How many loading docks should my company warehouse have?

Question

I have a technical design problem related to a new warehouse facility that my company is buidling. The entire facility is about 30,000 sq.m. split into 6 equal compartments of about 5,000 sq.m. each. Both ends of the compartments are about 40m in length and I need to find out what is the optimal number of loading docks per compartment at each end; all these without going into the details of materials flow etc. Basically, is there some industry standard that allows me to determine the right number of loading docks that I should spread across this 40m of warehouse space per compartment?

Answer 1

4.

Answer 2

The number of loading docks has little to do with the size of the warehouse. How many trucks do you plan to process through in a day? How long to load each truck? One pallet per truck or full truck load quantities? I'm also confused with the focus on the warehouse having multiple compartments. Will each compartment load their own trucks or share loads? Are you only concerned about shipments or deliveries as well? There is no industry standard or quick answer since each company tends to develope their own solution. Especially these days when it can provide a competative advantage. You really need to know your material flow very well, otherwise you're just slapping docks on a build.



My thoughts are that you'll obviously need one dock at least. If you figure a 48' trailer can hold roughly 27 sq.m. of goods, then you'll need to know how many turns of the warehouse you plan to make. If you need to load 50 trucks per day (nearly 1500 sq. m of goods) and each truck takes 1 hour to load, that's 50 hours per day loading. In a normal 8 hour shift, you'd need at least 7 docks. If you are unloading just as many inbound trucks, the number doubles. Also, if are are loading less than truck load quantities, the trucks will move in and out quicker, but you'll still might need more docks to avoid trucks waiting. The forklifter operator can be loading one, while the arriving truck backs into his dock. You'll need to verify loading/unloading times and the numbers stated, but this should get you started.

Answer 3

The size of the building nor the size of the compartments have nothing to do with the number of loading/unloading docks that will be required.

The only thing that is of any importance is how much volume of material will pass thought the building in a given time. If the retention time of materials in the warehouse is two years then one dock is enough. If the retention time is 8 hours then you will require many loading/unloading areas.

Remember that you loose considerable usable warehouse space for each loading area installed. This is a far more complex issue than you may have thought.

Answer 4

2 or 3 should do

Answer 5

As a truck driver I must tell you there is no way to answer this question without knowing how many deliveries and pickups you get dailey.How long does it take to Load/unload a truck.How many dock workers do you have????Are you going to use lights and dock locks???Are you using lumpers or your own people ?Time time time is the question here.How many trucks can you handle per day.