A wide range of racking and storage systems from the UK’s leading manufacturer in the field, Link 51, is central to a new distribution facility now operational on the outskirts of Paris. The GM France Distribution Centre provides some 325,000 sq. ft. of warehouse and office space, distributing an extensive list of spare parts for the private vehicle and van after-sales market throughout the country.
The decision taken by GM France to replace an existing warehouse with this new development has allowed the organisation to apply its ‘GM Template’, which makes the most of both short term and long term storage with particular emphasis on the benefits of a ‘lean layout’. The Link 51 storage installation works in close conjunction with the warehouse management system to meet various requirements, notably a combination of bulk storage and picking locations, within a layout that reflects fast, medium and slow moving product lines.
Keith Evans, Sales Director at Link 51, draws attention to key features of the layout and how the design has met particular requirements specified by GM France: “The warehouse is split into five equal ‘cells’ at the site, each of which is divided by a central access aisle,” he says. “Some 90% of the picking activities take place to one side of the central divide with the majority of the remainder used for multi-level bulk storage. A carton live installation has also been installed in part of the picking area while two-tier Euro-shelving in one of the cells provides a large number of picking locations for very small parts.”
Because of the diversity of part numbers and sizes, an extensive choice of both bulk storage and picking location configurations has been built into the Link 51 design including, in the case of the latter for example, bins up to 1.6 metres in depth. The bulk locations can accommodate either pallets or stillages of various sizes on six levels of racking. A drive-in racking facility, featuring 11 lanes each four levels high and able to accommodate a depth of six pallets, has also been provided at the site and is primarily dedicated to the location of slower moving items.
Link 51 (Storage Products)
Tel: 0800 169 5151
www.link51.co.uk
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