Cost Reduction Tips for Warehouse Managers

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The cost of managing a warehouse is influenced by many factors. Everything from rent, staffing, maintenance, and energy usage can drive your prices up. But there are ways to reduce costs, even as a manager. Here are three things you can do from evaluating the warehouse climate control plan and energy use, optimizing storage, looking into preowned items like containers, bins, etc. to save on purchase costs, and more. Read on to learn more.

Reevaluate your lighting needs

One of the simplest ways to reduce operational costs is to take a good, hard look at energy consumption. That means it’s time to reassess your lighting options, as well as the number on your thermostat. For instance, your warehouse may be filled with energy-sucking light bulbs that have been on automatic order for years. This is a seemingly innocuous error that could actually be costing your facility thousands per year. To remedy this, simply swap out your bulbs for energy-efficient options wherever possible.

In addition to your lighting, look at the climate control plan in place for your warehouse. Of course, many facilities require a tight zone of control due to hygiene and processing considerations – but many don’t. Take a closer look at your requirements and make sensible changes and make a big difference in your total energy costs.

Optimize Your Storage Space

When it comes to storage options for warehouse facilities, there are many different options available. While the initial investments required to put into these systems might seem steep, they are built to save square-footage, a powerful factor that could come with a cost-saving facility downsize, or even the ability to take on more inventory. Take advantage of the vertical space in your warehouse. Understand and communicate your goals clearly so you can best maximize your given space. Optimizing to get the most out of your storage space is a cost-saving and smart way to make things work more efficiently in a warehouse.

Consider How Automation Can Work for You

Automation is a big buzz-word in the warehousing and manufacturing industries. The incorporation of connected devices can help increase efficiencies in tracking, storing, ordering, and overall managing of inventory for significant cost savings when compared to human-based inventory control. Automated picking technologies, for example, have come a long way in recent years, both in terms of efficiency and price.

If you’re an operation that manages a large stock of inventory or a wide range of SKUs, it might be time to invest in an automated picking technology to support the work of your picking associates. Though the initial investment can be a steep one depending upon the level of technology selected, many collaborative machines are built to speed up the picking processes by more than 100% which can help you reduce costs in the long term.

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