Desire to boost warehouse IT a key event driver
December 1st 2011 Warehouse professionals attending
the recent Warehouse Technology
Group event in October reported a
desire to boost warehouse IT
performance as one of the key
reasons for attending.
The event took place on 18-19
October at the Mantra Learning
facility in Manchester and is the
group's second showcase of the year.
Barloworld was the event's guest
forklift supplier.
Craig Brophy, logistics manager
for print and direct mail services at
Communisis attended the event,
with the aim of seeking out ideas
that will help improve warehouse
operations.
Among the areas under
consideration was IT, as Brophy
explains: "I've had a look at the IT
side of things, and we are
considering using a dashboard to
give us reports on KPIs etc.
"It's useful to let everyone know
what's happening and identify what
levels of activity there are.We do a
lot of material and pallet moves in
and around our Leeds site and
greater visibility could help us
identify the materials handling kit
that will work best for us, or maybe
help us let some kit go."
Lighting was another repeated
focus of attention for the warehouse
professionals in attendance. Terry
Whyte, engineering, safety &
production manager at Wardle
Storeys, a manufacturer of polymer
films and coated fabrics for sectors
including automotive and contract
furniture, also attended the event.
"These events are useful to keep
up to date with current technologies.
We are hopefully building a new
warehouse in the future, so we are
making sure if we see something that
would be of benefit to us, we can
incorporate it into this new facility,"
he explains.
"Most of the lighting we have
currently is the old fashioned type. It
interesting to see what is available
now. The ability to switch on and off
when people are present, without
having the long strike times that have
been associated with it, is
interesting."
Phil Culling, chairman of Redirack
and one of the organisers of the
Warehouse Technology Group is
delighted with the progress of the
event.
"This was our third event and we
are learning each time. The
exhibitors have had good leads and
are interested in putting the next one
on, which is planned for May. The
event is informal, people don't feel
pressured and the salesmen don't
pounce on them. The catering is in
the body of the warehouse, so there
is a great opportunity to mingle." More articles from Warehouse Technology Group: | 
