It's nothing but high gear for auto parts retailer Pep Boys at its newest auto parts distribution center in Chester, N.Y. An important part of the facility's success is due to efficient use of returnable plastic totes. Products are picked into the 45,000 totes and then shipped directly within the containers to company stores.

Two sizes of totes are used in Chester. Both have a 16 x 24-inch footprint designed to cube easily onto a standard 48 x 40-inch pallet. They vary only in height at 9.6 and 14 inches. In contrast, the other six Pep Boys distribution centers utilize traditional 21 x 15-inch totes.

'Our totes get a lot of abuse,' explains David Schneider, Pep Boy's director of industrial engineering. 'We began looking at alternatives because we wanted totes that would have a longer life than the ones we were using. The new totes are made of durable plastic resin and the snap on/snap off replacement lids add to their life. We're definitely seeing less damage to the new totes than our other totes.'

An advantage of using two sizes of totes is that it helps to control packing weight. Some items, such as air filters, consume a large amount of tote space but are very light. On the other hand, spark plugs are small but heavy. A traditional tote filled to capacity with spark plugs would be too heavy to lift. Not filling it fully would waste space during shipment.

'Now we can get better cube utilization while building loads that are not excessive in weight,' says Schneider.

The new totes also feature a molded hinge rod, which is stronger than the wire hinge used on the totes used in the other DCs. This allows Chester to securely lock the tote lids when they are used to transport high-value items.

Pep Boys based much of the design of its pick modules in Chester so that the totes could be used for direct product selection. The totes are staged on gravity conveyors positioned at knee level while picks are completed. Most selections are sequenced so that the tote will contain items intended for a specific aisle within the store.

Full totes are then conveyed, sorted and palletized. Since they are designed for a standard pallet, there is no overhang. This has reduced damage, improved handling, and provided more stable loads.

Each tote is labeled with a family product group label that includes the store number. Upon arrival at the store, the tote is taken directly to its designated family area of the store for unloading. Empty totes are gathered and reverse-stacked for a return trip to the DC.