For more than a century, Osram Sylvania has been lighting the world. Osram''s automotive lighting division, headquartered in Hillsboro, NH, is the world''s largest provider of automotive light sources and the only U.S. manufacturer of auto lighting.
Recognizing the importance of supporting continued growth while maintaining smooth operational flow of its 250,000 sq ft facility, the company decided to acquire space for new manufacturing equipment from its tool/spare parts stockroom -- but without hampering the stockroom''s functionality and level of service.
This meant that the stockroom would undergo fundamental changes. The original stockroom was 3,300 sq ft, which was sufficient to house all the parts and tools needed to produce the 1.5 million units shipped each day from Hillsboro. However, according to the new plan, the size of the stockroom would be reduced to 1,500 sq ft -- less than half the original size. It was vital that somehow the stockroom store more parts in less space.
Paul Belliveau, Osram''s spare parts stockroom manager, explains, "It was necessary to gain more manufacturing space without expanding the building, and the only logical choice was to reduce the size of the stockroom. However, this posed a challenge, since the number of items stored in the stockroom would not be reduced. On the contrary, due to the increase in manufacturing, additional items were to be stored. We sought a storage solution that would house more items in less space. Fortunately, we knew exactly where to turn to solve this dilemma: Lista International Corp."
Lista International, a manufacturer of storage and workspace solutions, located in Holliston, MA, had outfitted Osram''s original stockroom with its modular drawer storage cabinets and provided additional cabinets for over 30 years. "We have been working with Lista for over three decades and have been extremely satisfied with their products. When I learned we needed to downsize the stockroom, I didn''t hesitate to call them. I knew they could get the job done," states Belliveau.
Osram had stored approximately half of their parts inventory, specifically their fastest-moving parts, in existing Lista cabinets. The remaining half was kept in a mix of commercial shelves, racks, pegboards, and even on the floor. To consolidate their expanded parts storage, Lista recommended that Osram take full advantage of the facility''s ceiling height. Osram decided to build a custom mezzanine system comprised of Lista modular drawer storage and shelf cabinets.
Level I of the mezzanine system was designed to house small parts. Forty new Lista uniform-height drawer cabinet housings were secured together to store all high-usage, high turnover parts and tools. To complete Level I of the system, new shelf cabinets were stacked above and fastened to the drawer cabinets, allowing for storage of heavier, bulkier items.
Osram recycled its older Lista drawer cabinets and shelf cabinets for cost-efficiency reasons, and transferred them to Level II of the mezzanine system. These older cabinets, purchased at different times to meet changing needs, varied in height -- making them unsuitable to serve as the ground floor of a mezzanine. This rearrangement of cabinets took advantage of the stockroom''s ceiling height, increasing available parts storage.
To avoid downtime, Lista retrofitted the new Level I cabinet housings with fully loaded drawers from the original cabinets, resulting in major cost savings, as the drawers are the most costly components of the cabinets. The ability to move drawers without unloading the parts provided additional value to Osram, as it did not interrupt daily operations or decrease productivity. The fully loaded drawers offered easy access to parts during the construction phase of the system. "The fact that we were able to retrofit old and new Lista storage systems together is a testament to the durability and flexibility of Lista storage equipment," continues Belliveau. "Even though our stockroom became outdated, the Lista storage cabinets did not."
Level II of the mezzanine system consisted primarily of Lista''s original drawer cabinets and shelf cabinets. Instead of purchasing new cabinets for the upper level, the older cabinet housings were recycled and outfitted with new drawers, making the entire project more cost efficient. "Recycling the old Lista cabinets was a tremendous cost and time savings for Osram; it was ideal since that storage equipment was still functioning as well as it had 30 years ago. The new drawers were then incorporated into the older housings, for use on the upper mezzanine Level II. Lista''s solution not only compensates for the loss of floor space in the stockroom, but also allows us to utilize the cabinets we already had," said Belliveau.
Lista''s modular drawer storage cabinets provide 50% more storage capacity than conventional shelving, enabling Osram to improve organization and accessibility. The storage system''s new drawers were selected after Lista carefully surveyed Osram''s present and future storage needs. Lista offers drawers ranging in height from 2 1/8 in. to 15 in. so items of various sizes can be efficiently stored. Each drawer can be divided with partitions to create organized, custom compartments that can be easily reconfigured at any time. Additionally, Lista''s drawers extend 100% from the housing to allow for full accessibility to stored items, including items stored at the rear of the drawer.
In addition to improving space utilization and organization, the new Lista mezzanine system enables Osram to better manage its inventory. All drawers are labeled for convenience and accessibility; all parts inventory is maintained in a computer database. As a result, Osram can locate a tool or part with ease. Moreover, the Lista system streamlines order fulfillment. Lista designed the mezzanine system to incorporate an adjacent parts counter, allowing Osram employees to place and pick up orders. An employee simply creates a purchase order for a part, and the stockroom service attendant picks the part from the drawer to fulfill the order. Parts and items are extremely organized and accessible within arm''s reach, resulting in time savings and improved productivity.
Osram Sylvania has realized tremendous benefits from its new and improved Lista storage solution. Belliveau praises the Lista system: "We have used Lista cabinets for 30 years and have never had a problem. They are quality built with flexibility and growth in mind. The fact that they could recycle and retrofit the cabinets sets them far above anyone else in the industry.
"Lista''s ability to custom-design storage solutions was integral to the success of this project. They were the only choice for us. We''ll see them in another 30 years when we need more cabinets!"