Cross-belt sortation maximizes distribution center efficiency
Benetton's system sends packaged garments to 800 sort points on four levels, increasing utilization of floor space.
By Staff -- Modern Materials Handling, 1/1/1998
Known worldwide for its United Colors of Benetton and many other brands of apparel and accessories, the Benetton Group operates a global distribution network, with over 7,000 retail locations in more than 110 countries. The company faced a common problem-increasing sales and limited warehouse capacity, combined with increasing shipping costs and customer service requirements.At the company's primary distribution center in Castrette, Italy, each working lot represents one single product in the different combinations of size, color, and country of destination. The Benetton garments are folded into plastic bags, which carry a bar code label identifying the Benetton production lot and the product variant.
Maximizing the efficiency of storage and handling procedures at the Castrette production and distribution center topped the list of goals compiled by the company. Arriving at optimal garment volumes per box was an essential element in achieving this goal.
Benetton's Cotton Division worked with a materials handling system manufacturer to devise an automated system to sort products into boxes destined for the retail outlets, and to integrate this process with the management of the production lots.
An automatic system now fills boxes already prepared for the retail outlets by the various production units of the group. Boxes are now taller and hold a larger quantity of goods. This change improved the efficiency of storage, and streamlined handling through a reduction in loading, packaging, and shipping operations.
Central to the operation is a unique multi-level cross-belt sorting system, called a PLUSSORT, which fills hundreds of separate orders during a single large batch process. The new sorting system incorporates an innovative vertical mobility feature for maximum floor space utilization. Handling items at a rate of 13,000 items per hour, the system accurately sorts items within a minimal system footprint, eliminating the need for the traditional manual preparation phase previously carried out in the picking area. The sorter is composed of a continuous train of sorting units or "cells" consisting of small belt conveyors.
Cells are installed on supporting carriers driven along the machine loop by a series of distributed drives. The cells are suspended from the carrier units by means of a telescopic device that facilitates vertical movement to various sort points. Before reaching the induction area, the carrier unit is reset to its original level through a wheel driven by a rising rail.
Bar code labels are produced and applied in-house onto single packaged items. Working batch items are coded by an operator and travel via inclined conveyor belts toward the induction section of the sorter.
The PLUSSORT sorter installed at Benetton sorts packaged garments into 800 locations on four different levels. Each one of the 800 sort points, each housing a removable outlet container, has a lamp to indicate when the container is full and must be emptied. Each also contains an inductive sensor, which verifies the presence of a container, and allows the control system to reactivate the sort point soon after the emptying and packaging phase.
Outlet containers are braced on telescopic guides for ease of removal and access for the packing operation. A mobile cart supports the box during the package operation and simplifies the transfer of the box onto a belt that runs parallel to the outlets. This belt then conveys the boxes to two automatic taping stations, after which the boxes are palletized and transported to the final bar coding and shipping stages at the center.
Benetton has realized many positive results from the new sorting system, including:
- Increased warehouse capacity and decreased shipping costs
- Process flexibility for adept handling of seasonal fluctuations and other throughput issues
- Quality control and error reduction resulting in a higher level of service to retail outlets and other locations
- Higher operator productivity and decreased operator error, fatigue, and injury
- Ability to accommodate future production growth with system expandability.
Benetton has plans to begin a second phase of automation this year.
Sandvik Sorting Systems, Inc. 502-636-1414
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