Summary of Innovation
S&S was an early adopter of an innovative approach to automation. Traditional methods of tote-based automation typically leverage to a large degree fixed infrastructure. S&S saw the value in flexible automation based on goods to person racks and robots that leveraged totes for density and really moved it forward.
In part, due to the flexible approach used with the Geek Plus pop-pick system that was implemented. It allowed them to acquire the value of storage density with the flexibility of mobile racking structures and apply it to deliver operational improvements through the use of mobile robotics in material handling. They then applied innovation to their fulfillment process by leveraging mobile robotics and automated extraction portals. Further, S&S combined traditional conveyor-based automation into the more modern mobile automation workflows using existing technology in a new way to further allow them to improve the picking and replenishment processes.
Innovation Statement
The combination of traditional forms of automation, with modern flexible forms of automation that really drive the innovation for the customer, S&S. Historically, they used a manual operation with hundreds of people driving vehicles through a 1,000,000 square foot warehouse to conduct the picking processes. This solution allows them to drastically shrink their picking footprint and create operational improvements through the fulfillment process.
In addition, with this sort of a system, innovation was leveraged through the application of traditional conveyance and a newly designed system for automating the induction and extraction of totes into a tote-based system.
Applicability
The applicability, taking modern technology into a very traditional business is innovative because it’s helping S&S not only to tackle labor, the labor shortage, challenges in turnover, and challenges that they were facing, but also uses technology and process changes that help them to improve output quality and accuracy.
| Posted Date | 1/19/24 |
| Contact | Nikki Monger |
| Contact Email | nikki.monger[at]koerber-supplychain.com |
| Category | Best New Innovation |