Having a well laid out storeroom helps increase the productivity of an office. Staff will not waste valuable work time looking for lost items or tidying up mess and clutter. Here are 5 tips for organising your office storeroom.
Utilise Every Inch of Space
When designing your storeroom layout, make sure that you make the most of all the space you have. Fit shelving and units right up to the ceiling and use special ladders to access them. Identify your racking needs and make sure that the shelves on your racking are deep enough to hold your biggest storage boxes. Also, make sure that it is strong and sturdy enough to take the weight of your items.
Fit revolving shelves into corners and consider movable racking on wheels to increase the accessibility.
Think About Placement
Improve the ease of access to your storeroom items by placing the most popular items near the front of the storage racks. Keep heavy merchandise on or near the floor so that people are not injured, trying to lift them from great heights. Consequently, light items can be kept higher up.
If your items have a sell-by date, make sure you place the oldest items at the front, so they are used first, and there is no wastage through throwing out expired products.
Place small items in boxes or trays to stop them from rolling around and getting lost. Use labelling to ensure that all items are placed in the correct place when delivered; people know where to find a specific item and where to return them—a place for everything and everything in its place.
Atmosphere
Adequate lighting ensures that all items are visible, even when sitting at the back of a unit. Staff safety is paramount to a business, and a well-lit storage area reduces the risk of accidents such as staff tripping over items or knocking unseen objects off a shelf.
Ambient heating is essential to maintain the condition of perishable objects. Some stationery items such as printer ink need to be kept in a cool environment to prevent desiccation.
Keep an Inventory
Inventory management software is the perfect tool to keep your stockroom running smoothly. It can help you accurately predict what quantity of merchandise you will need shipped in and when, helping reduce wastage and excess-accumulation. Inventory management software such as Microsoft Excel, Zoho, and Odoo will also save you the time required to do a manual stock assessment.
Shipping and receiving areas
Assigning an area of your stockroom for deliveries and shipments helps maintain a streamlined workspace. To do this task efficiently, set up a desk by the door for sitting boxes on to pack and unpack. Reserve a relatively large, clear space where you can place the shipment boxes when they arrive. Ensure there is a quick, unobstructed route to external recycling bins so you can quickly dispose of empty boxes and make sure clutter does not build up on the storeroom floor.
