Stretchwrapper keeps the pace

At Canadian Tire, high-speed stretchwrapping is the key to safe, economical, and secure tire shipment.

By -- Modern Materials Handling, 8/1/2000

There's no rest for the weary at Canadian Tire's Brampton, Ontario mega distribution center that receives and ships thousands of tires daily. There's also no time for inefficient handling of picked tires in the shipping department.

Fortunately, a fully automatic, high-speed rotary-tower stretchwrapper has proven itself to be the best method of shipping tires at the warehouse because it handles each load at a rate of about 1 min/ bundle.

"Stretchwrapping is safe, economical, and secure," says Brian Petrie, manager of cost control.

Production at Canadian Tire's warehouse has definitely improved. Before the stretchwrapper, the company was wrapping tires with what Petrie describes as "an out-of-date stretch-wrapping machine" that was slow, or wrapping tires by hand, an even slower method.

The rotary tower stretchwrapper also allows Canadian Tire to free an employee for each shift, saving the cost of an employee over two shifts. Very little down time also saves on maintenance costs.

On a daily basis, brand name tires are purchased in bulk and delivered to the company's warehouse site, two buildings that measure 1.4 million sq. ft. each, among Canada's largest.

Once the tires arrive, they are scanned to update inventory records. The information is added to the computer database that tracks individual orders from the company's retail outlets.

The tires are then sorted to fill each store's order. Tires are arranged for shipping in bundles that range in size and weight from 10 to 36 tires, depending on the size of the tires involved.

The stretchwrapper can handle loads as large as 48 in. wide by 48 in. long by 80 in. high with a weight up to 4,000 lbs.

Tires are placed on a plywood board, wheeled to a lift table, and hoisted 2½ ft. to a conveyor, which feeds the load to the stretchwrapper. The tires are wrapped from top to bottom within a minute and sent on their way. Individually wrapped packages of tires are then shipped out, either by truck or rail, depending on their destination.

"It's a busy operation, one that depends on accurate data and continued high performance from our equipment," says Petrie.

"On the few occasions we aren't using the stretchwrapper on tires, then we're able to wrap other packages safely and securely."
Orion Packaging Systems, Inc.
901-427-2080