When it comes to warehouse racking layout, we commonly have no more than two types: horizontal and vertical. Horizontal vertical mainly for the warehouse work surface and the direction of entry, as shown in the following chart:
Whether horizontal or vertical racking layout, racking length direction is perpendicular to the direction of the main road. Our common warehouse layout is roughly the same, why is there such a thousand times? First of all, let's analyze the design of the e-commerce warehouse, it is derived from the traditional warehouse design. For traditional warehouses, as long as your warehouse is not round, then the warehouse shelves or pallets perpendicular or parallel to the wall direction is the most full use of space. And when your shelves or pallets and the wall between the angle, will inevitably result in a waste of flat space, as follows:
So in the traditional warehouse layout, in order to maximize the possible use of warehouse space, shelves or pallets of the edge of the wall is perpendicular or parallel to the direction of the wall.
But is this consideration absolutely correct, or optimal, when applied to e-commerce warehouse layouts? Before I also think so, because everyone is doing so, until the big fat little fat brother showed me a foreign warehouse shelves design articles, only doubly sweating, for accustomed to matters not to think about the source of habit and the logic at the time, only to make their own blinders on the horizon, can not get new knowledge.
The author recommended that article mentioned the two warehouse layout is as follows:
These two layouts, compared to the following this, tested by the author of that foreign article, V-type racking layout 1 to improve efficiency by more than 11%, V-type racking layout 2 to improve efficiency by more than 23%.
So how does the difference between the efficiency improvement and the efficiency improvement value come about? I'll try to do some explaining later in this one. I also hope that someone who is good at math can explain it in terms of function theory.
Why is there such an adjustment to the traditional warehouse layout? Personally, I think the e-commerce warehouse layout of the picking efficiency is a major factor. Traditional warehouses because the frequency of delivery is not high, so the picking time, picking efficiency is not too high requirements; but e-commerce order processing characteristics, determines its picking efficiency to improve the high demand in the case of the loss of warehouse area utilization is not big, adjust the warehouse shelf layout to improve the picking efficiency will be a meaningful work as a warehousing management can try.
Now, of course, I have not found the logic or theoretical support for the efficiency change. Warehouse layout, and even the rules of goods SKU distribution, the distribution of goods in the order and other details will have an impact on the efficiency of picking.
Additionally, setting up optimal picking routes for each type of warehouse shelf layout is also a difficulty.