New distribution warehouse to be built in Jeddah

Hala SCS's client is the sole distributor of a major branded tire product in Saudi Arabia. Its operations include a network of branch offices, service centers, warehouses and a large fleet of trucks and vans. All goods are received, checked and stored at warehouses in Jeddah, Riyadh and Dammam, then distributed to other branches.

To ensure that clients receive optimum service levels, and in order to meet growing demand for the full range of automotive products, it became necessary to invest in the design and construction of a new distribution warehouse in Jeddah. This new facility aims to take the company forward for an approximate ten year period.

To achieve these objectives, Hala SCS was identified as the ideal service provider due to their experience and skills in the designing, project managing and development of state-of-the-art distribution warehouses.

For the initial phase of the project Hala SCS required a business forecast from the client. The aim of this was to assess the range and quantity of products to be stored, and the associated activities required for distribution over a long term planning period. This document was formalised and agreed to by the client's business management team, and has been utilised by Hala SCS for the design of the Jeddah warehouse.

The new distribution facility will be approximately 15 500m², inclusive of the warehouse, offices and service centre. It is optimally located to ensure easy access for both calling customers and the necessary commercial transport for national distribution. The warehouse will store in excess of 160 000 units of product.

Various storage alternatives were considered during the design process. Ultimately the design proposed opted for a combination of storage techniques to not only maximise the use of space, but also ensure quick access to stock so as to achieve high customer services levels.

The storage techniques to be used include:

- High rise racking systems
- Efficient loading/off loading techniques
- A paperless warehouse environment using radio frequency equipment and real time responses to all handling activities within the warehouse
- Design which can be expanded into other Saudi Arabian distribution centres utilising the same warehouse management technologies
- Expandable design within the Jeddah warehouse facility

The site chosen for the new Jeddah warehouse facility is adjacent to the automotive supplier's existing warehouse, which has important implications for a seamless transition from the old facility to the new state of the art warehouse.

Construction started at the beginning of June this year, and the facility will be operational by 2010. It will form the first facility in a modernised supply chain network in Saudi Arabia to be implemented by the automotive supplier.

"Securing the contract to design and project manage the new distribution warehouse of such a major tire supplier is a great achievement for our company. It is indicative of Hala SCS' capabilities in developing optimal warehousing solutions. It also highlights our ability to successfully assist clients in overcoming the challenges of increasing volumes and growing demand - challenges currently inherent to the supply chain industry in Saudi Arabia, but ones we are adept at solving,"

said Hala SCS Managing Director Husam S. Al-Saleh.