InTents October/November 2022 - 28

TECH TOOLS AND LABOR
The current labor shortage can
cause unforeseen challenges in the
organizational structure of a warehouse,
as new hires struggle to learn where to
ind products as well as where to stock
them. To offset these challenges, Farrell
recommends that companies have a
written training plan for new hires
and ensure department supervisors
follow through with that training.
" The more detailed and structured a
Sensenig recommends labeling
TOP & BOTTOM: A warehouse's
towering ceiling height is the ideal
space for drying tents after they've
been washed. Ample space and
good ventilation are paramount for
proper drying.
everything and requiring everyone to be
responsible for keeping the warehouse
organized and neat. " Also put signs
showing the location of items in each aisle.
Lay out the warehouse in a way that is
easy to understand, " he suggests.
Bader agrees that if he were to identify
the biggest source of frustration for
warehouse owners and workers, he
would have to say that " can't ind it "
ranks the highest. When people can't ind
something, they tend to buy another one.
This can be a perpetual hit to proitability.
" I would like to see people invest
in a solid bin locating system tied
back to an ERP [enterprise resource
planning software] so that anyone in
the organization can quickly locate an
item they require, " Bader says. " Without
a locating system, we are subject to the
person who knows where everything
is-probably because they put it there.
If said person and a bus meet and the
bus wins, we have just lost our product
locating system. Setting up the system
can be laborious, but it will pay great
dividends in the long run. "
28 intents oct-nov 2022
training program is, the better results you
will get from your new hire investment, "
Farrell says. " Creating a labeling system
in warehouse departments with picture
identiication of products on racking
also is a great way to provide on-thejob
education for new employees.
Accountability through supervisors and
managers to sustain the processes is key. "
Bin locating is a must to help new
associates locate products quickly. As
Bader explains, think of a bin location
as a street address. Where does the
product live? Going deeper into the tech
realm, warehouse management systems
(WMS) use barcodes and scanners to
help associates locate and pull the correct
product off the shelf. The WMS relies on
the bin location to direct the picker to
the correct shelf or " bin, " and the scanner
veriies that the correct item has been
picked. WMS technology can also be
used to make sure that certain items are
grouped together for a customer order
or project application. This allows the
associate to pick several orders in one
pass through the warehouse.
Another labor-saving method of
managing inventory is through radio
frequency identiication or RFID tagging.
At Marquee Event Rentals, staff have used
and researched several RFID systems
for their warehouse. Farrell believes that
RFID technology is an excellent tool to
use with event rental inventory.
" I have seen the best return on
investment with linen and tenting
InTents October/November 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of InTents October/November 2022
