What needs to be done if order picking and shipping cannot keep pace with the growth? The fast solution: increase the capacities of the conveyor system. What if, however, the existing conveyor system capacity is not yet fully utilized? Install more workstations. Furthermore, do the business transactions predict further increase in order volume? Then the storage capacity is increased to match the efficiency of the conveyor system. Planning for sustained growth was at the heart of the design of the logistics system which SSI SCHAEFER has developed and im-plemented for Future Electronics, a global distributor of electronic components with worldwide corporate headquarters located in Montreal, Canada. By farsighted design of the logistics sys-tem in Singapore to accommodate further growth of Future Electronics, the forseen plant exten-sion could now be implemented and the throughput increased by 20 percent.With an extensive service offer Future Electronics has firmly established itself in the first league of the value added and distribution service providers during the last four decades. With 169 branches in 42 countries, the company is a world-wide distribution and marketing partner for manufacturers of semiconductors and electronic components. The service provider achieves more than a third of its turnover via logistics partnerships with its customers. The components are mainly merchandised from stock. In the last few years, Future Electronics has equipped three central distribution centers for the regions of America, EMEA and Asia. At every world location, the consignees receive their orders within a maximum of three days. The basis for that is the Inventory Management System (IMS) developed by Future Electronics as well as efficient, flexible warehouse technology. “For Future Electronics the logistics is one of the most important competitive factors”, emphasizes Martin Bates, as Senior Director Operations at Future Elec-tronics responsible for the region East Asia. In all three central distribution centers we count on the most extensive warehousing of electronics components in the industry and a series of logis-tics strategies with which we avoid production restrictions at the consignees due to delivery bottlenecks.“ A concept which generates success and continuous growth. The distribution cen-ter in Singapore, responsible for the sales region Asia, is a prime example.In 2008 SSI SCHAEFER was awarded the contract from Future Electronics for the design and equipment of the Material Handling Equipment in the new Future Electronics distribution center for Asia in Singapore. On the basis of the customer requirements, SSI SCHAEFER has planned and implemented a flexibly expandable, sustainable logistics system.The material flows are based on a tote conveyor system with a throughput of 1,200 totes per hour as well as four fully-automatic Universal Buffer Systems (UBS) with a total of around 1,800 tote positions and an operative capacity of 800 totes each at the storage and retrieval serve as a buffer and consolidation warehouse. Fourteen processing positions for a 100% quality assur-ance and order processing as well as a manual order picking warehouse, which provides 25,000 racks for the goods on a two-floor platform system, covered the requirements for the foreseeable growth development in the Asian central warehouse of Future Electronics in 2008. “An optimal solution with an attractive cost-performance ratio”, Martin Bates justifies the contract placing to the intra-logistics specialist and sums up: “Already in the first months after the imple-mentation of the distribution center we were able to reach our objectives. The new system tech-nology has increased our throughput by 40 percent.”Since the completion of the project, Future Electronics was able to acquire well-known custom-ers and fast growing contracts especially for the Asian region. Within three years company growth and appearance have increased in such a way that the quality assurance and pick work-stations are used to 100 percent capacity during the peak week of the month. The order throughput could no longer be increased with the existing capacities. The service provider de-cided to immediately implement the extension options already intended in SSI SCHAEFER’s planning layout. At the end of 2010 SSI SCHAEFER received the order – hardly six months later the plant extension was handed over in due time. “We have already designed the capacity of the conveyor system to a higher throughput from the beginning”, explains Dieter Gelowicz, Pro-ject Manager SSI SCHAEFER. “Due to the implementation of eight further processing stations, the order throughput could now be increased and the amount of the totes circulating on the conveyor system could be significantly reduced. For the temporary storage of the increased amount of simultaneously processed orders we have increased the buffer capacity by the instal-lation of an additional UBS.”Over 50,000 different items with an entire inventory of nearly 400,000 PID’s (product identifier) are permanently available in the distribution warehouse in Singapore, where 1,700 orders –altogether approximately 6,800 picks– are processed every day and forwarded to shipping. “The supply of extensive inventories is the purpose of the distribution model of Future Electronics”, explains Bates. “We do not fear having products on stock. The availability is rather a strategic advantage for our customers to ensure access on the necessary components at any time.”In Singapore, the products and components from the goods receiving are stored in the racks on the two order picking levels. Lifts attend the second level. The random storage is carried out with the help of shuttle vehicles.For the order processing the order picking is controlled via remote terminals whereby batch orders are issued from the IT-system to the commissioners which process one aisle each. It is directly commissioned in the tote. The order allocation is done via scanning of tote and item codes. The installed conveyor system leads the totes via a conveying pegtop to a total of 22 quality assurance workstations. After every item has been examined there, the totes are stored in one of the now five Universal Buffer Systems (UBS). Vertical conveyors move the totes to the storage level of the UBS. The UBS serves as a buffer warehouse for order totes or as a ship-ping buffer until the respective orders are completed. “An order can consist of up to 100 differ-ent totes", says Bates. “In particular such large orders have significantly increased in the last months.“With the plant extension from SSI SCHAEFER there are now no longer delays in their process-ing. “With the fifth UBS the throughput per hour of the systems is now around 1,050 totes in storage and retrieval", explains Project Manager Gelowicz. “This is near the optimal capacity of the conveyor system. Two of the eight additional processing stations are furthermore equipped with a buffer section of up to 40 totes, so that there are flexible intermediate buffers available for the shipping process of larger orders."The order totes stored in the UBS are automatically consolidated upon request or after comple-tion of the order picking in the system and are transferred as completed orders via the conveyor system to the 18 processing positions in the shipping zone; four of them have the intermediate buffer, the other 14 stations have a buffer area for six totes. At the shipping workstations the items are repacked in cardboard boxes, matched with the delivery notes, shipping documents and, if necessary, filling materials are added. Finally closing, weighing and palletizing of the shipping boxes is completed.“At the plant design packing and shipping were consequently uncoupled from the operative processes in the commissioning", explains Bates. “This offers a high flexibility at the process design and the production processes. With the takeover of the distribution center Singapore we were already able to report a throughput increase of 40 percent in 2009 compared to the previ-ous performance figures. With the now completed plant extension by SSI SCHAEFER we were able to once again increase the efficiency by 20 percent. Counting on SSI SCHAEFER has paid off with the delivery of a flexible, expandable solution. The current plant design should cover the growth of Future Electronics in the region Asia for the time being."Should you require any further information, please feel free to contact:Central press office SSI Schaefer Germany:Katharina Kunz, Fritz Schäfer GmbHPhone +49/2735/70-395, E-Mail: katharina.kunz@ssi-schaefer.dePress office SSI Schäfer Noell:Desiree Kreisel, Marketing AutomationPhone +49/9334/979-541, E-Mail: desiree.kreisel@ssi-schaefer-noell.comCompany profileSSI Schaefer is recognized as the world’s leading supplier of warehousing and logistics systems. Services offered range from sophisticated design to equipping facilities with products from the company’s comprehensive product range, and implementing these projects as the general contractor. The range of competencies under the SSI Schaefer umbrella name forms the basis for developing market specific, multi-purpose storage systems targeting market requirements and for determining heterogeneous solutions in the field of intra-logistics. The product range of SSI Schaefer/Fritz Schaefer GmbH, Neunkirchen, headquarters of the international SSI Schaefer Group, encompasses the core area of warehouse equipment, including workshop, plant and office equipment, plus a variety of waste collection and recycling containers. Typical products are storage and transport contain-ers, shelving, pallet rack, cantilever and mobile racking systems, which form the basis for manually operated or fully automated storage systems. Fritz Schäfer founded the company in 1937, and today the company has offices around the world. In Germany alone, SSI Schaefer is represented by 12 offices. SSI Schaefer Noell GmbH, D-Giebelstadt, complements the product and services port-folio as a specialist for sophisticated logistics systems. Acting as general contractor, the company has completed over 300 logistics systems worldwide. Capabilities range from system planning and consulting to the implementation of turnkey systems and customized after-sales services. Salomon Automation GmbH, A-Friesach, Graz, provides specifically tailored solutions from a single source for all types of logistics systems – manual and fully automated. The company supports its customers throughout the lifecycle of logistics systems, in-cluding planning, implementation and maintenance.SSI Schaefer Peem, GmbH, A-Graz, specializes in modular order picking technology. The company designs, develops and manufactures highly dynamic, small parts con-veyor systems as well as automatic order picking systems, including the customized software.
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