Warehouse dock is a feature of warehouse design - used for unloading and loading vehicles. It is crucial to carefully design where they are externally located in a facility and choose the best type of dock depending on the available space.
In many cases efficient and effective loading and unloading is achieved by a dock design that places the loading and unloading vehicle' rear platform at the same height as the warehouse floor.
Slopes in docking areas must always be as small as possible: the gentler the slope, the less chance of errors and accidents. If a warehouse is going to be used by large volume vehicles, such as high cubes, it may be necessary to install special devices, such as hydraulically adjustable docks or ground level lift platforms.
Current trends indicate that vehicles that are longer and wider and have a greater volume will be increasingly common. Therefore, when planning the location of the docks, it would be useful to ensure that there is a large area for the approach, manoeuvring and build-up of large vehicles.
One option to increase the efficiency of the docks is to combine reception and dispatch into a single area (dual use). This solution drastically reduces costs and, above all, increases the use of handling equipment and personnel. However, if this is justified by the volume of material flows, there can also be separate access points for each function (some for reception and others for dispatch - 'sole use').
Reference:
- Warehouse docking areas - Interlake
- CIPS study guide page 13
LO 1, AC 1.1