Timber importers and merchants, by the very nature of their business, have always held stock. However, the bulky nature of the product has always demanded substantial premises and this really puts the timber industry almost as much in the real estate business as in timber trading. This situation must take into account the fact that property costs are constantly rising. The more stock that is held, both in total quantity and in variety, the more the working capital, and thus investment, is committed.
Today’s timber business demands a return on investment (ROI) of anywhere between 10-40% per year.
It is, or should be, the objective of modern storage and racking system manufacturers to support merchants by improving this ROI in several ways. These include:
This may not necessarily increase the amount of stock stored, as there is a trade-off between the bulk stored and access to it.
A busy merchant normally has the following ‘capital equipment cycle’:
Specialist knowledge
At this point it makes sense to forge a partnership with one of the specialist suppliers with proven expertise in the timber industry (like Hi-Store Ltd of Alton in Hampshire or Stakapal Ltd of Cannock in Staffordshire). Invariably the merchant knows what his needs are better that anybody else. He knows his own business, his costs and his premises, but a harmonised approach is vital to take care of the whole project from the stock range, right up to the property and heavy structures such as buildings supported by racking.
Obviously, there are many constraints on any particular development or expansion plan but it is not always appreciated that the timescale for the project can be affected dramatically by the type of equipment under consideration. For example:
Buildings and rack supported sheds usually require planning permission (see GPDO below) and where planning consent is required there is, in practice, a minimum of three months and usually six months delay.
Mezzanine floors, assuming they are of the structural steel type (Hi-Deck or similar), do not need planning consent but do require Building Regulations approval and, again, in practical terms this means a delay of four to six weeks.
Most racking systems are free of the need to gain regulations approval.
At present it is worth noting that floors over racking (other than where they are very small and rarely have people working on them), can be subject to the same Building Regulations as buildings and rack supported sheds and large mezzanine floors. This is because they come under the recent change of rules concerning, in particular, their fire protection which may result in planning permission not being granted.
Planning consent is not required for external structures if they conform to GPDO (General Permitted Development Order 1995 Part 8 Extension and Alteration of Buildings: Class B) where it can be shown that they relate to, or require, additional or replacement plant and machinery (which includes racking) if: a) it does not materially effect the external appearance of the site and b) it does not exceed 15m in height.
The user will undoubtedly also have very clear ideas about how he wants to handle any particular product group, for example: controversy still exists over whether doors should be stored flat, which is good for storage density and flatness, but bad for visibil-ity and the risk of scratching. They could alternatively be stored on edge – reversing the above advantages and disadvantages or they could be stored and displayed on end where their visibility and thus sell-ability is at its greatest.
Further planning
Other basic decisions will need to take into account some of the following:
Will the customer be doing his own order picking? If so, the merchant’s labour bill should decrease but his security headaches will probably increase in proportion.
There is also the question of the weather. Most merchants recognise the importance of keeping the stock out of it and there is a growing realisation that it is cost effective to keep customers and staff out of the elements as well.
Parking is another problem. Should people be made to park in a separate area and then walk? Or should they be allowed, with the attendant security risk, to be able to park right by the product picking point?
It is also clear that even though the customer probably has firm ideas of what he wants to buy when he is on site, he will also buy items he had not expected to if they are properly stored and displayed. So, it is sound business practice to expose the customer to the opportunity of buying something additional whenever possible!
Although a merchant may have well thought-out and considered plans for any project, specialist storage equipment suppliers will be able to offer advice because of experience on many similar projects. By working closely with one of these suppliers from an early stage in the project, the merchant may well speed up the project, save money and avoid being caught out by problems. In addition, based on the experience of previous installations, the storage specialist may well be able to make suggestions about movement and working practices that the merchant might not even have considered.
Modern storage systems are now faster to build, more flexible and will last longer than the, often inadequate, structures which they replace. Time and effort spent planning at the start of a project will pay handsome dividends in the long run and will go a long way to ensuring that it will form part of structured ongoing development.
During the past 30 years, Mr Hancock has owned and run several companies, mostly in the storage and materials handling industries and concentrating on the supply of specialised racking and sheds for the timber and construction industry.
