Konica Minolta SA boasts a new warehouse and training centre

Company growth has prompted a new warehouse and training centre in order to serve increased demand

In response to the growth that Konica Minolta South Africa has experienced over the past few years, the company has constructed a new 1,500m² warehouse at its head office in Johannesburg, in order to accommodate the rise in machine orders.

After occupying the new warehouse, the company opened its new “Centre for Technical Excellence” which is serving as a training centre and houses the company’s specialised repair workshop.

According to national logistics manager, Jaenne van der Westhuizen, the increase in equipment that needed to be stored and moved as a result of orders over 2007 and 2008 outgrew the warehouse at the time.  To provide additional storage space in the interim, 14 containers were rented and placed in the parking area next to the warehouse.

“This was not an ideal situation as everything had to be handled twice; once when packing the goods into the containers and again when moving the boxes into the warehouse,” says Jaenne.

“Now, the new warehouse provides ample storage space. The receiving area occupies one third of the building while the remaining 1,000m² is utilised for high rise storage. Two containers can now be moved simultaneously.”

“In addition, we use a vacuum receiving system, which means that goods are only released into the warehouse once the total receiving process has been completed.”

A portion of the warehouse has also been allocated to house the stock of DEVELOP South Africa, a new player within the document production and management space focusing on enterprise development and skills transferral within the local marketplace.