The future of smart sustainable warehousing

Abstract
Introduction

When seen as dictionary definition, sustainability seems to be straightforward idea, but its literal
meaning might vary depending on the context in which it is used or the viewpoint of the person
using it. When a business reports on its sustainability practices, there is often confusion
regarding what sustainability means (Bradford et al., 2017). While some business simply
priorities environment sustainability others see it as a three-legged stool encompassing actions
that are ethical from an economic, environmental, and social perspectives (Horani, 2023).
Environmental problems, such as global warming ozone layer destruction, and the depletion of
natural, non- renewable resources, caused by a variety of supply chain operations of logistics
companies, such as distribution, purchasing, and transportation, have highlighted the significance
of sustainability. As their needs have changed, they have grown much more environmentally
conscious and have begun to purchase sustainable designs. For business that could suffer
significant losses by producing things no one wants while ignoring sustainability, this would be
major problem(Jadhav et al., 2020).

Previously seen as an essential component in the supply chain, the warehouse today plays a
crucial role in completing client orders and has a big impact on both logistical costs and service
standards. The efficiency of the warehouse’s resource how they operate in space and time is a
key factor in determining its long-term viability. The warehouse’s key resources are space,
equipment, labor if it is only seen from within four walls. The usage of space and stationary
equipment on a timetable is typically not something that requires daily optimization and is more
made daily for both the mobile equipment and the staff. There cannot be sustained order picking
if their resources are not used effectively (Popović et al., 2021).

A warehousing management system is crucial strategy. Compared to a manual handled system,

an automated warehousing system yield more reliable results with less work. WMS is intended
to assist in cost reduction through efficient warehousing procedures. The WMS granule offers
capabilities for managing sophisticated warehouse procedures involving automated data capture
systems, so called zones and bins, directed picks, and put-away. In order to do directed pick and
put away, the warehouse must be divided into zones and bins. Each zone may have one or more
bins and may be either a receiving zone or stocking zone (Atieh et al., 2016).

A sustainable warehouse entails the management, integration, and coordination of economic,

social, and in especially, environmental facilities and processes, yet these should be
complemented by organizational and technological factors. According to the notion of
sustainable development, a sustainable warehouse is one that strikes a balance between the
impact on the environment and the proper organizational, technological, economic, and social
functioning. while taking into account economic efficiency, organizational and technological
features are the factors that cause the effects, while taking into account economic efficiency,
organizational and technological features are the factors that cause the effects, while social and
ecological aspects are the outcomes of their operation. Finally, a sustainable warehouse can be
described as a collection of technological and organizational strategies for effectively realizing
the warehouse process while upholding the highest social standards and reducing environmental
impact in order to maximize financial efficiency (Malinowska et al., 2018).
The following is a description of the key benefits of smart warehouse (van Geest et al., 2022):

 Operational scalability is increased with smart warehouses because updating the

infrastructure is simpler than updating the organization’s human capital, which makes it
possible for real time information to be provided, tasks to be automated, and manual
labor to be minimized.

 Traditional warehouses cannot provide real time information

 In intelligent warehouses, automatic judgements are made utilizing various prediction

models. Compared to traditional warehouses, smart warehouses are better able to react to
changing customer needs and business operations.

 Smart sensors are used to monitor expensive equipment, reducing downtime.

 The following are the drawbacks:

Establishing a smart warehouse is more expensive than establishing a regular warehouse.
Transitioning to a smart warehouse is a time-consuming process that takes a lot of work.
Top management assistance is needed.