TGW builds new high bay warehouse for AutomationDirect

Photo by TGW Logistics Group GmbH

In the early summer of 2014, the industrial automation company Automation Direct entrusted TGW with an extensive logistics installation at their headquarters in Cumming, Georgia (US). Now, the second phase has started and TGW is fulfilling the customer’s wishes by implementing a new high bay warehouse for thousands of SKUs of high-technology automation products.

AutomationDirect (AD) is a privately held Georgia company that started operations as PLCDirect in 1994 and quickly grew into a major force in the industrial automation industry. In 1999, PLCDirect became AutomationDirect, a privately held subsidiary of JTEKT, a multi-billion dollar global company. The company has now become a major name in the industrial automation market and was the first company to use a direct sales catalog and to successfully utilize the internet for the sales of industrial products.

TGW is deploying a shuttle-based Goods-To-Person (GTP) strategy. The TGW solution will be constructed in AutomationDirect’s existing 40 feet (12 meters) clear height building. The automated system will consist of a single aisle of double-deep STINGRAY shuttles storing nearly 5,300 totes. In addition to the shuttle aisle, the system will provide a receiving pallet conveyor system, a two-level picking mezzanine plus 10 work stations, a carton handling system, carton transportation conveyors tying into an existing three-level pick module and a shipping sortation system, etc.

Phase II has already started

Automation Direct’s positive yearly business growth and their ability to continually meet and exceed their customers’ requirements and expectations necessitated the expansion and automation of their current operations and systems. TGW has demonstrated that they are a solid company with whom Automation Direct can partner. With a proven reputation and automated systems capabilities, TGW will provide the current and future expansion and automation for the customer to grow each year, and allow them to remain in their existing site location for the next five to ten years.

From the new distribution centre, more than 20,000 SKUs will be distributed directly to customers. TGW will implement a high bay warehouse comprising one aisle of Stingray shuttle, one aisle of Magnus, and a front-end carton and tote conveyor system that will connect it with Warehouse C shuttle and work stations, which will follow a goods-to-person approach. The pallet system is the primary pallet connection between Warehouse C and D. It uses a transfer car to bring new product received in Warehouse C into the Magnus crane and out to two workstations. This will seamlessly expand to three Magnus cranes and an additional workstation in the future.

For more information, please visit http://www.tgw-group.com.

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