Garment Distributor Maximizes Cube Space

System Overview

The Challenge

Double-digit growth caused this national distributor of specialty garments to run out of space. Operations were becoming increasingly difficult due to crowding of inventory. Heavy reliance on temporary help, due to the seasonal nature of the business, was costly and difficult to manage.

The client wanted to make use of all available cube space to avoid moving or having to expand existing buildings.

A second priority was to reduce reliance on expensive temporary help during the busy season.

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The Customer’s View

Teaming with the Siggins Design group, we were able to retrofit our facility to greatly reduce a heavy reliance upon temporary help during our busy season. Virtually the entire material-handling system was taken down, and then put back together. Through careful planning, during the new system’s implementation, we maintained normal shipping operations. The design increased the overall productivity of our distribution operations by more than 40 percent.

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The Solution

A multi-level picking module system, specifically designed for both boxed and hanging garments was designed to handle current inventory, reduce crowding, and provide additional growth. Ceiling height challenges were addressed by hiding ceiling joists in storage media.

The new picking module, serviced by powered and gravity tri-lane conveyor, allowed for concentrated and specialized zoned picking. A sortation cluster in the packing area consolidated packing operations.

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