cherry’s Industrial Equipment carries a line of ORBIS containers that are a favorite in the warehouse world. They’re available with fixed walls or as collapsible models and can hold up to 2,000 lbs. Our plastic containers also have drop-down gates for easy access and inspections. Consider using any or all our plastic bin options:

• Medium-duty collapsible containers: Our standard size is 32” by 30” for the structural foam molded models but also come in 25” and 34” vertical heights. These medium containers are perfect for storing anything from automotive and electrical parts to tools and hardware.
• Heavy-duty plastic containers: For heavier weights or hardier products, consider buying Cherry’s Industrial’s bigger boxes. These are the ORBIS HDR series and range in size from 32” by 30” up to 48” by 45”. Heavy-duty plastic containers are available with fixed or collapsible sizes. The largest units are known as pallet boxes and serve to perfectly house loads destined for pallet shipping.
• General-purpose plastic containers: Our KLAPA general purpose containers are excellent for organizing most articles you can think of. They’re made from high-pressure injected polypropylene molded into extremely impact-resistant boxes. They can withstand force from forklifts and are tough enough to be stacked four-high at full capacity.

Plastic containers are so versatile. Whether you need space-saving collapsible boxes or are satisfied with fixed-wall containers, Cherry’s Industrial has the ones you need. We also carry plastic containers with extended height and length dimensions.

3. Explore Your Steel and Aluminum Metal Container Options

Get your warehouse organized with metal container options. We handle a wide selection of metal containers for every conceivable purpose. You might need a lightweight aluminum container for easy mobility. They’re strong and transportable. Or you might require something sturdier, like steel. No matter what your needs are, we have a metal container for you.

Steel containers are regularly used for safely handling materials. That might be stable things like paint or cleaning supplies. It could also be hazardous goods like fuel. Our steel containers are fire and corrosion rated. They’re available with attractive powder coat finishes and look great while keeping you safely organized.

Most of our aluminum containers are left in their raw metal form. Aluminum doesn’t need finishing, as it’s impervious to rust and rarely stains. Aluminum containers are simple and fast to clean. They’re available with versatile drop gates and folding size. They can handle every organizational task plastic and wire mesh containers accomplish, but with far more strength.

4. Use Bins and Boxes

Every industrial warehouse needs bins and boxes. Warehouse workers use them to store and transport products and organize workflow, yet still economize precious space. Cherry’s Industrial Equipment has a wide variety of bin and boxes for every warehouse application. Choose from an assortment of sizes and materials that suit your needs.

• Agricultural containers serve a huge industry. They’re designed for farms where harvests are picked, transported and stored for market delivery. Agricultural containers are available in an assortment of sizes and weights to make picking easy while still protecting produce. These versatile bins are also used in meat processing and packing. Features include vented or solid walls and runners on both the short and long sides.
• Bulk storage containers let you organize large, bulky items like packaged dry goods that take up significant space but weigh little. Heavy-duty bins can also hold tools and other equipment. Choose from a range of sizes and strengths to organize volumes of material that need to be contained and kept out of the way.
• Fixed wall containers give added strength and stability that collapsible containers can’t provide. Fixed wall containers let you organize products in stacks, and don’t need pallets or storage racks. You can move them from one location to another quickly. This maximizes workspace and lets you easily access products and parts.
• Meat containers are specifically designed for the meat and poultry industry. They’re made for easy cleaning and sanitization. Meat containers are strong and available in sizes from small to large depending on your facility’s needs. They meet all FDA and USDA/HAACP regulations.

• Parts bins make manufacturing organization efficient and assembly line work flow fast. You can organize small items like nuts and bolts by size and purpose. You can store and retrieve large items like automotive parts safely and easily. Regardless of your assembly operation, Cherry’s Industrial has the right type of parts bin to keep you organized.
• Shelf bins are large and built tough to withstand heavy power tools. They’re also available in small sizes to keep materials like electronic parts protected. These containers are designed for static locations like sitting on dedicated shelves where workers can locate and access them without difficulty.
• Stack-N-Nest containers do just that. They stack when filled and nest to save space when empty. Stack-N-Nest containers organize material neatly and create efficient use of minimal space. We carry a range of sizes, colors and price ranges.
• Custom bins and boxes can fill needs that stock items just can’t serve. Contact a Cherry’s Industrial Equipment representative and discuss your specific organization challenge. That might be a custom shape or custom colors to make identification simple. No matter what you need organized, we’re here to help you solve storage problems by designing custom storage containers.

ERGONOMIC ORGANIZATION

5. Invest in Container Tilters

Muscle strains are common for warehouse workers. Most of these injuries happen from lifting and sorting. Bending over and digging in storage is hard on the back, arms and legs. However, organizing your products doesn’t have to be strenuous when you use container tilters.

These handy devices take the wear and tear away from workers and let the machine do the tilting. Containers like large storage bins are set on the lift tray or forks and then mechanically tilted to the desired angle. This lets workers access contents without excessive bending or twisting. Container tilters are invaluable in settings where bin access is an all-day, everyday task.

Cherry’s Industrial Equipment is a leading supplier of container tilters. We have solutions for every type of industry that uses large containers daily. Because there are so many different workplaces with special material handling needs, we carry these different models of container tilters to make your organization stress-free.

• Manual tilters are our basic tilting tool. Containers are placed on the tilt table and the worker manually operates the controls to give whatever tilt is needed to easily and safely access the bin. These manual tools can lift and tilt loads of up to 2,200 pounds without any strain on the worker.
• Electric tilters can handle loads of up to 6,000 pounds. They have an easily operated electric motor to replace all manual labor. Electric container tilters are available in both mobile and stationary designs. Choose what’s best for your container access and organizing from Cherry’s Industrial Equipment.
• Hydraulic tilters take tilting to the next level. They still use electric motors but drive the heavy lifting capacity of hydraulic cylinders. These units can tilt to 90 degrees, which makes access to containers perfect.
• Pneumatic tilters operate by compressed air. Pneumatic container tilters are ideal for warehouses where compressed air power is the main energy source. Their lift capacity ranges from 1,000 to 6,000 pounds.

SAFETY STORAGE

6. Safely Organize Your Hazardous Materials With Safety Cabinets

If your warehouse handles hazardous materials, use this tip to source the right storage container and organize safely. All our safety cabinets comply with regulations prescribed by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) code 30 standards. They’re ideal for safely organizing flammable liquids, fuel drums and gas cylinders.

All Cherry’s Industrial safety containers are colored coded to meet uniform codes and are marked with highly visible signage that identifies the contents. They’re made with 3-point, self-latching and non-sparking hardware and contain galvanized shelves. Use these safe cabinets to organize:

• Inks and paints
• Propane and other gas bottles
• Flammables like gasoline and diesel fuel
• Corrosive and acidic materials
• Environmental pollutants such as oil and grease

Organizing your hazardous materials is the proper step for safely protecting your warehouse and your staff.

PALLETS

7. Organize Your Pallets

Practically every warehouse uses pallets. Your situation is likely no different, but what you may not have is an organizational system for your pallet inventory. This is another area Cherry’s Industrial can help you with organizing.

We carry a wide variety of pallet designs and slip sheets for many different purposes. That includes pallets made from a range of creative materials. Wood pallets are still the most common type of pallet construction, but we’ve organized our inventory in other directions.

If you’re looking to better organize your pallet fleet, turn to Cherry’s Industrial and their wide variety of pallet options. We offer industrial pallets made from plastic and metal that provide durability and sanitization benefits that can’t be achieved with standard wooden pallets. We classify our pallet selection into four categories:

• Stackable pallets are designed to sit on top of each other without nesting into each other. They could be either closed-bottom or open-bottom pallets.
• Rackable pallets are robustly designed to handle loads while resting on either selective or edge racking. When purchasing these pallets always make sure to know the maximum edge racking load capacity.
• Nestable pallets are real space savers. You get the maximum space organization with these pallets that fit inside each other like egg cartons. They use less than a quarter of your floor area than wood pallets and are your best solution for storing multiple pallet stacks.
• Export pallets are the right solution where you ship internationally. They’re made for cost-effective shipping of one-time orders where pallet exchange is impractical.

Cherry’s Industrial Equipment carries pallets for every organizational purpose you can encounter in your warehouse. We stock pallets made from plastic, metal, wire mesh and even pressboard. Consider investing in modern pallets made of durable materials.

MOVERS

8. Organize Your Material Handling Movers

There’s more you can do in organizing your warehouse than acquiring better containers, storage safety units and pallets. In a busy warehouse, you’re constantly moving material. Cherry’s Industrial Equipment helps you out in this area as well. Think of how much better organized you’d be with these material handling tools:

• Pallet trucks are mandatory tools in your warehouse. They’re often called pallet jacks, and they’re available in a range of load capacities and operator features.
• Freezer spacers are designed to allow cold air to better cool down your packaged foods.
• Pallet stackers are a great lower cost alternative to forklift trucks. You can place loaded pallets onto racks or load trailers with this amazing equipment.
• Transport dollies are professional equipment movers designed to move extra heavy loads within a warehouse. They are easily maneuvered using a single centralized steering handle.
• Roller skids are great for moving heavy loads in areas not easily accessible to fork lift trucks. They can come with polyurethane wheels, steel wheels, or roller chains.
• Machine skates are fixed skates built for transporting loads in one direction. They come with connecting rods that make them adjustable in width.
• Toe jacks are handy for “propping up” or lifting heavy equipment or machinery so that either rollers skids, machine skates, or transport dollies can be placed underneath.

RACKING

9. Make Use of Racks

When it comes to storing product and saving space in your warehouse facility utilizing quality racking is the way to go.   The space in a warehouse is best maximized when going vertical and pallet racks are the only practical solution.  The challenge you may have right now is finding quality racks that can work for your particular business needs.

Cherry’s Industrial is a leading provider of name brand warehouse equipment to help you organize your facility. We supply quality pallet racking along with accessories such as rack protectors and wire decking.  Wire decking, for example, is:

• Lightweight and easy to install
• Provides great support for heavily loaded pallets
• Complies with fire safety codes
• Acts as a safety net for product that may topple off to the side

Cherry’s Industrial provides both flared and step wire decks that come with a waterfall design.  Average capacities are 2,500 lbs. and the wire mesh spacing is at 2.5” X 4”.  Custom sizes and designs are available as well.

Integrate Cherry’s Industrial’s Warehouse Organization Tips

Carefully consider the above 9-Points and think of how you can effectively integrate all of Cherry’s Industrial Equipment’s warehouse storage and material handling tools in your organization. Choose from our wide selection of wire mesh and plastic storage containers.  See what type of industrial pallets are right for organizing your space. Implement safe storage cabinets, and invest in sturdy racks and wire shelves.  Determine what product will work best for you. We have every type of pallet truck, dolly, roller skid and machine skate you can use.

Cherry’s Industrial handles the best-quality warehouse stacking, storage and material handling equipment at the fairest possible prices and with the best customer service. For over three decades, Cherry’s Industrial Equipment has made warehouse organizing easier, more economical and safer.  For more information visit our website at www.material-handling.com or connect with one of our product specialists concerning the industrial warehouse and storage solution that’s right for you.