Warehouse consolidation

When the distribution capabilities of climate control technologies manufacturer Walter Meier reached its limit, it turned to TGW.

Growth in e-commerce combined with an expanding product range prompted Walter Meier to invest in a new solution.

The integral logistics concept is based on consolidating Walter Meier’s existing warehouses to form a 12,000 sq m service centre in Luzern, which is designed around the company’s growing requirements. The new cross-docking strategy will enable customer orders to be prepared at the centre, followed by onwards distribution via its own fleet.

The material handling system that TGW designed and installed consists of an automatic pallet warehouse with four aisles accommodating more than 11,000 pallets. In addition, an automated tote warehouse with four more aisles containing up to 33,000 totes will be implemented.

Order picking is carried out via a goods-to-person system that utilises three TGW workstations. This comprises of two goods receiving workstations and a re-pack station at the pallet loop. An order consolidation area with dispatch zone is also connected to a manual warehouse with approximately 4,000 pallet locations, as well as to a shelving rack warehouse with 1,500 storage locations.