Warehousing isn’t a modern concept. In fact, it goes back deep into ancient times, even pre-dating the great Roman civilisation. Archaeologists believe it probably dates all the way back to pre-historic times, when the advantage of storage of agricultural surpluses first as understood.
The Minoan period, which was prominent during the Bronze Age Aegean civilisation, itself within the ancient Greek historic timeline, is thought to be the first instance when organised warehousing on a large scale was employed. Back then, the concept was considered to be a key factor in showcasing the might of the state. Much later, it was the great Roman empire that took warehousing very seriously. Evidence of which exists even today – in the Roman port city of Ostia, where ancient huge warehousing complexes still stand, albeit in ruin.
In modern times, doing business without warehousing is impossible. Any entity that’s into manufacturing, logistics or distribution will not survive even a single day without an efficient warehousing system. That’s why there are companies dedicated to planning and manufacturing warehousing systems. One of the most prominent players in India, and one with a growing global footprint, is Kompress India Pvt Ltd.
Kompress lives by the motto ‘One size cannot fit all – or even ten or five or two, for that matter!’ That’s why it offers a slew of warehousing storage and retrieval solutions to cater to every need, howsoever unique. If necessary, they will even customise a system. But, here are some of the more conventional systems that cover a broader range of needs…
Pallet Racking System
This is the most preferred storage system for warehouses where the uptake of stored products or material is speedy and regular. Pallet Racking Systems are cost-effective, adaptable, flexible and ensure easy and direct access to each individual stored piece, be it via stackers, forklifts, VNA equipment and reach trucks. It greatly improves warehouse productivity while simplifying inventory management and order fulfilment processes. It may be conventional, but it is also modular, customisable and extremely versatile in that it is dimensionally scalable and can maximise the available width, depth and height.
Pallet Racking Systems find application in retail distribution centres and wholesale stores, and warehouses of FMCG, electronics, and automobile industries.
Drive-in / Drive-through Racking
Where space is at a premium, Drive-in / Drive-through Racking is an ideal cost-effective solution, thanks to its minimal aisle-to-rack ratio. The available space gets maximised because of its compactness and high storage density (up to 85%) achieved by a combination of minimised aisle space and side rails. Yet, it allows forklifts and other MHEs to easily manoeuvre between aisles to store or retrieve pallets. This system is best suited for pressure-sensitive, unstable goods and heavy pallets.
Push Back Racking
This system intelligently expands the storage and handling capacity without using additional space. That’s because every other pallet (apart form the last one) has a pair of trolleys, supported by a set of rails. Thus, effectively, just one single aisle is required for storage or retrieval, greatly simplifying the entire logistics process. This high-density storage solution is therefore ideal for FMCG products, pharmaceuticals, F&B and cold storage perishables, or any space where speed of loading and unloading is paramount.
Cantilever Racking
Cantilever racking has been created for safe and secure storage of odd-dimensional, oversized and bulky products. Flexible in design, it can be created in single-sided or double-sided configurations with multiple tiers to augment storage capacity. Every racking level in this system is adjustable to suit the stored dimensions of the moment, and hence each piece is also easily retrievable, thereby reducing handling time. Given that such goods may be ruggedly handled, this system is robustly designed and solidly built, and yet easy to instal.
Multi-Tier Racking
An ideal storage solution for manufacturing works and spare parts. Its multi-floor shelving design maximises the vertical area and hence increases ‘floor space’ and storage capacity without need for structural floor layout. Each rack is accessed via a stairway, aisle or ramp. Multi-Tier Racking works best in warehouses with high roofs. Scalable and modular, it’s a highly efficient system for manufacturing operations that involve a large number of small parts – such as auto ancillaries, apparel and pharma industries.
Live Racking
Some manufacturing operations require constant rotation of stored goods and in a first-in-first-out order. Live Racking is perfectly suited to such situations, allowing goods to be loaded from one side and unloaded from the other, without any additional manual moving or effort. The system facilitates automatic inventory rotation via a mechanism of gravity roller beds housed on a slanted platform that progressively slide the goods from one end to the other, without any human intervention. As loading and unloading happen from opposite ends, there is no interruption in either process. Space is maximised due to fewer aisles, and errors in loading/unloading are minimised. An extremely safe system, it is suited to assembly line operations, production feed lines, distribution centres, pharma and cosmetic manufacturing.
Carton Flow Racking
Carton Flow Racking is a variation of Live Racking as it is based on the same model of gravity-driven inclined wheel carriers – except that, in this case, it is used to move and pick entire cartons. Cartons are made to slide along the rollers at multiple levels. An extremely versatile system, the rollers can be manipulated in the cross-aisle direction to accommodate varied carton loads and dimensions. Roller speeds are also adjustable. It’s a perfect system where speed of order fulfilment is important; storage and retrieval need to be smooth; and interruptions at a minimum.
Boltless Shelving
A unique and highly versatile system, it does away with any kinds of beams and is instead fastened by clips. Thus it can mould itself into any kind of space. The clips enhance the stability and security of shelves while boosting their load-bearing capacity. Highly adaptable, they can maximise vertical spaces via the multiple tier route. All-encompassing, flexible, durable, space and cost-saving, they are however made for manual storage and retrieval.
Kompress – Driven by Innovation
Kompress is at the forefront of innovative warehousing racking solutions. However, its offerings also extend to mobile compactors , office storage solutions and even turnkey projects for unique and complicated needs.
Long before storage solutions became an organised sector in India, the company was already developing solutions for its clients. Launched in 1989, Kompress pioneered the concept, bringing the then latest technology to India. This, at a time when storage solutions in the country literally meant calling the local carpenter, slotting a few angles, racks and shelves here and there, and then haphazardly storing the material in question without any organisation or logistics. And this not at the consumer level, but even the biggest companies!
Right from the get-go Kompress was innovative and avant-garde in everything it did. Across its timeline, its entire offering has been driven by innovation, R&D and precision engineering. Quality is the heartbeat of every Kompress product or project – it remains the cornerstone of its operations and hence zealously kept under its control at all times and at every level… to the extent that everything from basic raw material to all manufacturing processes are entirely in-house.
It’s the reason why Kompress’ clientele includes a league of global heavyweights and sector leaders across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Russia and the US. The brand prides itself on providing bespoke and customised solutions to every need.
Kompress is truly about the science of space!
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