Guidance For Maintaining a Delivery Area
Posted on: 6 December 2016
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In retail and manufacturing industries, the goods-in process is one of the most crucial to get right. Even in places with more space, such as sports arenas and farmland, delivery areas can become cramped when several deliveries come at once. If your goods-in space has a yard with a limited amount of space – and most urban ones do in Australia – then take steps to ensure that accidents and bottlenecks don't occur which will have a knock on effect on the rest of the business.
- Be Ready For Large Vehicles
Heavy duty road haulage firms might not be needed for your despatch area, depending on what goods you send out, but goods-in often need to be able to accommodate larger trucks and trailers. This because your deliveries, although they may be relatively small, might arrive with big hauliers who are going on to deliver elsewhere. Ensure that parking bays are set out to allow sufficient room for an articulated truck to turn and drop the kerbing, if necessary, to provide easy access to the street. Where large wheels have to run up and down raised paving to get in, you may need kerb repairs to take place to keep the access free flowing.
- Create a One-Way System
Remember that trucks need to be able to get in and out, so try and create a through-flow, rather than having just one gate which serves as both entrance and exit. A one-way system for delivery drivers makes it easy for them to drop loads off and get moving without slowing down the next delivery that might be incoming. If truck drivers don't have to back up to make a manoeuvre, then the delivery yard becomes a safer place for everyone to operate in. Furthermore, you don't have to listen to the reversing warning sounds that all trucks make – something which can be a nuisance to your neighbours, if heard throughout the working day.
- Set Out Walkways
Painting the tarmac or concrete of a delivery yard is a good way of designating zones and indicating what the purpose for each happens to be. An efficiently run yard might have yellow and black zig-zags, for example, to designate an unloading area. By painting areas for pedestrian walkways and access points for forklifts in a bright colour, then you also tell drivers where not to park, helping to prevent accidents. When marking out a yard for deliveries, it is a good idea to install floodlighting which will also allow goods-in functions to operate safely even when it has become dark.