Warehouse

A warehouse is a commercial building for storage of goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial areas of cities, towns and villages.

They usually have loading docks to load and unload goods from trucks. Sometimes warehouses are designed for the loading and unloading of goods directly from railways, airports, or seaports. They often have cranes and forklifts for moving goods, which are usually placed on ISO standard pallets loaded into pallet racks. Stored goods can include any raw materials, packing materials, spare parts, components, or finished goods associated with agriculture, manufacturing and production. In Indian English a warehouse may be referred to as a godown.

The origins of the warehouse are difficult to pinpoint. Early civilisations relied on storage pits rather than large structures to protect seeds and surplus food. Sociologists like Alain Testart have argued that these early storage techniques were essential to the evolution of societies.

Some of the earliest examples of warehouses that resemble the buildings of today are Roman horrea. These were rectangular buildings, built of stone, with a raised ground floor and overhanging roof to keep the walls cool and dry. Roman horrea were typically used to store grain, but other consumables such as olive oil, wine, clothing and even marble were also stored inside.

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