Retailers and their customers are demanding more variety, quality, and convenience from their food suppliers, while regulations and standards are becoming stricter and more complex. Yale® materials handling equipment and solutions are designed to meet the specific needs and opportunities of businesses in the food distribution industry, optimising flexibility and efficiency in the warehouse.
SKU proliferation: Managing diversity with precision
As customers demand more variety from their food purchases, SKU proliferation translates into a larger and more diverse inventory of products that food distributors must manage. Yale warehouse equipment may help to optimise storage space, enhance picking accuracy, and minimise handling costs.
Yale Very Narrow Aisle trucks, for instance, can operate in aisles from 1.5 metres wide, providing the opportunity for increased storage capacity while maintaining quick access to goods. With Yale, your well-organised, efficient, and cost-effective warehouse operation can embrace the product diversity in the food distribution industry.
Delivery expectations: Meeting the need for speed
Customers expect fast and reliable delivery of their orders, especially for perishable and temperature-sensitive products. And, with operator comfort playing an important role in productivity, the ergonomic design of Yale warehouse equipment has the potential to help speed up loading and unloading times, helping to preserve product quality.
For example, features such as enclosed heated cabins with double glazing and double skin insulation are offered on Yale MR Series reach trucks and Very Narrow Aisle trucks. This provides operators with a warm and comfortable workspace when working in cold storage. Or the Yale MP20-30X platform pallet truck with ergonomic features including large butterfly control buttons and a smart lift option that may help reduce handling time.
Staff Retention: Caring for Your Team
Attracting and retaining skilled and motivated workers is essential for food distributors. The physical and mental demands of the job require a keen focus on operator comfort, safety, and satisfaction. Yale equipment addresses these needs by incorporating seats, steering wheels, controls, displays, and platforms that are designed to help reduce fatigue and strain. By investing in the well-being of your team, you have the potential to build a stronger and more dedicated workforce.
Food Safety: Complying with Confidence
Strict hygiene and quality standards are paramount for food distributors to prevent cross-contamination, spoilage, and waste. Yale lift trucks and warehouse equipment can help you maintain cleanliness, freshness, and traceability of products thanks to features like zinc coatings, non-toxic food-grade lubricants, non-marking tires, and sealed components that fend off dust and water ingress.
The Power of Lithium-Ion: A Game Changer
Innovative Yale lithium-ion battery-powered solutions may bring a plethora of advantages to some applications compared to traditional lead-acid batteries.
Firstly, they offer longer run times as lithium-ion batteries provide more energy than lead-acid batteries of the same size and weight, enabling lift trucks to run longer without needing frequent recharges. Additionally, these batteries offer faster charging, with charging times significantly faster than lead-acid batteries. Lithium-ion batteries can be fully charged in as little as one hour or opportunistically charged during breaks or shifts. Furthermore, they require lower maintenance as they don't need watering, equalizing, or cleaning, reducing maintenance costs and downtime.
In terms of performance, lithium-ion batteries deliver consistent power throughout the discharge cycle, ensuring optimal lift truck performance even at low battery levels. What's more, they contribute to greater sustainability, with a longer lifespan and a higher recycling rate than lead-acid batteries, thus reducing the environmental impact and carbon footprint.
Empowering Your Food Distribution Business with Yale
Yale is fully committed to offering flexible solutions that help food distributors conquer challenges and seize opportunities. Yale materials handling equipment and solutions can empower food distribution businesses to achieve higher productivity, lower costs, improve quality, and achieve greater customer satisfaction.
To learn more about how Yale can help you embrace flexibility to help your warehouse in the food distribution industry thrive, contact your independent local Yale dealer partner today.
