In warehouses that serve as links in supply chains, constant trends of change are being observed. These are related, among other things, to an increase in the number of product ranges, a rise in the number of customer orders, shorter order fulfillment times, and higher levels of customer service.
Iwo Nowak
: The supply chains being created force a specific design of distribution networks. This determines the number of warehouses
in the network, their location, size, functions, and information flow. Many industrial finished goods warehouses of manufacturers
take on the role of a distribution warehouse, and increasingly, alongside using their own warehouses, companies are opting for
outsourcing in warehousing…
Aleksander Niemczyk
: That is correct. The observed efforts to improve distribution networks mean that warehouses are undergoing permanent changes in terms of location, size, functions, information flow, and the way warehousing processes are carried out.
Let us remember that proper logistics infrastructure is necessary for the proper functioning of supply chains.
From a systemic perspective, three components of this infrastructure are distinguished: linear, point, and communication. Warehouses belong here to the point infrastructure.
I.N
.: To organize the topic: what types of warehouses do we have?
A.N
.: There are many criteria for their classification. From the point of view of supply chains, the most appropriate classification criterion is purpose.
According to this, we distinguish: industrial warehouses (raw materials, semi-finished products, packaging, finished goods, maintenance materials),
ensuring the continuity of production and sales; distribution (commercial) warehouses, which ensure the distribution and continuity of material supply and consumption; and reserve warehouses, used for accumulating and storing stocks for a longer period. But according to another classification, taking into account the same criterion of purpose, we distinguish: stock warehouses, transshipment warehouses, and distribution (supply or shipping) warehouses. Increasingly, logistics centers, which include warehouses as elements, also appear in supply chains.
I.N
.: What is changing in warehouses—the links in supply chains?
A.N
.: We observe constant trends of change in them: an increase in the number of product ranges, the introduction of several types of packaging for a single product range, an increase in the number of customer orders, a decrease in the quantity of ordered items within individual order lines, the requirement for shorter lead times, shifting logistics costs to the supplier, and raising the level of customer service.
The article comes from the magazine “Logistyka” 5/2006.