Welcome to the November 15th issue of Warehouse & Logistics News. Now that we are back in lockdown, we reflect on how the UK wide lockdown in the first half of 2020 resulted in a significant change for the warehouse industry. Statistics show that sales in ecommerce grew significantly with online sales in April up by more than 50% compared to last year. As the growth in ecommerce continues this has seen a significant demand for new and additional warehousing. In our cover story, SEMA explains how to properly maintain your storage racking and keep it in good working order.

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Well done to Clark which, following the market launch of the pedestrian low-lift pallet truck WPio20 and the PPXsio20 low-lift pallet truck with folding driver’s platform, is now presenting two further electric low-lift trucks with Li-Ion technology and load capacities of 1,500 and 1,800 kg with the WPio15 and WPio18. The materials handling vehicles manufacturer thus has a complete series of low-lift trucks with load capacities of 1.2 to 2 tons. The models of the WPio series are designed for efficient goods transport over short distances in distribution centres, production or warehouses.

Global food demand is expected to grow by 50% by 2050, and with it, cold chain needs, according to the Cold Chain Federation. Currently, in India for example less than 4% of fresh produce is transported under low temperature conditions, in the UK it’s more than 90%. But a global net zero cold chain won’t happen organically, a proper assessment of global cold chain needs from now to 2050 is vital, to allow modelling of what the cold chain will look like and development of global strategies for making development sustainable, says our cold storage and distribution feature.

As the bottleneck of any warehouse and a hectic part of business operations, it’s no wonder that the loading bay is often where bumps can occur. In the distribution sector, the ability to load and unload goods safely is critical to the overall supply chain efficiency, safety and productivity. Without this you run the risk of having to pay for damages, as well as experiencing a loss of business and damage to your reputation, our loading bay feature reports.

With the nation back in lockdown, it is once again realising how much it relies on distribution and logistics networks. These networks themselves depend on forklift trucks and other cargo handling equipment which are fuelled by LPG and batteries. During these troubled times, the nation can be grateful for the motive power provided by LPG and batteries, some of which are profiled in our power sources feature.

The issue also includes our Warehouse Supplement. And finally, don’t forget to check out the 2021 UPN-sponsored wall planner, included free inside this issue.

Enjoy reading the issue.

James Surridge

Publishing Editor

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