About the company and the project
The Maspex Group is the manufacturer of such renowned brands as Tymbark, KubuΕ, Lubella or Εowicz. The company’s products are available in over 80 countries. This is the story of success that began in 1990 in Wadowice and has continued up to now.
Maspex has over a dozen of modern production plants and its own distribution centres.Β Apart from products quality, it is logistics that is found behind the company’s success. Today we are visiting one of the company’s distribution warehouses that is located right next to the plant in Olsztynek.
The distribution centre in Olsztynek is a high-bay warehouse with the capacity of 32,000 pallet spaces, with 11 stacker cranes, 12 shuttles supporting the cranes and over a dozen of robots in the goods mixing area. Warehousing operations are realized at several levels, where specialized solutions for specific processes have been prepared. The automation part has been designed and implemented by the System Logistics company. The Qguar WMS system that integrates logistic processes with the automation infrastructure has been supplied by the Qantum Qguar.
Robert Szelugowski β Director of Warehousing Processes in the Maspex Group
One of the reasons or indicators pointing towards the need to pursue automation consists in our clients’ requirements that have been getting more and more complex, more and more difficult to meet and demanding higher commitment. Olsztynek is an example of a plant, where we have started to automate these processes. Hence this automated warehouse, the robots that, in an automated process, prepare mixed products that you may find on shop shelves.
Delivery from production
Pallets with juices produced in neighbouring shop floors are transported via a system of conveyors to the high-bay warehouse.Β Each pallet has a label containing detailed product information that is required for the WMS system to efficiently manage the strategy of allocating warehousing spaces. Pallets are transported with an automated truck up to the stacker crane of a particular rack, where the crane inserts them in a specific space. From this place articles will be directed to successive warehousing processes that are efficiently managed by Qguar WMS.
Zbigniew Janik β Regional Director of Warehousing Processes in the Maspex Group
Thanks to this state-of-the-art system we are capable of meeting the requirements of our clients, especially the biggest chain shops.Β At any moment, we are capable of reacting in a flexible manner to market needs. The main processes influenced by this enhancement are: the picking process, where the mix preparation time has been reduced, the delivery zone and the shipment consolidation zone.
Mixed pallets
Even before starting goods issue process , Qguar WMS manages automatic preparation of mixed pallets, referred to as sandwich mixes.Β Different articles with the same packaging unit size that are included in one order are grouped and optimized to achieve maximum level of pallet filling.Β Sandwich pallets are consolidated from uniform pallets by palletizing robots.Β Consolidated mixed pallets are sent back to the warehouse, where they wait to be shipped. This is one of numerous processes that has been adapted to recipients’ needs thanks to automation and the WMS system.
Robert Szelugowski β Director of Warehousing Processes in the Maspex Group
The greatest benefit that is, one can say, priceless for us, consists in the capability of quick reaction to varying market conditions and the predictability of operation of consistent and flexible systems, which give us the possibility of customizing shipments in precise compliance with the specific needs of each particular client.Β This would be very difficult, or even impossible, without the WMS that manages the entire process β from goods reception to their issuing.
Flavour sets
Individualization of processes also covers preparation of four-flavoured sets of mousses.Β Special robots pick single cartons from uniform pallets delivered from the warehouse and put them on four conveyor lines.Β Then, other robots open each cartons and transfer it to the mixing automaton that prepares four-flavoured sets. Consolidated mousse sets are closed in new cartons which are assembled by another robot into a new pallet that is directed back to the warehouse. This process is fully controlled and managed by the Qguar WMS system and its state-of-the-art algorithms.
Zbigniew Janik β Regional Director of Warehousing Processes in the Maspex Group
Thanks to implementation of the state-of-the-art system, we have improved the quality of client support, reduced the order realization time, improved the comfort of employees’ work on consolidation paths and issuing paths. We have become more flexible in reacting to market needs.
Picking
The WMS system manages all the elements of the picking process by ordering automatic equipment to transport ordered goods to the loading zone.Β Uniform pallets and sandwich mixes are sent there directly from the high-bay warehouse. Orders consisting of different-sized packaging units are consolidated in a different zone, where operators consolidate goods picked from gravity flow racks. These pallets are also transported automatically to the loading zone. By rationalising even the tiniest elements of picking and consolidation, Qguar WMS considerably increases the efficiency of the entire warehouse.
Robert Szelugowski β Director of Warehousing Processes in the Maspex Group
At present, we are capable of loading over 25 thousand pallets per 24 hours in all our locations and to store almost 700 thousand items of our products, finished goods, raw materials and packaging units in all our warehouses.Β Thanks to process monitoring and efficiency ensured by our WMS systems, we are capable of optimizing the process to eliminate unnecessary actions, unnecessary movements.
Shipments
Goods prepared to be issued wait for reception in the vicinity of ramps. The synchronisation of picking with transportation and the management of the warehouse time windows are additionally supported by the Qguar mobile TMS and Qguar Dock Scheduling systems. Goods are loaded with a forklift onto a semitrailer, while the operator registers successive loading stages thanks to a scanner and radio communication with Qguar WMS. The achieved efficiency of the centre is the result of advanced technologies, adaptation of processes to market needs and flexible cooperation with suppliers.
Zbigniew Janik β Regional Director of Warehousing Processes in the Maspex Group
Cooperation with the system supplier was the crucial aspect during implementation of the WMS system. Thanks to the system supplier’s flexibility we were able to configure the system to match the needs of the Maspex Group and of our clients.
Future of Logistics
The future of logistics lies in the ability of adapting to the business model of one’s own company, as well as in the art of responding to consumers’ expectations.
Robert Szelugowski β Director of Warehousing Processes in the Maspex Group
This world keeps changing and priorities are changing. Therefore, we must keep up with these developments. We do all this to make sure our products appear on your tables as soon as possible.
Zbigniew Janik β Regional Director of Warehousing Processes in the Maspex Group
Thanks to state-of-the-art IT solutions and robotisation, we will be able to keep supplying the best products on the food market. We believe that we will maintain the status of the leader in our line of trade.
Quantum has been cooperating with Maspex since 1999 and Qguar systems support logistics of the company in many countries and numerous locations.Β We are proud of our partnership. We wish continued success to Maspex.