Tag Archive for: Turnkey Solutions

Warehouse Teardown

A local company came to Storage Solutions as they prepared to move out of their existing 250,000 sq. ft. warehouse, which at the time was still a fully functioning operation amid its busiest season. The customer asked us to tear down and purchase the remaining pallet racking and accessories throughout their facility in a short time frame, as they had just five weeks to vacate the building in compliance with their existing lease. To add to the complexity of the project, customer-owned product was still stored in the racking to be removed, and our team was asked to begin the installation of pallet racking at their new facility.

Complex projects are where Storage Solution’s wide range of turnkey solutions shine, especially when time is of the essence. See how we responded with those solutions below, to ensure this project was completed on time and within budget.

Existing Facility Teardown

To meet our customer’s needs, were able to deploy double our typical crew size through our in-house labor services to knock down the material as quickly as possible. The crew worked with on-site operations employees to sequence emptying the racks with tearing them down to minimize downtime.

Logistics

Tearing down pallet racking is one thing – ensuring it  can be removed from the site efficiently and safely is another challenge our Logistics Handling Solutions (LHS) team was prepared to handle. Within the five-week window of the dismantlement, LHS booked just under forty trucks to shuttle material from the customer’s warehouse to SSI’s warehouse to be received. Not only was material brought back and received by our warehouse, but some of the material from the dismantle was drop shipped directly from the customer to two additional locations.

Project Management

An integral part of the entire process was our used purchasing team’s role in the project from start to finish. Our team made a site visit to accurately count and provide a quote to dismantle and purchase the material. Additionally, they coordinated with our in-house groups and got the project off the ground quickly – all while maintaining clear communication with our customer through the life cycle of the project.

New Facility Installation

It was essential to our customer that during the dismantle process we also install pallet racking at the new facility so they would have open pallet positions for product coming from the old location. Our installation crew to divided resources between sites when necessary to ensure we could meet our customer’s request.

Scope of Work

Dismantled & Purchased:

1252

Uprights

4400

Carton Flow Lanes

6248

Beams

Additionally

A Large Mix Of Accessories

Booked, Loaded, & Received Just Under 40 Trucks

Drop shipped Material to 2 Separate Warehouses Direct from Site

This project was a strong example of Storage Solutions utilizing our in-house resources and ensuring a sense of urgency was exhibited through all steps of the process to meet our customer’s tight timeline. Storage Solution’s ability to respond to the needs of our customers on the fly is what separates us as not just a warehouse integrator but a trusted partner to all our customers.

If your warehouse could benefit from any of Storage Solution’s in-house solutions, click here to learn more!

Storage Solutions recently completed a time-sensitive project helping a local cable tie and wire management company that needed to move out of its facility. Their lease was ending, and they were left with equipment in their warehouse that they no longer needed. Time was of the essence, and our customer needed the material out fast. Our client called our Used Purchasing Team to help, and we were confident in our ability to dismantle and remove this equipment in a safe and timely manner.

We started by sending a team member over to their facility to obtain an accurate count and measurement of the products to determine any potential challenges that needed to be addressed. The bill of material consisted of 70 uprights, 280 beams, 100 wire decks, and 50 bays of shelving. Our skilled team knew we had a tight window to complete the work but planned and executed the dismantle efficiently with a two-day turnaround to meet our client’s deadline.

At Storage Solutions, we are no strangers to accomplishing aggressive goals for dismantling and removing materials. In some circumstances, emptying your warehouse space can take as long as creating a new one. However, we make it simple by implementing our purchasing, logistics, sales, and in-house installation teams to address your problems upfront. Storage Solutions distinguishes ourselves by having those resources at our disposal and the ability to partner with your organization as a primary turnkey provider. Our team will evaluate and strategize a plan from start to finish while understanding the critical demand of time-sensitive projects.

Storage Solutions provides a single team that will provide a simple, smart, and strategic approach from start to finish. We provide everything you need to complete your project effectively, on time, and within budget, all while collaborating with a single trusted partner. With the assistance of our project management team, our company aims to distinguish itself from its competitors. Whether a two-day dismantle or a six-month project, our clients know they can come to us with any questions or challenges.

Is your company looking to relocate to a new facility? Contact us today and let our Used Purchaing team provide a turnkey approach to facilitate your move.

Turnkey Solutions Equipment Purchasing

Delivering a seamless turnkey experience is something the entire Storage Solutions team strives to do with each project we undertake. Recently, a frequent 3PL client of ours found themselves with over 2,000 uprights, 20,000 beams, 25,000 wire decks, 5,800 row spacers, 600 aisle guards, and 1,500 column protectors sitting in their warehouse.

The client needed to move all of the equipment out of their warehouse as quickly as possible because, despite being nearly new, it no longer fit their needs. With all that racking sitting in their warehouse – representing almost $2 million in material – they called our Used Purchasing Team (UPT) to help. After learning about the situation, our team was confident in our ability to move this equipment. Because of our size, scope, and skill, we knew we could also solve some additional challenges along the way.

To start, we sent a team member to the site to get photos, measurements, and an accurate count, and the work began. Our sales teams and project managers got word of the equipment’s specifications. They reached out to several other clients with immediate needs for racking but who were on waiting lists because the lead time on warehouse equipment is so long in the current environment.

We utilized our in-house logistics team to coordinate the shipments of 60 truckloads over two weeks to several locations, navigating the challenges that come with today’s shipping environment. We also used our in-house installation team because they have a long history of quality work on short timelines. Our purchasing, logistics, sales, and installation teams adeptly responded to all the challenges that come with moving $2 million in warehouse equipment in a short timeframe.

Having those resources in-house and being able to completely control every aspect of a project is what sets Storage Solutions apart. Many of our clients don’t know where to begin when it comes to challenges like these. Who would be your first call? Who would you hire to load the trucks? Do they have experience with dismantling and banding equipment and loading it safely on trucks?

Because we have such a deep team, with dedicated, in-house associates that know the ins and outs of equipment purchasing, teardowns and installations, and shipping and logistics, we were able to provide a turnkey service that solved our client’s unique challenge.

At the end of the day, we delivered a great win for our customer with our ability to provide excellent turnkey service and move swiftly in removing the material on site. It is another example of our size, scope, and skill separating us from others in our industry. We can solve challenges in ways others cannot.

Do you need help on a project? Let us know!

SSI Difference - Size Scope Skill

With all the obstacles that can belie any project – from labor shortages to logistical challenges to project management issues – it pays to work with a company that can solve challenges. Especially in times like these, when it seems all of these challenges are happening simultaneously, it pays off to work with a partner that offers the size, scope, and skill to overcome those and get the job done on time and on budget.

As the most significant storage equipment integrator in North America, we have the capabilities to get projects done on a shorter timeline and with a lesser impact on your day-to-day operations that other companies do not have.

What does that mean? How does that benefit you? Let’s explain…

We Can Source Warehouse Storage Equipment When Others Can’t

When it comes to buying power, we are unmatched in our industry. We are a Top-5 purchaser of pallet racking from the Top-8 manufacturers in North America when most other integrators cannot boast that claim for one or two of them. This status means that we have buying power that allows us to source equipment that others cannot because of our size and scope.

That status also means that we can achieve quicker lead times than others. Because each project is unique, we can get things done faster than the competition. We have such good relationships with our partners that, in the rare instance where production space is open, our manufacturing partners will reach out to us to see if we are interested in their supply. Of course, we are!

So, when some manufacturers may be sitting on 24-week production schedules, we can fit orders into their existing schedule because they know we’re always looking to buy. These unique vendor relationships allow us to place orders on reserved production because we know we can connect our clients to new equipment faster than others.

Another differentiator we can boast of is our 330,000 square-foot warehouse, located in Central Indiana, just north of Indianapolis. We always have new and preowned equipment in stock, and our warehouse allows us to be aggressive in acquiring inventory, which means we can help fill orders quicker. Plus, when there is a delay on a project and equipment is in transit, there are times that we can use and hold those uprights, beams, wire decks, or other equipment in our facility until the project gets back on track.

We are Growing at a Record Pace, Adding More Strategic Partners & Staff Along the Way

As a team, we continue to grow in size and skill. We have added dozens of new talent in sales, engineering, project management, installation, and operations in the past few years, which means we can accommodate a higher volume of projects at any given time and handle a larger share of each clients’ challenges. We have always engaged in training and continuous improvement, but we’ve made a real effort to get our staff accredited and certified in their area of expertise, and it’s paying off for our team and our partners.

We have new strategic partnerships with industry leaders like Daifuku, MHS Global, inVia Robotics, OPEX, and more, which means we are more connected to the latest-and-greatest solutions that can genuinely drive ROI on our clients’ projects. These are new areas of specialization that we have never been able to offer before.

Our approach means we can put the processes and programs to our client’s success. By being proactive – instead of reactive – we can control a project that many others cannot. That pays off by creating long-term partnerships with our growing number of clients because they know we can help solve nearly any challenge that may lay ahead.

We Have the In-House Talent to Navigate Project Planning and Execution

Another one of our main differentiators is our ability to provide in-house Turnkey Services to accommodate project planning and execution. Not only can we assist in the engineering and permitting process, but we offer an unmatched, robust project management team dedicated to each project. That team provides oversight on each component of a project and is in constant communication regarding safety checkpoints, installation progress, permits, logistics, and all the elements required to ensure a project is executed at a top-of-class level.

We offer this as an in-house solution because we ultimately want to be a partner that makes the best use of our clients’ time. Instead of being stuck calling around trying to find answers – or finding out what questions you even need to ask – we already know whom to ask, what to ask, and how to navigate the challenges associated with planning and executing these projects.

Our logistics and installation teams are also held in-house to provide complete control over projects and to ensure that there are no “gaps” in relying on two third-party vendors to coordinate with each other.

Especially now, in late 2021, supply chain and labor markets are experiencing massive delays and challenges. Fewer trucks are available. Delivery times are all over the place. Labor shortages are nationwide. We are not immune from these challenges, but we experience them to lesser degrees than our competition because we can control more resources than others. In other words, just because there is a labor shortage or supply chain disruption, it doesn’t mean we can’t get the job done. Our team can.

When our internal resources are stretched, and we do need to reach out to a third-party vendor, we have built a massive nationwide network of vetted vendors that we can utilize when necessary, and we can leverage our relationships when essential for our clients to receive preferential treatments.

We’re Ready to Get Started!

If you’ve worked with us before, you know our agnostic approach to sourcing solutions means we can deliver your project with fewer challenges than any other partner. If you haven’t worked with us before, give us a call and share more about how we have the size, scope, and skill that positions us as a true industry leader. That position makes us an ideal partner, especially in the current environment of unforeseen challenges and obstacles.

Whether you are about to plan a significant project like designing a new distribution center, investigating whether or not to introduce automation to your operations, or are just exploring options for a project partner, give us a call. We have a team in-house that can help you at every stage of that project, from design through implementation and support.

 

Facility Safety Survey

Facility safety surveys can be an excellent avenue for warehouses, fulfillment centers, and distribution centers to lower long-term costs by keeping employees, equipment, and your facility in optimal conditions. In many ways, maintaining a facility can be quite like maintaining a car or a home. The longer you wait to perform that maintenance or conduct regular examinations, the more likely, the smaller problems will turn into extensive, costly repairs.

By scheduling a facility safety survey, you are not just looking at developing a checklist of tasks to ensure your people, equipment, and facility stay safe and operational, but you are creating a roadmap to improve your building’s long-term health for everything inside of it. Our experts will work with you to develop both short-and-long-term goals that align with common safety standards found within these facilities.

How Often Should You Conduct a Facility Safety Survey?

Per standards put forth by the Rack Manufacturers Institute (RMI), rack inspections should be performed on an annual basis, at the very least. However, more frequent inspections are recommended in facilities with racking in high traffic areas, narrow aisles, transfer aisles, cold environments, or that features equipment with prior damage – even as often as once per month.

That RMI-recommended cadence is generally a great starting point for any facility safety survey, but we can work with you to find the best rhythm for regular visits. For instance, if you are a facility that changes beam levels often, you may need additional safety check-ins because if those changes were not involved in the original design and permitting process, you could create a situation in which the rack becomes structurally unsound. Ultimately, the determination for how often you should conduct a facility safety survey will depend on your activity level and the products stored in your facility, two variables that are unique to your operations.

What Happens During a Facility Safety Survey?

In addition to a rack safety survey, we will also look at opportunities to add safety equipment like mirrors, end-of-aisle protectors, guard rails, and more. We will look at equipment, wires, and any damage caused by forklift drivers on uprights, beams, and columns. Typically, if we find many opportunities for new safety implementations, we schedule visits as frequently as monthly to ensure facilities are up to code as quickly as possible. Plus, if policies do not yet exist for employee safety within the warehouse, we can work with you to develop a plan that includes training to ensure best practices are in place.

After that, a Storage Solutions expert can work with you to ensure that any and all safety challenges are met with both short and long-term action plans that can combine with goals to lower operational costs and reduce labor challenges at the same time. We have decades of experience in implementing these measures across all industry types, so we have the knowledge to put theory into action.

So, Is It Time for a Facility Safety Survey?

If it has been some time since you last had a new pair of eyes looking at your facility’s safety profile, then it is time for you to call the experts. Our team can schedule a visit to your facility and share our expertise throughout our appraisal. That piece of ongoing education is crucial to our safety surveys because, by identifying and communicating potential solutions, you are more likely to have to make smaller changes in the next visit and even smaller changes in the third.

Safety is a critical aspect of any warehouse, fulfillment center, or distribution center’s operations. Taking too long before having a facility safety survey could result in higher costs with more considerable repairs, rather than maintaining your facility regularly.

The best way to create and maintain as safe an operation as possible is to have safety be a core tenet of your operational philosophy. Whether you are close to reaching that goal or need a place to start, give us a call, and we can help!

Storage-Type Analysis Blog

Finding a starting point to begin optimizing the storage capabilities within your facility can be a challenge. The most basic place to start is looking at the area between the top of your uprights and the ceiling. Why not start there? Or why not begin at the space between your product and the next beam level? Why not the distance between products?

For us, the best practice to begin this process is with a storage-type analysis. A storage-type analysis will not only offer an assessment of your current storage profile and a list of suggested changes, but it also provides a roadmap of potential projects that can lead to increased storage capacity, increased labor value, and increased efficiency that can result in profitability through additional throughput in your operations.

What Details Are Required for a Storage-Type Analysis?

For a storage-type analysis, we typically need to know the dimensions of the current storage configuration, the size of the pallets used, the size and weight of the products stored, and whether they are stored for full pallet case picking or each picking. We will also need to know the historical on-hand inventory and pick demand rate for each item, but we can help assist if that information is not readily available. Lastly, we will need to know whether certain products need to be grouped (for instance, do some products need temperature-controlled storage?).

Do not worry if all that information is not readily available. Our team can still get close to an ideal configuration with our experience and engineering teams, or we can do some detective work with a site visit.

From there, the analysis will help us determine the appropriate next steps.

Perhaps the introduction of dense storage media will allow you to minimize space between products and improve pick efficiency. Maybe a solution like a vertical lift machine would be a good fit for facilities that are storing smaller products like hardware. Perhaps introducing automation through an automated storage & retrieval (ASRS) system would benefit businesses adapting to changes in e-commerce. Maybe some of your pallet racking needs some adjustments to beam levels to go along with additional racking or shelving.

The proper solutions all depend on your unique challenges and your individual needs. We want to provide solutions that can address those challenges and conditions in the most cost-effective way possible.

What Happens at the End of a Storage-Type Analysis?

At the end of the analysis, we can help you put together a business case for potential changes with a return-on-investment attached. Once storage is optimized within a facility, it means more production space is created, which can lead to the return happening sooner than you may think.

The critical aspect to remember about a storage-type analysis is if you do not have a custom, built-only-for-your-business storage plan, you will leave money on the table as you are not fully optimized.

Whether you operate in a manufacturing environment and need to open space for additional production lines, or you are outgrowing your current space with an increased proliferation of SKUs, or your facility was outfitted with a “cookie-cutter” approach to pallet storage, there is an excellent opportunity to optimize your warehouse and improve your bottom line.

Give us a call today and speak with a Storage Solutions expert who can learn about your business and operational goals and develop balanced solutions toward achieving them.

Brandan Alford Turnkey Solutions Video

Our integrated supply and service approach to Turnkey Solutions means your Storage Solutions team has tighter control over all facets of your project, ensuring you meet your timeline and budget. Oversight for each component and executing entire projects as one team means efficiencies that generate better results with fewer surprises along the way.

We specialize in:

  • Project Management
  • Safety
  • Installation
  • Permitting
  • Logistics

Click here to learn more!

SSI Unmatched Partnerships

With over 40 years as a distributor of new and used warehouse equipment, we have worked with an untold number of manufacturing partnerships. Our integrated service and supply approach allows us to work with businesses at all supply chain stages. Many of these partners have been around for a long time, working with us on hundreds of projects worldwide. Together, we have built a relationship based on trust, loyalty, and mutual success.

The result of that trust and loyalty gives us one of our signature “difference makers”: A dedicated production capacity program. There will usually be hurdles to overcome in any project, but this program is designed to help our clients hedge against fluctuating lead times when an order is needed ASAP.

About Dedicated Production Capacity Partnerships

Because we are the largest purchaser of pallet racking for resale in North America, we have established foundational relationships with various manufacturers for all types of warehouse equipment. Essentially, we have partners in which manufacturers guarantee us a certain percentage of their monthly production capacity to help fulfill the volume of orders we place with them.

With the dedicated production capacity from our manufacturer partners, we can take advantage of better-than-market lead times. Our project managers are often in contact with these manufacturers and can get a good sense of their timelines quickly.

For example, when some manufacturers are working on a timeline that may be 8-to-10 weeks out, we can often leverage our orders to fit a 5-to-6-week schedule using our dedicated production capacity. That difference cuts your wait time almost in half, helping keep your project on track or getting it started sooner. For us, it is all about finding ways to maintain command and control over your project timeline, even as unforeseen variables appear.

We can also use these expedited timelines to balance multiple manufacturing partners to help us strategically source material closer to your job site, reducing freight costs and overall project costs.

This “difference maker” is an example of how we see ourselves as a trusted partner for you from start to finish of your project.

Simple. Smart Strategic.

If your team has an upcoming distribution facility to design, relocate, or reconfigure, give us a call. Our experts have years of experience in these build-outs and have the expertise to navigate the ups and downs of major construction projects. If things go awry during the process, we have partnerships at the ready to assist in keeping your project on time and budget.

Engineering-Permitting-Turnkey

The idea of climbing a mountain alone sounds daunting: Do you have the right supplies? Do you have enough endurance? What happens when the weather changes?

While managing a warehouse transition may not be as personally perilous as climbing a mountain, there are similarities in both requiring ample planning, preparation, and the ability to adapt as conditions change. They also have another thing in common: they become a heck of a lot easier if you have someone with experience there to guide you.

As part of our Turnkey Solutions, we offer our clients peace of mind by providing oversight for each component of a project. Our team of Project Managers and Project Coordinators consider project management, safety checkpoints, installation progress, permitting, and logistics with every partner across the country. We are in constant communication to ensure your entire project is delivered with the flexibility to change as things may change along the way.

Engineering a Solution with a Single Point of Contact

Our project managers’ relationship with your project begins before you even meet them. They are the team members who are running estimations on parts and equipment, finding the best solutions required to install each stage of the project. They are also working with our designers on preliminary engineering and design. In our world, engineering and design go hand-in-hand. Why not have a single person who knows the ins and outs of both?

Time and again, we hear from our clients how vital our turnkey solutions are to the success of a project. These project managers give our clients more command and control over projects because we know the status of all projects at any given time. Projects are delivered on time because our team has overseen hundreds of buildouts and understand how to anticipate the unexpected. Projects are delivered on budget because we are proactively managing potential hurdles along the way before they turn into costly change orders.

We know that coordinating vendors at your site is a challenging piece of the construction puzzle, but it is one piece that we know gets solved with anticipation, organization, and active communication with all stakeholders.

Navigating the Permitting Maze

Once a proposal becomes a project, our team has already begun creating a permit package, which acts as a roadmap of all the boxes that need to be checked along your project’s lifecycle. There we identify all the requirements, including fire codes, storage permits, structural permits, documents required for the Department of Homeland Security, and so much more.

Depending on the region, navigating the permitting portion of a project could be its own fulltime job. However, because we have worked with a wide variety of municipalities across the nation, our team learns, grows, and shares information on best practices on each project. For example, we understand how important each detail is in drawing submissions, which helps to eliminate unnecessary laps between the regulator and us. Because we spend so much time at the front of the process getting those details correct, the rest of the project can run as smoothly as possible.

Make the Best Use of Your Time

And what is the opportunity cost of doing all the permitting yourself? Do you call the building department or the city planner? What are the fire codes? Is the area under construction part of a seismic zone? When you are stuck on the phone trying to call around to find these answers – and figure out if these are the only questions you need to ask – you are spending valuable time that could be used on tasks more closely associated with your jobs. The Storage Solutions team already knows what questions to ask, whom to ask those questions to, and how to get the answers to the appropriate party. It is the Storage Solutions difference.

Let’s Get Started

Decisions typically come down to the value of your time. Because we are a trusted partner to our clients, we understand the intimate details of each proposal and have a head start on what is needed to get the project done. Our team is ready to get started and learn more about your upcoming project, whether it is a new building, a renovation project, or a relocation/removal situation. Call us today at 800.474.2001 or contact us here to speak with a Storage Solutions expert!

Employee Separation Panels - Wirecrafters

The COVID-19 crisis has impacted nearly every organization and operation in some way, shape, or form. However, companies are finding innovative ways to keep their business on track amidst the disruption. One such innovation is the development of employee separation panels, which offer a degree of safety and peace of mind among employees who are required to work within six feet of each other.

Our partners at Wirecrafters are deploying two options for these portable safety mechanisms: a standard separation panel and a heavy-duty separation panel. Both options are similar size – 6’ tall x 4’ wide – and feature a clear, 1/8”-thick polycarbonate window to maintain sightlines in the warehouse. The heavy-duty version’s window essentially extends from the top of the panel to the floor, while the standard version’s window shields the top 3’ of the panel.

Both products can be assembled with casters on the bottom, allowing for mobility and flexibility to meet the needs of your warehouse workers. These clear, portable panels can move from workstation to workstation to give employees a level of safety and protection against human-to-human contact.

While there is no accurate timetable for the lifting of social distancing requirements, these panels can act as a safety measure to keep your employees safe and productive while in your facility. By introducing these panels, warehouse managers can avoid disruptions ranging from employees feeling uncomfortable around one another to missing work because they may have contracted an illness.

In addition, investments in these panels will continue to pay off after the COVID-19 crisis has ended. There is always another flu or cold season around the corner, and these tools may be able to play a role in limiting the spread

If these unique solutions are of interest to you, we would love to connect and work with you to support wellness in your workforce. Contact us today and let us work with you to find a safety solution tailored to suit your needs.