Last Updated on April 1, 2025 by Tanya Janse van Rensburg
It doesn’t matter how big or small your business is - efficient storage is a key component of the overall success.
The industry and nature of the business are irrelevant, too.
You could be in retail on a small scale, operating a medium e-commerce warehouse, or a large manufacturing facility, yet the need for optimal storage is the same.
A well-organized storage system ensures smooth operations, boosts productivity, and maximizes resources.
Employing smart strategies to enhance storage is a considerable investment, so careful planning and focus on aspects like organization based on the specific type and volume of the items that need to be stored, as well as their accessibility, are recommended.
As it happens, though, in the competitive world of business and industry today, the solution most often requires more than one type of strategy to properly address the challenges of operational performance.
Luckily, with the technological advancements over the years, there are various practical and smart strategies, such as the ASRS vertical storage solutions, to choose from and adopt.
Let’s start with the most convenient strategies for designing a productive storage space.
Before we move on to the advanced solutions, it’s imperative to regularly clean the area.
Dusting, mopping, and utilizing industrial vacuums can help keep things in top shape as well as maintain cleanliness at an all-time high to ensure everyone’s health and well-being are in check.
This habit is also crucial for keeping clutter at bay, and further simplifying the accessibility of the goods and prompt restocking, all the while cutting down on the risk of damaged goods.
This is especially a must in large storage areas where the addition of different inventory tracking systems incorporated in smart shelving, such as barcodes, QR codes, and RFID tags, is as helpful as the implementation of clear labels and signage.
When marking each of the zones and sections properly, you streamline the workflow, reduce the time spent on searching for specific items when doing inventory, and improve the navigation within the area for employees and material handling equipment like forklifts.
In a high-density storage area, every bit of space you can get additionally comes in handy.
Most often, when the focus is on the use of the vertical, a lot of floor space gets freed up as a result, which is a step in favor of maximization of storage efficiency.
All this without actually having to expand the footprint thanks to the groundbreaking designs of vertical storage solutions in the form of vertical lift modules (VLMs).
These are fully automated systems that utilize the ceiling height you have available with the principle of Goods-to-Person to ensure you ergonomically get the right part at the optimum retrieval height.
At the same time as cutting down the risk of injuries, this kind of system also reduces picking errors while elevating both productivity and efficiency.
In areas where there’s more floor space, you have the horizontal carousels (HC) systems you can easily tailor to your business needs.
These are particularly great for low-ceiling environments and could be in either production or distribution, where high-speed picking is required.
Short for automated storage and retrieval systems, ASRS is a solution that utilizes robotics and automation for storing and retrieving goods.
This could be with various designs with different sizes and features, including vertical storage systems, systems for handling pallets, and the HC for low-ceiling environments.
You may not think of it as a necessity, more so if you’ve got a small business, but if you have high-density storage areas like warehouses with high turnover rates, it can be most helpful.
The initial benefit you experience is streamlining of the material handling, reducing the need for manual handling, hence lowering the risk of repetitive strain injuries.
The other benefit you gain from this investment is maximizing storage space.
Other automation and robotics products you can invite into the workspace can be conveyor belts, wearable technology like smartwatches and smart glasses, warehouse drones, voice commands, and automation robots like robotic arms or automated guided vehicles (AGVs) to cut down on manual labor.
Yes, it’s the type of investment that’s higher, but that’s only initially if you consider the gains you’d get over the years, including fewer manual labor costs and sick leaves.
Proper storage and retrieval of the items can easily be achieved if you consider separating the area into zones.
The type of zones would be based on the type of items you have stored, how you want them zoned (e.g., by family, mixed zoning by turnover, family, or sales), and how quick of access you need to get them and the safety for retrieval and transit.
As such, you can create designated areas like:
In industries where there’s food or medicinal storage or production, there's a need for precise temperature control.
Incorporating temperature-controlled units and monitoring systems can ensure adequate conditions to preserve the goods and prevent them from expiring sooner than expected.
As an added benefit, there’s the preservation of quality, besides compliance with laws and regulations, and ensuring the safety of the workers and consumers.
Inventory turnover rate is essential for logistics, so to make matters simple and efficient, consider separating the goods into those with high turnover, medium turnover, and low turnover.
This would give you more organization provide insight into your stock and offer more control over the capital and investments.
In case you’ve got items of different sizes, it would make things easier to create a separate zone for the bulky ones.
The same could work for a single product that you have large quantities of in the warehouse. It’s a solution that can make managing and restocking these goods much easier.
If you have goods that you need access to and retrieve more than others, it would make a difference in your operation if they were in a separate zone for fast picking.
It would also be of help if this specific zone were located closer to the reception or shipment area to further optimize the logistics.
Short for Just-in-Time, it’s a management solution that gives you the chance to curb the issue of dealing with excessive storage in the workplace.
When you receive inventory just when you need it, you avoid both large deliveries to the warehouse and overstocking or cluttering the space.
While it’s true there’s the need to establish a trustworthy relationship with the suppliers to experience the effectiveness of JIT, it’s a beneficial step, especially for businesses dealing with raw materials and perishable goods.
Moreover, lower inventory is easier to monitor and organize.
The bonus advantages that may not be so apparent are an improvement in the cash flow as you have no money tied up, so you can use it elsewhere, and a significant waste reduction.
All in all, it’s a move towards a more sustainable business.
Just because your business is small-scale now doesn’t mean it will stay this way years from now.
Perhaps you’d consider expanding your area of expertise, and the goods you work with, and perhaps you’d have to move on to a bigger area or expand the one you have.
These are all variables you’re advised to bear in mind, especially when you’ve got your business, as your valuable asset, to take care of.
Its future depends on adequate investments as much as it does on optimal storage and logistics, so your workspace should be adaptable to your future growth and needs as the trends come by.
You can’t know what you might require years or even months from now for certain, but there are certain solutions like modular vertical storage systems that take the guesswork out of the planning for you.
This is due to the fact that these are designed to give you the flexibility you need. It’s possible to customize these solutions as you see fit, based on your space and goods.
They’re available in a range of sizes, materials, and features, ranging from adjustable shelves to corner modules and vertical stacking elements.
These are crucial details that allow you to have a say in the configuration, reconfiguration, or expansion as the need arises.
Easy to assemble and install, as well as disassemble as you see fit, they’re a cost-effective choice in the long run.
Instead of spending more, they give you peace of mind regarding finances as they can be incorporated into an already existing modular system when you require it.
On top of it all, they’re modern and minimalist, giving you a clean and seamless aesthetic that’s easy to integrate into the space regardless of the décor you have.
