Warehouse Blog

Welcome To The Warehouse Blog

Greetings! Introducing WarehouseBlog.com a new blog from Warehouse Rack & Shelf LLC; I hope you enjoy it. We're going to try to have fun with this. Just some quick takes on the wide-world-of-warehousing. It’s intended to be thought provoking, educational and fun.  

WarehouseBlog.com is designed for individuals in the warehousing business to discuss topics that pertain to warehousing, material handling and distribution. I encourage you to visit often and share your ideas.

Brad McNamee
President, Warehouse Rack & Shelf LLC
800-763-9020 x222
www.rackandshelf.com

It's A Boy!

Bradford (Brady) Phillip McNamee, Born 5/19/09, weight 8 lbs, 4 oz., 21-1/4" long. Mom & Brady are both doing great. It's a happy day in the McNamee family!

Folding Security Gate Installation Video

Warehouse Rack & Shelf Can Help You Go Green

Happy Earth Day!

As I was driving out of my neighborhood this morning in my Chevy Tahoe I noticed some of my neighbors were walking down the street with their children. I remembered that my kids school had sent a letter saying that they were encouraging parents to walk their children to school today for Earth Day. 

Since its inception in 1970, Earth Day has been an annual campaign to inspire awareness of and appreciation for the Earth's environment. Earth Day and the green movement seems to have gained more recognition in recent years. Most of my neighbors put out their recycling bins each week on trash day. I think "going green" has become popular not only because it helps the environment but because it's become profitable.  

Warehouse Rack & Shelf LLC offers a variety of environmentally friendly, sustainable green products. Our green products include the following:   

Plastic Pallets

Plastic Collapsible Bulk Containers

Wire Containers, Wire Decking & Wire Pallets

Steel Folding Gates

Perforated Metal, Expanded Metal, Corrugated Metal Decking & Bar Grating 

Our metal, wire and plastic products are all manufactured with 50% recycled materials. The true green value of our recycled metal and plastic products is that it continues to be recyclable for future generations. Choosing Warehouse Rack & Shelf's products with recycled content may help your next project have a green impact on our environment. I look forward to discussing our sustainable product options with you. Let's "go green" together!

  

Pallet Trucks With The Turn@bout Adapter Can Turn In 72% Less Space

There are not too many things more difficult to maneuver than a pallet jack, especially when empty.

Pallet jacks are engineered to move heavy loads. As a result, they are unwieldy and difficult to maneuver when empty. Pulling a pallet jack is not easy for most workers. They don't track well: corners get scraped, displays knocked over and people potentially run into.

Now there is a NEW, unique solution!

No more wide turns or having to kick or wrestle the pallet jack into position. Not only does the Turn@bout by Grand Steer, Inc. easily glide under pallets, the pallet jack follows you like a new puppy. It tracks around the warehouse like its an extension of your arm. You get where you are going safer, faster, and it is easier to pick up your load when you arrive.

Maneuverability when you need it...without sacrificing stability or safety. The adaptor not only works to get the pallet jack positioned under the pallet, it is designed to lift up out of the way so it doesn't reduce the stability of the pallet jack when handling heavy loads. The Turnabout™ Maneuverability Adaptor increased maneuverability by 72%. The adapter greatly reduces the effort of transporting a pallet jack to a pallet and getting it positioned under the load. The turning radius of the pallet jack now becomes the turning diameter. With the Turn@bout™ Maneuverability Adapter, a pallet jack can turn in its own length.

The Savings Of Used vs. New Pallet Racks

Yes, there is a saving on used vs. new pallet rack. I see a larger savings (per piece) on smaller quantities of used pallet racking. The rack factories get very aggressive when pricing large quantities of new pallet rack. If you have 2-3 weeks to wait for production pricing you can get large quantities of new pallet rack shipped directly from the factory to your dock at tremendously low prices. The factories have to keep their production lines running.

With the advent of teardrop uprights with bolted bracing I find that the difference in price between the cost of new vs. used uprights is very slim. Although the savings is much greater on used vs. new beams. The combination of new uprights and used beams can offer you the greatest savings.

It is important to purchase rack that is located close to the job-site. You will find that the savings of used racking can disappear quickly in extra freight cost. The largest rack factories and dealers have shipping locations strategically located across the Country with one near you.  

Why ia there not a greater savings in used vs. new pallet racks? The answer is that there are many costs associated with used racking.  There's disassembly costs, handling costs, freight cost to get the material back to my warehouse, warehousing costs, etc.  By the time you pay to recondition the rack much of the savings is gone. New or used, call me at 800-763-9020 x222 and let me get you the lowest prices on your next pallet rack purchase. 

       

  

6 Sigma Black Belt & The Kaizen Philosophy Of Continuous Improvement

I had an interesting conversation with Patrick Russell, Terminal Manager at Active USA in Chillicothe, OH. He is a Six Sigma Black Belt and he is implementing the Kaizen philosopy of lean manufacturing with value added items. According to Wikipedia, Six Sigma is a business management strategy, initially implemented by Motorola, that today enjoys widespread application in many sectors of industry:

Six Sigma seeks to identify and remove the causes of defects and errors in manufacturing and business processes. It uses a set of quality manufacturing methods, including statistical methods, and creates a special infrastructure of people within the organization ("Black Belts" etc.) who are experts in these methods. Each Six Sigma project carried out within an organization follows a defined sequence of steps and has quantified financial targets (cost reduction or profit increase).

Patrick's goal is to reduce waste by 20%. By implementing some Kaizen steps he has been able to cut

2009 St. Louis Industrial Real Estate Market Forecast

Allen Klippel, SIOR, First Vice President, CB Richard Ellis, gives commentary on the dominant trends in the 2009 St. Louis industrial real estate market. He also discusses the impact of this paradigm shift in the industrial market.

“Over the last several years, St. Louis, MO has become recognized as a distribution hub for such fortune 500 companies as Dial, Unilever, Proctor & Gamble, Hershey Foods, Save-A-Lot, companies supplying the Chrysler & GM plants have also been a positive factor in our market. The economic slow down has put the brakes on facility expansion for many big name companies and auto manufacturer’s are starting to give back space as well. But we still see local and regional companies anywhere from 25,000 to 50,000 square feet active in the market.”

As for the impact of the paradigm shift on the industrial market, “Most notable may be the over built situation that we currently have in the big box distribution projects. Even as demand began to slow, local and national developers continued to build. Today there are a number of state of the art distribution center buildings ranging in size from 200,000 square feet to 500,000 square feet available for lease. With a halt in new construction it is our opinion that supply and demand will balance in the foreseeable future and that this excess warehouse capacity will disappear. But I believe that today, matter of fact right now today, is a historic opportunity for tenants in the market place.”

 

What are the hot spots in the industrial market right now?

USDA Voluntary Food Security Guidelines Call For Folding Security Gates

I got a call from the plant manager at a food processing plant and he told me that the United States Department of Agriculture was mandating that he add folding security gates to all of the dock doors and man doors in his warehouse in an effort to protect the food supply. He was wanting to buy folding scissor gates and woven wire partitions to secure his building. Folding security gates are a very seasonal product. We sell lots of these gates in the spring and summer months. Steel folding gates are used for ventilation, visibility and access control. They provide the ability to secure receiving doors, lift-up doors, entranceways, hallways and more.  

Out of curiosity I contacted the USDA and spoke to a nice gentleman that told me the USDA does not mandate these changes. The USDA recommends that companies make food security part of their business plan. I was told that after 9-11-01 in an effort to improve homeland security, The USDA's Food Safety & Inspection Service (FSIS) offered a set of security guidelines for food processors. This was intended to protect the nations food supply from terrorist attack. The USDA asks food processors and food distributors to consider food security and draw up voluntary plans. The USDA offers an industry self-assessment checklist for food security. This USDA Food Security Checklist covers the following subjects:

Food Security Plan Management

Outside Security

Inside Security

Slaughter & Processing Security

Storage Security

Shipping & Receiving Security

Water & Ice Supply Security

Mail Handling Security

Personnel Security

Kathy Boyer's Delectible Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Today I was day dreaming about the chocolate chip cookies my best friend's mother use to make when we were kids. The cookies were always the perfect blend of soft, crunchy and chocolatey goodness. So I called Mrs. Boyer today to ask if I could share her secret chocolate cookie recipe with you and she obliged. Thanks Mrs. B. You will thank me after you make these cookies. Please comment back and share your favorite cookie recipes.

Mrs. Kathy Boyer's Soon To Be Famous Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe:

2-1/4- Cups of all purpose flour

1- Teaspoon baking soda

1- Teaspoon salt

1- Cup margarine

3/4- Cup packed ground sugar

1- Teaspoon vanilla extract

2- Eggs

2- Cups of Nestle Toll House chocolate chips

3- Cups of Kellogg's Rice Krispies

Mix together into a thick batter. Roll into cookie shaped balls. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-13 minutes. Enjoy.  

Wire Partitions Designed To Meet DEA Requirements

Wire partitions can be designed to meet DEA specifications. Over the years I've supplied D.E.A approved woven wire partitions to some of the nations largest pharmacuetical companies including Forest Pharmaceutical and KV Pharmaceutical. These companies use these wIre mesh partitions as security cages for storage of controlled substances in their warehouse.

When properly installed our woven wire partitions meet the US Drug Enforcement Administration’s requirements for physical security of Schedule III through V controlled substances as outlined in Title 21 CFR Sections1301:72-1301.76 physical security controls.  DEA security cage installations have the following notable features:

Doors must be self closing and self locking.  We offer a number of standard and custom lock options to meet this requirement, as well a line of self closing doors with mechanical and powered operators.

Walls constructed of not less than No.10 steel fabric with openings not more than 2-1/2" across the square, mounted on steel posts, set no more than ten feet apart, with horizontal reinforcement.  Our standard panels are maximum ten feet long, four or five feet tall, and are made of 2" x 1" opening 10 gauge steel wire.  The frames of our panels satisfy the requirement for horizontal reinforcement every sixty inches.  

Walls shall be mounted to posts at least one inch diameter, lagged to the floor.  Standard posts are 2" square with base plates for floor anchoring welded to each.  Lag bolts need to be pinned or brazed once installed.

Shall have a ceiling of same materials, or erected to reach the structural ceiling of the building.  Our system uses the same panels in walls and ceilings.  Furthermore, our system is so strong panels can be stacked between posts to reach most any building ceiling. D.E.A. regulation does not allow gaps between the enclosure and the building structure. Angle frame panels can be made with cutouts to fit your building structure, or they can be modified in the field by the installer.