The summer months can be a time when businesses must restructure to achieve warehouse productivity improvement. When employees are exposed to hot temperatures, it can lead to reduced levels of activity, especially in a fast-moving physical environment such as a warehouse.
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This in turn can cause decreased retention of staff and poor health for employees if you fail to keep the temperature comfortable.
Although, by law, there is no specific temperature considered too hot to work, find out how improved warehouse organisation in the summer can keep your staff happy and your business running efficiently.
How to keep a warehouse cool
As a warehouse owner or manager, you should be aware of the negative impact extreme heat can have on your workforce. It's not simply a case of staff feeling uncomfortable and tired. In the worst cases, working in high temperatures can have serious implications such as dehydration, heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
A typical heat stress situation occurs when staff are wearing protective clothing while carrying out heavy manual work in a hot environment. Their body heat increases due to the work rate, but they can't cool off due to restrictive clothing, so their core body temperature will rise. This can lead to dehydration and severe symptoms such as muscle cramps, extreme thirst, dizziness, fatigue, nausea and headaches.
If left untreated, heat stress can lead to unconsciousness and can possibly even be fatal in the worst cases.
A survey of 300 GPs in the UK, carried out by the Natural Source Waters Association, revealed that 10% of patients complaining of tiredness and fatigue were suffering symptoms linked to dehydration.
Even if you have air conditioning installed, it can also be helpful to move the stagnant air with fans. Low-speed, high-volume ceiling fans can be particularly beneficial. The biggest fans of this type can cool down spaces of more than 20,000 square feet.
Keeping the air circulating with fans has been found to reduce the temperature by as much as 7°F. In addition, portable air conditioning units can be installed in specific areas where they are needed, such as next to machinery that generates heat.
Warehouses can also benefit from using dehumidifiers to remove excess moisture from the air, making it feel cooler and more comfortable. Natural airflow from leaving doors and windows open, if it's safe to do so, can also help cool down the warehouse.
Taking a water break
When determining how to organise a warehouse efficiently, consider letting employees take additional breaks if the weather is particularly hot.
Employers in the UK are required by law to provide workers with access to safe drinking water. Regulation 22 of the 1992 Workplace Health, Safety and Welfare Regulations states that companies must make clean drinking water accessible at suitable places.
It's far safer to allow employees to take a break to hydrate themselves in the middle of a summer heatwave, rather than expecting them to work through until their normal breaks.
Research has shown even a slight reduction in hydration levels can have a negative impact on a person's health and productivity levels at work. Losing as little as 2% of your body weight to dehydration can lead to greater feelings of fatigue and reduced alertness.
Medical research suggests a lack of hydration can affect a person's cognitive brain function. Over a longer period of time, this can reduce our ability to process and interpret visual information. This would be dangerous in any job, but particularly so for warehouse workers, who may be working at height and with machinery such as forklift trucks.
In terms of employee health and safety, it is vital to introduce warehouse process improvement in the summer to reduce the risks of all heat-related illnesses and accidents.
Changing your traffic plan
When people are feeling hot and tired in a busy environment, it's important to consider your vehicle and pedestrian routes carefully to minimise the risk of accidents. While every business owner must determine how to improve warehouse productivity, this must not be at the expense of safety.
Consider whether the aisles are wide enough, or whether smaller or narrower vehicles should be used in certain areas.
Once you've defined the routes, choose the relevant signage, floor marking and lighting to ensure pedestrians have their own safe lanes. Reducing encounters between traffic and pedestrians is one of the most important tasks you can do. If you don't have them already, add protective features, such as guard rails.
Make the order picking process as simple, quick and streamlined as possible by using high quality open fronted storage and order picking containers. Efficient product display and identification will enable greater picking accuracy and speed, further improving warehouse productivity.
Take the same approach to loading docks, where fast-paced traffic can cause particular hazards. Making simple changes, such as preventing falls with temporary safety barriers when the dock doors are open, can make all the difference.
Secure trailers properly during the loading process, so they can't slip away, as even a narrow gap can be enough to cause a dangerous fall.
Employee training
Continuous training for employees is vital for a safe work environment. Even a one-off refresher course at the start of the summer could remind all warehouse workers of the potentially hazardous environment they are working in.
As well as regular safety advice, you could also flag up the additional hazards of working in heat, reminding them of the symptoms of heat stroke and pointing out where the water stations are located.
When you're devising an action plan on how to improve warehouse efficiency in summer, keeping the workspace well organised will reduce unnecessary movement to find goods. This will increase productivity and ensure employees aren't wasting their time and energy due to inefficient work processes.