The expectations towards a working fresh food supply chain can be very different when looking at it from either an operator's or a customer's perspective.
Food retailers demand logistics systems that are able to handle a wide range of different tote sizes more flexibly, with faster order cycle times, and at the same time ensure a high degree of ergonomics based on the requirements of temperature-controlled areas.
Another module in WITRON's successful product portfolio within the fresh food environment was developed together with the Spanish food retailer Mercadona. WITRON's patented Box Order System (BOS) not only fulfills high expectations in terms of product handling, but also sets new standards in the fresh food environment with regards to flexibility, efficiency, throughput and ergonomics.
The Box Order System (BOS) solution has a modular design. Every module consists of one replenishment crane and four picking cranes - the so-called Box Picking Machines (BPM).
After the receiving process, the single-item tote box stacks are separated from the receiving pallet and then directly stored into the pick front through the replenishment cranes. A special feature of the system is that store-friendly tote picking is carried out dynamically by means of the newly developed BPM crane, featuring a lightweight telescopic fork.
As well as single crates, the Box Order System (BOS) is capable of dealing with a number of load carriers adapted to the customer order - full tote stacks, partial stacks, or single stacks - which can be removed in a fully flexible manner from the rack. In addition, the built dispatch units are automatically palletized, stretch-wrapped, and provided for dispatch as double-decker pallets just before shipping.
Compared to conventional warehouse logistics, WITRON's BOS excels in the fresh food logistics through high cost-efficiency, error-free, store-friendly order picking, product-gentle handling and maximum pick quality, as well as fully-automated storage and picking in one system.
For further information, visit www.witron.de
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