Material Handling

Technology Needs

By: Said Yamin

      A well-planned and well-developed material handling system can save production and distribution time, improve quality and reduce production costs, all of which translate into larger market share and profits.

      This is especially true in consumer goods retail, particularly in the garment and fashion industries. The secret is making the system fit with the retailer.

      At one time, retailers did the majority of material handling, receiving goods in bulk, unpacking them, sorting them and moving them onto the retail floor. This was generally a slow and labor-intensive process. It depended on paperwork and human intervention for necessary data and information. Today, advancements in technology and science have created new methods of speeding the material flow.

      There are fast track, put and rapid pick systems, discrete packing and unit sorters. Unit sorters come in various forms – crossbelt, flat and hang sorters, tilt-tray and bomb bay. To decide which method is right for them, companies must become familiar with the choices and where they are best applied.

      In a fast track system, a shipment is directed to an area equipped with workbenches and/or workstations. Before the shipment arrives, all tickets, tags and hangers (if needed) are prepared and made available at the work areas. The associates will open the cartons/cases and empty the contents onto the bench/workstation As they finish each item, they put it back in the same carton/case and send it to the shipping area. This system completely eliminates sortation processes.

      A put system creates groups of stores within the distribution chain. The groups, based on common characteristics such as shipping route or priority, are called waves. At the beginning of the put system process, the bulk quantity of each SKU for all stores in the wave is transported to a designated area. An operator places a carton of the SKU on a gravity roller and pushes it, passing each store’s location. As the operator reaches a store’s location, he or she removes the store’s required quantity from the bulk container and places it into a store container. As containers fill, they are...

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