Warehouses are used to store inventories of different types of products. Warehouses require careful design so that the inflow and outflow of products are efficient. Warehouses typically manage emergency and regular restocking orders, as well as returns. The cost of a warehouse space depends on the layout, efficient use of space, geographic location, capital cost of equipment and the size of the building.
Choose a low-cost geographic location for your warehouse facility. For example, if your manufacturing facility is in a low-cost geographic location like China, you might choose to build a warehouse in China as well.
Build a warehouse with a small footprint. Manage your inventory so that the flow of products through the warehouse is quick, allowing the use of a smaller space.
Split the costs of building the warehouse by sharing the facility with another company.
Design the warehouse carefully. Partition the space with bays and shelves to allow products to be stacked as high as 30 feet, reducing the amount of floor space needed. Choose low-cost basic shelving. Place conveyor belts up high where they do not interfere with the ground flow of traffic.
Create a cross dock. Use the cross dock to store arriving shipments that a customer has already requested. You can move the items from receiving to shipping immediately, reducing the need for warehouse storage space.
