The European Logistics and Development Centre in Zakroczym gains extra space

23 stycznia 2020

Following the completion of its fifth warehouse at the beginning of 2020, the European Logistics and Development Centre in Zakroczym will have a whole range of new possibilities and be able to make new plans. Scheduled to be put into operation at the beginning of the year, the warehouse will add 22,000 m² to the existing storage space of the Centre, which will then total a staggering 67,000 m², an equivalent of over 9 football fields.

The new facility will allow to separate the goods receipt and issue areas, which will significantly improve the complex logistics across the entire Centre.

The increased storage area is also expected to improve the efficiency of our operations

ILS Sp. z o.o. is the logistics operator of the Inter Cars S.A. Capital Group, handling its warehousing, distribution and transportation operations. The Zakroczym warehouse handles directly the Central and Eastern European Countries such as Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia or Ukraine. It also used by Inter Cars to dispatch goods to those Western European Countries which do not have a sales network, including England, France, Finland or Germany. Apart from handling the logistics for Inter Cars, ILS provides 3PL (third-party logistics) services to other businesses, e.g. the suppliers of Inter Cars. Therefore, at one point the existing warehouse space proved insufficient in view of the broad scope of ILS’s activity and a decision was made to build an additional, fifth warehouse.

The new facility was built to the same technical standards as the existing warehouses and offers a matching storage space. In fact, one of its walls contacts one of the existing buildings.

And this is why the investment was not an easy one. The new warehouse had to be erected in such a way so as not to disturb the normal operation of the Centre. We also had to ensure maximum safety both at the construction site and inside the existing warehouses, which are operated by as many as 1500 stuff working in shifts 24/6

-says Radosław Wielechowski, the ILS Contract Manager.

The fifth warehouse has a storage height of 11.40 m and is divided into a warehouse area (app. 21,000 m²) and the office area (1,200 m²).

The warehouse is equipped with four-level racks of 10.20 m in height, intended for the storage of oils, greases, fluids and metal elements (oversized goods). The racks are equipped with roller feeders and stationary feeders, ensuring seamless and safe pallet logistics.

A single racks level offers 5, 636 m², i.e. 642 pallet spaces.

The warehouse also features high-storage racks suitable for storing goods on pallets.

The high-storage racks will be handled by modern forklifts suitable for this type of operations. These 6-tonne machines are controlled by an induction line system hidden in the floor to make handling them easier for their operators.

Modern forklifts not only accelerate the pace of work but also make it significantly safer, which is of great importance to us. The high-storage area can house as many as 10,629 pallets. By contrast, a 20ft see container can carry 10-11 pallets

- says Radosław Wielechowski.

The new warehouse is equipped with modern fire protection systems and an infrastructure ensuring the safety of the staff and the materials. All the systems meet the environment protection requirements and ensure considerable energy savings. The warehouse is equipped with energy-saving lighting only and a heat-recovery ventilation system.

Damaged pallets, thousands of boxes, kilometres of foil and tape. What to do with all this? Given the size of the facility, the amount of waste produced by it is equally big

When designing the arehouses we also had to include a facility for preliminary segregation, pressing and preparation of waste for transport. Our company puts much emphasis on the environment protection. Apart from that, keeping things in order helps ensure safety, and this aspect should never be neglected. This part of the warehouse is closed off and is not engaged in the logistics operations

- says Marcin Łapiński, the Logistics Manager.

The construction works have been completed and the facility looks really impressive. Some works, however, will not be completed until sometime from now.

It’s true, a part of the warehouse, which for the time being will be used as a passage way, has been designed and prepared in such a way so as to be able to use it to build two mezzanines and a space for an automated warehouse in the future

- says Marcin Łapiński.

An interesting technical solution is the placement behind the regular gates for large trucks of a special driveway for smaller buses, which serves as a sort of a vestibule. Cars stop between the outer gate and the warehouse gate inside a closed space.

This way we manage to observe all safety rules and optimize the heating costs

- says Ireneusz Świderek, the Senior Logistics Operation Manager.

However, there is more to the warehouse than just the goods stored in it. We must not forget about the people who operate it. To cater to their needs, we have provided them with a rest and refreshment area featuring locker rooms, showers and bathrooms. We have also made sure to create a convenient connection between the old and the new warehouse and the old and the new office, which also features four multimedia conference rooms and rest and refreshment facilities.

The main purpose behind building the new warehouse was to secure further development of the Inter Cars Capital Group. It will help to improve the workflow and optimize the existing processes and, ultimately, decrease the logistics cost.

It will be used for the storage of oversized goods, oils and surplus goods, with a view to significantly improving the operation of its other sections and the other warehouses. Due to the automation solutions applied in the main warehouse, we want to use it for storing goods that can be handled using that technology

- says Marcin Łapiński.