Storage system improves efficiency, accuracy, flexibility
With an automated horizontal carousel system, fewer people at Schoeneman Corp. are shipping more orders in less time with 99% pick accuracy.
By Staff -- Modern Materials Handling, 4/1/1999
As a distributor of beauty products, Schoeneman Corporation carries products available in both small quantities and bulk.
In the mid 1990s, the company's distribution center experienced a tremendous growth interval. Because Schoeneman's daily volume of order picks rapidly increased, the distribution and delivery areas of the operation needed to be recreated.
To support its growth, Schoeneman needed to supplement its storage system, which at that time consisted solely of static shelving and gravity flow racks. Increased order picking efficiency was also necessary-as was improved order accuracy and/ flexibility.
To store and pick the smaller products more effectively and coordinate order picking of large and small items more efficiently, Schoeneman sought an automated solution.
The automated horizontal carousel system that Schoeneman chose contains three 60 ft long horizontal carousels, two light trees to direct order picking, and a work station. The carousels are used exclusively for the storage and retrieval of small products. Schoeneman continues to use the static shelving and gravity flow racks for bulk quantities.
"Our industry can benefit from the utilization of carousels," says Brad Cogan, vice president of operations at Schoeneman. "We now have the ability to ship more orders with fewer people in the same amount of time."
The carousel's dynamic batching feature allows for perpetual order or batch rotation-a total of 16 orders can be picked at one time.
Schoeneman already had existing warehouse management system (WMS) software in its facility. With support from the vendor's software support team, the carousel system was seamlessly integrated with Schoeneman's existing WMS.
Since implementation of the carousel, Schoeneman's pick accuracy has escalated to 99%, and pick rates in this area of the distribution center are 3-5 times faster than pick rates in other areas of the facility. Schoeneman now generates 1,200-1,300 orders per day, each containing 10-15 line items.
Savings in manpower is another benefit. Other systems require three or four individuals to handle the same activity. This system requires only one worker.
Diamond Phoenix 207-784-1381 Circle 449
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