Without a good storage system, stowing items can be nearly impossible.
Stacks grow, corners disappear and operating efficiency plummets.
Barring major renovation, one solution is to reevaluate existing space to ensure that every last inch is being used to maximum advantage. When Penny Rowley, former director of nutrition and foodservice at St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa, Okla., saw workers in the central medical-supply department pushing a button to move shelves and pick up products, she knew it was just what the doctor ordered for foodservice. The horizontal carousel system operates much like the moving racks found in dry cleaners, only they are bigger and have bins instead of hangers. A computer keeps track of product placement and shelf availability. To place an order, someone remotely enters a list of needed products and downloads the list to the carousel management software.