Medical device wholesaler expands shipping warehouse
Pharmacy wholesaler MEDI-SPEZIAL has commissioned AM Logistic Solutions to set up an AutoStore system at its headquarters in Vechta. With the system, the EU importer wants to increase his space reserves and expand the 24-hour dispatch.
The focus of MEDI-SPEZIAL lies in the field of parallel sales of medical products that the dealer imports from the European economic area. He then repackages them in a certified process according to DIN 13485:2016, the manufacturer standard for medical devices, and sends them to pharmacies throughout Germany. MEDI-SPEZIAL has more than doubled its storage volume for this range in the past two years. Due to the dynamic growth, the wholesaler’s newly built warehouse was filled to capacity far too quickly. In addition, software solutions for route-optimized manual picking have also reached their performance limits. That is why the managing partners Rainer and Robert Christiansen have now decided in favor of warehouse automation. With the AutoStore, which the integrator and general contractor AM Logistic Solutions will implement in July 2022, they will double the storage density of their shipping warehouse and thus gain further growth reserves in the new building.
Largely system-capable range
Around 75 percent of the products that MEDI-SPEZIAL sells fit perfectly into the standard containers of the AutoStore system. From next summer they will be stored in 16,800 bins in the facility, which can be expanded to 23,000 bins in the future. Eight AutoStore robots in combination with three carousel ports ensure fast order picking. Two additional frames for an upcoming expansion are already being integrated during implementation. MEDI-SPEZIAL receives two conveyor ports for incoming goods, which can also be supplemented by another one. In this configuration, the system enables around 250 container deliveries per hour. A special feature of the wholesaler: The system is installed in a temperature-controlled hall area that is kept at +20 degrees Celsius all year round – with a slight fluctuation range of ± 2 degrees Celsius. To ensure this, the AutoStore is also equipped with temperature monitoring technology.
Accelerate picking
MEDI-SPEZIAL expects the automatic storage system to speed up picking in particular. In the current configuration of the manual warehouse, the routes during picking had become too long. In addition, the ABC structure of the product portfolio could only be mapped to a limited extent via the storage area. The retailer therefore expects an additional boost in efficiency from the automatic ABC sorting of the AutoStore system. With the installation of the system, MEDI-SPEZIAL is also expanding its shipping area by four to a total of ten packing stations. “With AutoStore, we will be able to process our shipping orders faster and reduce cut-off times. We want to pass this advantage on to our customers and expand our 24-hour service,” explains Managing Director Rainer Christiansen.
“We are glad that we have found an experienced integrator in AM Logistic Solutions who will install the AutoStore system for us during ongoing warehouse operations,” emphasizes project manager Christoph Mäkel. “Our team, led by project manager Christian Burrer, organizes the procurement of materials for all required components precisely and at an early stage, so that installation can take place quickly and with the least possible disruption to shipping,” reports Thomas Lemke from AutoStore sales at AM Logistic Solutions.
The AutoStore warehouse from MEDI-SPEZIAL at a glance
- 16,800 containers (expandable to 23,000)
- 8 robots
- 3 carousel ports (expandable to 5)
- 2 conveyor ports (expandable to 3)
- up to 250 container deliveries per hour
