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Beyond storage: what the Dutch market reveals about the evolution of European warehousing

For decades, the Netherlands has been one of Europe’s most advanced logistics laboratories. Today, companies are facing a new generation of constraints: energy availability, planning restrictions, sustainability requirements and growing labour shortages. Ronald Meijer, owner of Zeus Magazijninrichting and a Modulblok partner for more than twenty-five years, explains how these factors are reshaping the way warehouses are designed and operated.

The Dutch market anticipates the future of logistics

For more than twenty-five years, Zeus Magazijninrichting has been Modulblok’s key partner in the Netherlands. The partnership has grown through hundreds of projects, underpinned by a shared approach focused on tailored solutions and the management of complex applications. Today, looking at the Dutch market offers an early insight into many of the transformations reshaping logistics across Europe.

For many years, logistics growth was closely linked to the availability of additional space. As volumes increased, new warehouses were built; when storage capacity was no longer sufficient, existing facilities were expanded. In the Netherlands, this model is showing its limitations with increasing clarity.

“Today, many companies are able to obtain permits for new buildings but cannot always secure the energy capacity required to operate them,” says Ronald Meijer, owner of Zeus Magazijninrichting. “In some cases, connection to the power grid can take several years.”

In one of Europe’s most advanced logistics markets, energy availability is becoming a decisive factor in new investments and expansion plans. This challenge is compounded by increasing pressure to limit land use and by the electrification of transport, which requires ever more capable infrastructure.

Against this backdrop, warehouse design is taking on a different meaning. It is no longer simply about increasing storage capacity, but about making more efficient use of increasingly limited resources.

When constraints become a design opportunity

One of the most significant examples comes from Hoekstra, a multimodal logistics operator based in the north of the Netherlands.

The company had originally planned to build a conventional pallet racking warehouse. During the planning approval process, however, a series of planning restrictions and requirements from neighbouring property owners progressively reduced the available footprint. “The building was downsized several times. At that point, achieving the required capacity with a conventional configuration was no longer possible,” explains Ronald Meijer.

The solution was a mobile pallet racking system developed by Modulblok, designed to increase storage density without expanding the building footprint. The project is a tangible example of the increasingly decisive role played by warehouse design in mature markets. The system provides approximately 3,885 pallet locations and consists of racking over 10 metres high, installed on mobile bases with storage rows nearly 40 metres long. Each mobile row is designed to support loads of up to 417 tonnes, while each pair of beams can carry up to 3,200 kg.

The objective was not simply to increase storage capacity, but to maintain direct access to every individual pallet location. “With high-density storage solutions, access is generally limited to the first load unit. A mobile system, by contrast, allows the required aisle to be opened, providing access to any pallet.” This is particularly important for logistics operators managing a wide range of SKUs and requiring a high level of storage selectivity.

At Hoekstra, the system is operated by a single forklift dedicated to put-away and retrieval activities. This configuration maximises the benefits of mobile racking technology while maintaining high operational efficiency.

Hoekstra project technical specifications

VoceValore
Tipologia impiantoMagazzino portapallet su basi mobili
Capacità di stoccaggioCirca 3.885 posti pallet
Altezza impianto10.068 mm
Lunghezza delle file mobiliCirca 40 m
Portata massima per fila mobile417.200 kg
Portata massima per coppia di correnti3.200 kg

Automation as a response to resource shortages

Alongside space optimisation, automation represents another key area of development. In the Netherlands, difficulties in recruiting skilled workers are also accelerating the adoption of automated forklifts, AGVs and autonomous material handling systems.

According to Ronald Meijer, this transformation is influencing even seemingly minor design decisions. In one project developed with Toyota Nederland, for example, the clear width of the pallet locations was increased to provide the greater operating tolerances required by automated vehicles. “You lose a few pallet locations, but gain speed, reliability and operational continuity.”

This approach reflects a broader shift: maximising storage density is no longer the sole design criterion. Factors such as workforce availability, productivity, automation and material flow management are playing an increasingly important role.

Less steel, more expertise

Perhaps the most interesting insight to emerge from the Dutch experience is the growing importance of design expertise. Zeus has chosen not to compete in the standardised solutions market dominated by major international players. Instead, its strategy focuses on applications that require tailored engineering and specialist expertise.

“We do not simply sell steel. We aim to deliver engineering intelligence.”

To illustrate this approach, Ronald refers to a project developed for a marine research organisation. The customer needed to store ocean-floor samples in temperature-controlled cold rooms. Conventional racking was not suitable for handling this particular type of load unit. A dedicated structure was therefore engineered, featuring specific components and custom-designed containment systems. “In this case, the customer was not looking for the lowest price. They were looking for a solution to a specific problem.”

The Dutch experience offers an insight that extends far beyond a single project. When space, energy, labour and sustainability become limited resources, value no longer lies solely in supplying a storage structure. What becomes decisive is the ability to interpret complex constraints and transform them into effective operational solutions. This is why, in more mature markets, competition is gradually shifting from products to engineering expertise. As Ronald Meijer puts it: “In the future, we will sell less steel and more knowledge.” In the most advanced logistics markets, space is no longer the only constraint. Energy, automation, sustainability and the availability of skilled professionals are redefining the way warehouses are designed. In this context, value is progressively shifting from the product itself to the ability to understand complex systems and turn constraints into design opportunities. The Dutch market has been experiencing this transition for years, offering increasingly valuable insights for the rest of Europe.

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