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tions, finance, and IT (information technology) or systems
group to make sure it is accurately capturing the company’s
existing processes and business. It may also want to consult
with your systems integrator and/or equipment suppliers to
make sure it has up-to-date info on the equipment’s specs
and power requirements.
Similarly, it’s critical that the design team work hand
in hand with the architect, says Mike Kasperski, who
leads consulting company enVista’s design build team.
Otherwise, you might end up having to settle for subop-timal processes or equipment simply because that’s what
will fit in the building. For example, the type of racking
that you’d like to use might work better in a building that’s
designed with columns that are spaced 52. 25 feet apart
rather than 50 feet apart. Or the equipment that you’re
using may require concrete flooring of a certain thickness
to ensure that it can support the machines’ weight. These
things can be changed relatively easily at the design phase
but not after the concrete has been poured.
3Do you have all the data you need? To determine the size and shape of the building, the design team will need
access to a vast amount of data, such as annual sales, whether there are seasonal variations or spikes in demand, what
your receipts are, and what types of product you have on
hand and how much of it. (Some advice on the information
that is needed can be found in an enVista white paper titled
“Optimum Facility Design.”)
4What are the current processes in your warehouse or distribution center? It’s unlikely that your new facility
will be an exact replica of an existing DC. However, it is
still crucial to know exactly what processes are followed in
the current facility and how product flows through it, says
Kasperski. Otherwise, you risk leaving something critical
out of the new design.
Furthermore, the information on the current processes
should come directly from the employees on the warehouse floor, says Kasperski. Management, he says, is often
unaware of exactly how the work is actually done. For
example, employees on the floor may know that orders for
a particular customer require a special process, but that
information might never have been formally documented.
5Do you expect your business to change in the next five to 10 years? We’ve all heard of newly constructed facilities that
were out of date or at capacity the moment they opened.
To lessen the likelihood of that happening to you, find out
everything you can about your company’s business plan
for the next five to 10 years, advises Kasperski. Before you
break ground on a new DC, you’ll need to know what prod-
ucts you may be selling in the future that you’re not selling
now and whether they’ll have different space or handling
requirements. You also should know what markets you
may be entering; what types of stores, channels, or busi-
nesses you will be serving; and where you expect growth to
come from. For example, do you expect a greater percent-
age of your sales to come from e-commerce five years from
now? How could the DC accommodate that? What space or
equipment will you need to handle this growth?
6Is your facility designed to be flexible? Even with all that documentation and planning, your business is bound
to encounter unforeseen challenges and opportunities.
Will your new facility be flexible enough to meet them? For
example, Kasperski recommends making sure that your
facility is designed with some free operating space. “If you
fill up your DC with a whole bunch of material handling
equipment,” he says, “then there’s no space for special projects or seasonal spikes or promotions that you may have.”
Similarly, think carefully before committing to a highly
automated DC, he says. While the automated equipment
may save you labor costs, it may make it harder to adapt
to business changes such as new products or an increase in
e-commerce sales.
7Can your existing IT system handle the new facility design? As you design your facility, it’s important to
know what your systems—whether they’re warehouse
management systems (WMS), enterprise resource planning
systems, or order management systems—can and cannot
do, Kasperski says.
“If you are not planning on spending a couple million on
a new WMS, you’d better understand the capabilities of the
current one,” he warns. “Because you can design the most
beautiful left-handed flapjack turner ever, but if your WMS
doesn’t support it, it doesn’t do you any good.”
8What risks is the site vulnerable to? If companies were not already concerned about their facilities’ risk of flooding,
hurricanes Harvey and Irma certainly put the issue top of
mind. Similarly, companies should know about the risk
of earthquakes, fire, high winds, and other natural and
human-caused disasters in the area.
“It’s not so much that these factors get overlooked, as
companies try to cut it too close,” warns Carl Solly, vice
president and chief engineer of the insurance company FM
Global. “Sometimes, companies see that they are six inches
in elevation outside of the 100-year flood zone and declare
victory. But flood zones are an approximation, and flood-
ing can get much more severe.”
For this reason, FM Global currently recommends to its
clients that any new facility be at least a foot outside of the
500-year flood zone.
If it’s not possible to locate your facility outside of a risk
area, consider what alterations can be made to the site or
building to minimize the risk. In areas at high risk of flooding, for example, companies could bring in fill to raise the
building two or three feet, use flood barriers or gates, or
even just make sure that product is not stored on the floor.
