ROSSENDALE-BASED footwear company has added a third to its storage space without having to lay a brick.

The Bacup Shoe Company has been able to cope with increasing demand for its products thanks to the wonders of 3D modelling.

Specialists from Nelson-based Northern Technologies created the simulated world of virtual reality to allow the company to make better use of space in its warehouse.

The Bacup Shoe Company is a storage and distribution centre for footwear. It undertakes all the necessary logistics, including picking, packing as well as sourcing footwear from both UK and international markets.

Logistics manager Graham Naylor said business had increased over the last three years since manufacturing ceased and the company had grown its market by focusing on footwear distribution.

"This new role as a warehousing and logistics company proved very successful, although we soon realised that operations would have to be improved to cope with demand," he said.

"We receive large volumes of products from the Far East and needed to take a good look at our site to see how we could maximise storage potential ... we were struggling for space."

Business Link put the company in touch with business support specialists Northern Technologies. After an initial review of operations, it was agreed that computer software could be used to produce a 3D model of a new warehouse layout.

The model would be more space efficient and would lend itself to a more systematic way of picking and moving goods through the warehouse. Above all, modifications would be able to be made on screen at the click of a mouse.

Project manager Paul Bateson said that the idea was to use manufacturing simulation software to design a better warehouse layout for the company:

"We needed to take out some of the waste that was occurring in the warehouse operations, such as excess walking, searching for things and poor access to products."

Northern Technologies measured the internal space and gathered valuable data while learning more about the problems the staff were encountering.

As a result, a model was produced, enabling different storage strategies to be shown on screen that reflected the situation in the real warehouse.

Lots of different scenarios were considered, such as different layouts of picking aisles, pallet sizes, pallet truck and forklift access, inspection areas, goods in and goods out. All their space requirements were analysed and improvements made in virtual reality, avoiding disruption in the actual warehouse.

Eventually, an optimal layout was reached and the number of pallet spaces was counted to see what had been gained. In all areas, there were dramatic improvements of up to 38%. Staff were able to see 3D models of the ideas, and provided valuable feedback which led to even more pallet space being created.

Finally, the screen model was replicated in the warehouse for real. This proved even more beneficial in releasing extra storage space.

Graham Naylor said that the project had been invaluable: "The simulation software let us plan on screen, allowing ideas to be tested. This new operation has enabled us to work much more effectively."

In all five areas of the warehouse, there have been big improvements, with the number of pallet positions or amount of storage space increasing by up to 35%.

Next, the company will be implementing another of Northern Technologies' recommendations by using a computer system alongside their new layout so that products can be found and packed instantly.

"We've had consultants in before, but this has been the most useful exercise we've ever been involved with ... the improvements are on-going now," added Graham."