Dive Brief:
- Fort Smith, AR-based frozen food distributor Zero Mountain's inventory needs were rising but its landscape prevented a typical warehouse expansion. As a result, the company partnered with automator Cisco-Eagle and storage system / pallet rack manufacturer Steel King Industries to find a solution, according to a recent case study.
- Working collaboratively, the three chose a drive-in rack style for its high-capacity storage capability, condensing the number of aisles needed and reorganizing cubes in a more efficient manner than typical selective racking.
- To gain capacity for an additional 600 pallets-worth of cooler storage, the team took advantage of a small, underutilized room in the dock area, where they arranged a two-deep pushback rack around the room's perimeter.
Dive Insight:
Inventory management is about more than picking and loading: warehouse design and the technologies within facilities can lead to significant capacity or efficiency benefits.
In a way, the case study shows a successful partnership between a solutions provider and a warehouse with needs. More importantly, though, it shows that technology upgrades allowed Zero Mountain to increase capacity without investing in more real estate.
Whether in need of more space or efficiency, proper design can make the difference — although sometimes it takes bringing in an outside agent to spot inefficiencies.
