Buildings for storage and distribution

Abstract

This study is about storage and distribution buildings. In particular, it is about port and airport container terminals and depot buildings where packed freight is handled prior to or after transportation. A major concern of terminal design is that of dealing with flexibility in building form and layout. Building solutions must be able to support the rapidly changing demands of the freight forwarding industry and changes in the technology of container and unit load movement, handling and storage. This study is concerned with the operations and activities of freight terminals and freight exchange areas. An understanding of these is important because they affect the form that a depot building will eventually take. In turn, operations and actions themselves may be influenced by the form of the building. Existing buildings may need to be adapted from forms designed to handle storage distribution in different ways. Even where buildings are purpose built to handle specific methods of storage and distribution there may be questions raised as to how it performs its functions in relation to those current demands made on it and how well it will cope with future demands? This study primarily looks at existing freight handling buildings rather than those buildings which have been purpose built. It guides the reader in the direction that container terminal developments will take over the next 10 to 15 years and points out pitfalls to be avoided in the future design of such depots. It is an approach which allows change and adaptability to take place. Most of the lessons learned in the study are directly related to experiences gained while examining two major terminal developments in Wellington. These are the Thorndon Container Port Terminal and the cargo handling facilities at Wellington airport. Neither location is in itself ideal for extrapolating universal conclusions or recommendations if examined in isolation from other centres. Both have unique operational features. The port container terminal has the fastest ships' turnaround times if not in the world then certainly in Australasia. The air cargo service is unique in that its international operations are carried out primarily by an overseas airline (Qantas) rather than by a national carrier (Air New Zealand) which is the 'normal' practice. This can be expected to change from November 1985. Nevertheless, the terminal operations studied are such that from an inspection of them along with other like facilities some general conclusions can be drawn and recommendations made. By extensively examining both Wellington terminals the study was able to make several stages of analyses of their activities over time and compare these with overseas findings. The local analyses are related to theoretical considerations of change such as those specified by Aylward (1968) and set out in Part 1 of the study. They are classified under two major elements - space and activity. 1. Space a) Ageing or obsolescence of the structure. b) The life of space utilisation. c) The rigidity of the format of space. d) The development of repetitiveness. 2. Activity a) Changes in market demands. b) Degrees of efficiency. c) Changes of policy. d) The influence of individuals. e) Developments in procedure. In these the propensity for change, the scale and rate of change and the time span for change are important considerations. Such aspects cannot be examined solely on the basis of what occurs in Wellington or in New Zealand. Developments similar to those in Wellington are occurring elsewhere, notably in Australia, South Africa and the United States. In addition, some changes have already taken place in these countries as well as in Britain and Europe and lessons can be learned from the empirical experiences gained especially in relation to setting design goals and performance standards for storage and distribution buidings. Examples and observations from those other locations are used throughout the study to provide comparison and control overviews. In order to accommodate and relate these to the Wellington situation the methodology of the study was carried out in two stages and in several phases. Although valid, this process was not entirely satisfactory because it tended to spread the gathering of information and data over a greater span of time than might otherwise be desired for 'ideal' comparison and control purposes. Nevertheless it provided case studies data which allowed specific as well as general issues to be considered and recommendations made about the future design of storage and distribution buildings. The study suggests also that in future the following preliminary steps should be undertaken: 1) That the size of depot facility required be formulated accurately at the outset of the brief. This would entail more than the use of known standards in planning new terminal layouts and may require more than the adaptation of an existing building or adherence to strict requirements of existing building codes. 2) That current throughput volumes at freight terminals are accurately predicted. These figures can be projected or extrapolated to indicate as far as possible the direction of change likely to occur in their future volumetric parameters and in the technology relating to storage and distribution. 3) That the views of potential users of terminals (not merely the commissioning client or client organisation) should be fully solicited where possible at an early stage of the design brief. 4) That care is taken in location planning. The transitory nature of containers terminals is such that great care requires to be given to their siting. This can be as important an issue as their ability to adapt easily to changing demands. 5) That a study of the cost effectiveness of any proposed terminal design is undertaken prior to implementation. The range of this study is restricted in scale by its location being primarily in Wellington and in its scope by being an individual research study. Nevertheless the suggestions given should be useful recommendations to the best preliminary steps to be followed in future in preparing more meaningful design briefs for freight cargo terminals. Briefs themselves will need to allow for rapid change to take place in building form and in the commercial and technological environments of the times in which they are set.