Selecting a new warehouse site

Here' s a brief guide to the many factors to study before you make a choice.

By -- Modern Materials Handling, 4/1/2000

When building a new warehouse, the first stage is selection of the building site. The sidebar below summarizes the factors we' ll cover here.

Zoning of candidate sites often is the first factor to address before proceeding very far. Categories and rules set up for the purposes to which any property can be used come under this heading. Land commonly has three types of summary zoning: commercial, residential, and industrial.

Within the industrial category there often are separate zones set up for light and heavy industrial facilities. Steel mills are a typical example of a heavy industry.

For distribution centers, however, we are normally interested in at least a light industrial zoning classification. Companies requiring outside storage of their raw materials or finished goods will need to do more detailed checking to see if their conditions fit within light industrial zoning.

Locating a facility-particularly in a large metropolitan area-commonly involves a combination of factors: Where are major customers? How accessible is the site to major highways? How much road frontage does the site have?

You can reduce local cartage costs if key customers are nearby. Drivers making either inbound or outbound trips will save time with easy highway access.

For a warehouse, meantime, minimizing road frontage is vital. A rear lot is always less expensive than a site with lots of frontage.

How much land do you need to support a given building size? This rule of thumb works: double the building floor area to determine your minimum land requirement. But be sure to allow for future growth.

Remember, moreover, that mezzanine areas may be included in the calculation of land needs by municipal zoning authorities if they are classified as a second story. The land area needed is based on the total warehouse (and office) floor area.

If you will be locating outside cities and with no municipal sewage disposal serving the site, triple your building area to allow for the increased space for a septic system.

The shape of potential sites is important, too. Draw an ideal layout for your warehouse. Identify loading dock areas and add in space for truck turning room and access to docks. This exercise will give you a quick starting point for suitable property types.

To reduce land costs, lay out the building site to have the shortest dimension for the frontage facing the road. Land with frontage usually costs more than land with depth.

There are several surveys needed to determine if a land site is usable for a warehouse at an affordable price. First, there' s a property survey for title. Then I recommend a driveby survey to look at the site and its neighbors.

Finally there' s price. Besides the traditional costs for services such as heating fuel(s), electric power, and water and sewer, don' t forget to check into one the newest warehouse service needs-high-speed telecommunications links.

Checklist for selecting your site

• Check the zoning category (including any limits set on outside storage)