FHS-JUN24-PG18+19_Layout 1 10/06/2024 13:00 Page 18


WAREHOUSING, HANDLING & STORAGE


TURNKEY SOLUTION ENSURES HEMISPHERE FREIGHT MAXIMISES THE SPACE AT ITS NEW WAREHOUSE


Hemisphere Freight Services - one of the UK’s largest, independently owned supply chain solutions specialists - has maximised the storage space at its new warehouse in Suffolk thanks to a turnkey solution designed and delivered by Toyota Material Handling UK...


L


aunched in 1989 as an export freight forwarder, impressive and consistent organic growth combined with several strategic acquisitions has seen Hemisphere Freight Services evolve in to one of


the UK’s largest, independently owned supply chain solutions specialists. To keep pace with demand for the extensive


range of logistics services it provides, Hemisphere recently announced the addition to its property portfolio of a 243,000 sq ft new- build warehouse facility within the Port One Logistics Park development, which is located just outside Ipswich. And, following a competitive tender process,


Toyota Material Handling was awarded the contract to oversee the design and build of the new unit’s racking and storage scheme from start to finish. In addition, Toyota has supplied the fleet of forklift trucks that operates within the new unit and will provide ongoing truck service and maintenance support to ensure that the machines always deliver optimum performance. “The fact that Toyota could provide a turnkey solution that included supplying a full range of materials handling equipment, designing and constructing our racking system and project managing the installation through the build cycle was very attractive,” explains Hemisphere freight services director, Craig Perrin. Perrin continues: “The term ‘one-stop-shop’ is something of a cliché, but Toyota really did take care of everything. Working with a single-source supplier has several distinct advantages. For example, having one point of contact allowed us to reduce the amount of management time we had to dedicate to the project considerably. “But, perhaps more importantly, dealing with a ‘turnkey’ partner for the handling equipment


and the racking instead of two independent companies, means there is no possibility of an ‘issue’ arising because of a disagreement or misunderstanding between the racking and forklift providers during the fit-out phase of the installation or, indeed, at some point in the future,” Perrin adds. After consulting with the company’s


operations management to get a full understanding of the client’s needs, Toyota decided that a very narrow aisle (VNA) racking configuration - which achieves maximum storage space by simply narrowing the facility’s aisle widths - was clearly the best option for Hemisphere Freight. Toyota was able to design a VNA racking cube


that provided a staggering 1,800 more pallet locations than any of the other schemes put forward during the tender process by cutting out ‘dead space’ and carefully considering the ideal location within the racking scheme for lift trucks to move between aisles. “Essentially, Hemisphere Freight wanted a


storage system that maximises the new site’s pallet capacity and delivers the flexibility required to cope with the different weight, size and shape of the products that its clients need to store,” says Chris Tarrant, Toyota Material Handling UK’s storage solutions specialist. The new racking scheme not only meets the


company’s present requirements, but it has been designed to be compatible with any significant changes in the nature of the goods stored at the facility without the need to make potentially costly and time-consuming remedial work. Each individual bay on every level within the


storage scheme is 3.6 metres wide. This allows an infinitely variable combination of standard- size or Euro-size pallets to be put away within each bay and means costly ‘dead space’ is


18 JUNE 2024 | FACTORY&HANDLINGSOLUTIONS


eliminated throughout the store. “The design and installation of pallet racking is a significant part of Toyota’s business, but unlike companies whose sole focus is on racking and shelving systems we are not motivated by the need to sell the biggest quantity of metal or make money from the future supply of spare rack parts or racking repairs,” explains Tarrant. “Our single incentive is to deliver the optimum solution for the client. This means getting the ideal number of aisles and the most appropriate aisle widths for the type of products stored and the materials handling equipment deployed and ensuring transfer aisles are sited in the best place,” he adds. The VNA racking is served by a fleet of


Toyota Vector VCE150A articulated man-up combi trucks. Part of Toyota’s extensive range of very narrow aisle warehouse machines, the Vector VCE150A model’s clear open fronted design makes it an ideal machine for pallet handling in high-density warehouses and


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54