Warehouse automation increases productivity for Asahi by 250%

Dematic has installed an automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS) at Asahi Beverages’ Heathwood distribution centre, to improve operation efficiency.

Asahi produces and distributes alcoholic and non-alcoholic products across Australia and New Zealand, and has a number of distribution centres located across Australia. Operating across multiple locations, the company uses manual forklifts for block stacking, which presented many disadvantages and challenges.

“We previously had a very labour-intensive system in place, with every truck that came in having to be unloaded by a forklift. We then had to receive the paperwork manually, check the pallets manually, move the pallets into the storage location and then do all that in reverse to pick them,” said Nathan Lucinsky, Manager of Heathwood Distribution Centre.

 Image credit: Dematic

High bay racking at the Asahi Heathwood DC is 13 levels high and 34 bays deep, necessitating an automated storage and retrieval system that extends six pallet positions deep on either side of the six cranes, accessed by satellite carts. The Heathwood distribution centre has approximately 31,500 pallet storage positions.

“After assessing Asahi’s warehouse requirements, we knew that the best solution for them was the six-deep satellite ASRS,” said Dominic Figliano, Project Manager of Dematic. “The ASRS we built for Asahi uses Dematic’s newest and fastest crane, the 1200 H1. This is also the tallest satellite system we have built in Australia,” Figliano said.

The automated system eliminates the manual handling of pallets, which is claimed to create a productivity boost of 250% and improvements in worker safety by not having to use as many forklifts.

“We’ve now automated our warehouse processes and only use manual processes where it makes sense,” Lucinsky said. “In fact, most of our pallets won’t be touched by a human until they get to our customer DC.”

Alongside the ASRS, Dematic also equipped the Heathwood distribution centre with integrated third-party equipment including skate docks, label applicators, a pallet inverter and a stretch wrapper machine.