All distribution centers are a composite of hundreds or thousands of component mechanical and electronic structures and devices that must work in concert. In a successfully functioning DC they must continue to work flawlessly well after going live. For Redcats UK, a retrofitted national distribution center has had 6 years to prove its operational mettle, and the verdict is in -- the $20 million DC, packed with state-of-the-art material handling equipment systems technology, is coming up with a 100% clean slate of operational efficiency. Designed and integrated by Dematic, it is setting a benchmark for efficiency in catalog DC operation.
The world''s third-largest player in home shopping, Redcats has a portfolio of brands that are leaders in their respective markets. With operations in 18 countries, including the United States, the company has developed a multichannel distribution system that combines catalogs, e-commerce, and specialty stores.
For 90 years the company relied almost exclusively on its Empire Stores flagship catalog. Then, in the mid-1990s, Redcats launched three additional French big-book catalogs to its UK audience, where they quickly took off. But the UK DC, built in 1973, with its dated picking, conveying, and packing systems, couldn''t handle the company''s growth -- quite aside from the limited capacity within the main dispatching warehouse in the north of England. Catalog operations were located in completely separate facilities, using different delivery networks.
Updating an Outdated Facility
"We knew what we wanted to achieve with our DC capability because we conducted a detailed investigation," says Andy Parker, head of Warehouse Planning & Engineering for Redcats UK. "We wrote systems and operating specifications, then we went to the marketplace looking for a supplier big enough to provide for us up to 30,000 items per hour output, which is pretty fast, it is high volume.
"We analyzed statistics on our brands, on the stock turn, stock holding, projected growth, etc.," continues Parker. "As the real growth exceeded the projected growth, we realized we had a serious issue that needed to be resolved with our DC.
"We originally reviewed 12 potential suppliers, and invited them in to look at our project," he says. "We then tendered to five companies and ultimately decided upon Dematic. They visited our site many times as they worked through the tender process.
"They wanted more than to just provide a sortation system, which is what we had considered originally. They suggested integrating backwards into our picking systems and forwards into our dispatch systems. Dematic also wanted to design the picking conveyor systems, vertical elevators, and the feed and buffing systems that will batch up the work and feed the sorter machines. Dematic integrated backwards and forwards within our designs.
"They also used computer-generated operational research models," Parker explains. "This helped to validate the designs which we produced, and also helped locate areas of weakness, or bottlenecks, in the designs, and allowed us to develop the system so there was room for future growth."
The Redcats design called for building out the DC to an 807,000 sq ft developed area, which involved expanding the existing building to accommodate production for all catalogs.
Integrating the Latest Technology
The Dematic system integrates some of the most sophisticated material handling technology, such as two high-speed cross-belt sorters and an integrated conveyor network into the picking system. Cross-belt equipment offers state-of-the-art sortation solutions for high-volume distribution facilities. The cross-belt units provide precision sortation by using mini-belts on each carrier, allowing for tighter centerlines from chute to chute and resulting in a much more compact layout that occupies half the space of a tilt-tray sorter, for example.
The new picking system occupies three floors of a new extension built onto the existing building. Goods are picked from shelving and a barcode picking ticket is applied; then they are placed into tote boxes, which are put onto the take-away conveyor system. A bar coded label is also applied to the tote boxes, which are routed to a 10-lane conveyor buffer area, where they are scanned and automatically sorted and marshaled into batches.
To maximize throughput potential, each of the sorters'' induct stations incorporate luffing conveyors, which feed goods either onto the upper or lower carrier or the sorter, according to the item destination.
The sorter rotates at speeds of up to 315 ft per min, directing items to the appropriate sorter chute in the packing area and assembling the items needed for a particular customer to be delivered by courier. At every point the system is designed to accommodate growth -- for example, the four induct platforms were built with a total of 14 induct lines, which can accommodate a future total of 20 induct lines as needed.
The sorter control system put in place by Dematic then runs all of the MHE systems and integrates with Redcats'' own warehouse management system.
Putting the Focus Where It Should Be
"Redcats is currently processing about 18,200 items per hour," says Jonathan Priestley, head of Business Development for Dematic UK. "The system can handle up to 30,000 Items per hour. Bringing the multicatalog operation onto one site creates operational efficiencies, increased site security, and reduction in intersite transportation.
"With the new system, the rates of picking increased considerably," Priestley continues. "They now attain pick rates of 260-300 items per hour, depending on whether they are picking singles or a collated batch with two or more items in a parcel. This rate provided Redcats with significant efficiencies and cost savings.
"Because Redcats can now put most of their deliveries into the courier network, they have made major cost savings in delivery," he concludes. "And their new system processing capability has increased their numbers of next-day deliveries."
Now that the new DC has proved its operational effectiveness, Redcats can focus on extending its brands and increasing its prominence in the UK market.