Nutricia’s factory in Wells, Somerset, producesup to 600,000 jars of three varieties of baby-food every 24 hours. Storing information on all stock that goes into and out the warehouse, Consafe Logistics SattStore system ensures there is always a supply of each variety available to meet demand from the distribution centre.
Installed in December 1998, the systemhandles over 2,000 goods in and out transactions each week and holds details on each ofthe 11,000 pallets of finished products storedin Nutricia’s warehouse.
The system is based on a Windows NT serverand can be accessed by Techlogix Radio DataTerminals (RDTs) specified by Consafe Logis-tics. Linked into Nutricia’s host ERP system, SattStore enables the company to track stock progress through the warehouse from put awaythrough to despatch.
When a batch comes off the production line,its barcode information is scanned by an RDTinto the WMS. This information is then usedby the WMS to track the stock’s progressthrough the warehouse.
Using the information from the barcode,SattStore allocates stock with a particulardespatch area, according to criteria such asproduct variety and the date it was produced.This information is then used to manage andprocess orders from Nutricia’s host system.
“Consafe Logistics SattStore system saves a great deal of time and manpower in running the warehouse,” says Mr Adam Lusby, Operations Manager, Nutricia. “Our forklift operators can use their RDTs to find out where stock is stored, enabling them to quickly put away or pick out items of stock. By keeping a record of all items that go through the warehouse, SattStore ensures we constantly have an updated inventory.”
To ensure that stock is despatched within afew days of entering the warehouse, SattStoreallocates storage space for products on a FirstIn First Out (FIFO) basis. This means that theoldest stock is always despatched first, elimina-ting the risk of stock in the warehouse becoming out of date.
In addition to providing overall stock control,SattStore also enables batches of products tobe directed to quarantine areas ready forquality assessment (QA) checks.
SattStore’s extensive functionality meant littlecustomisation work needed to be carried outto meet the needs of the application.
“SattStore’s established track record in the foodmanufacturing industry made it ideal for thisparticular application,” says Tony Berry,business manager, Warehouse ManagementSystems, Consafe Logistics. “Added to this is the support and expertise that Consafe can bring to a project to ensure it exactly fits the customer’s requirements, both present and future.”
Read more at www.nutricia.com
1999