North-south divide pays off
1 min read
Through a supply chain initiative dubbed 'Network of the Future', tissue and toilet paper manufacturer Kimberly-Clark is committed to reducing complexity in its European distribution network to improve service levels, take vehicles off the road and reduce carbon emissions.
As part of this commitment, in partnership with Norbert Dentressangle, the company has established two automated warehouse operations in the UK, located in the north and south, to serve its retail and wholesale customers.
Following a fire at its former warehouse, Kimberly-Clark commissioned a new 160,000 sq ft, 34 m high automated warehouse in Northfleet, Kent. The 60,000 pallet space facility is fitted with double deep racking to 18 pallets high and is served by seven cranes using 196 m of track.
A joint Kimberly-Clark/Norbert Dentressangle project team was responsible for the specification and implementation of the new solution, which was successfully completed on time and within budget.
In May this year, Kimberly-Clark opened a second automated warehouse at Chorley in Lancashire, effectively consolidating the activities of five smaller warehouses in the North West.
Unlike Northfleet however, the Chorley operation occupies an existing, 311,000 sq ft, 15 m high warehouse, so Kimberly-Clark worked with Norbert Dentressangle to design and implement an automated system which was viable within a traditional low-bay warehouse. Pallet capacity in the warehouse was increased by 25% by replacing traditional pallet racking with high-density, ASRS drive-in racking.
Kimberly-Clark's European supply chain director, Peter Surtees said: "While the capacity of our two RDCs is exactly the same, the two sites are very different and we have worked closely with Norbert Dentressangle to identify and implement different solutions to ensure maximum efficiency and space utilisation in each location.
"In both cases, the implementation of an automated warehousing solution has enabled us to rationalise our warehouse footprint and allows us to ship product straight into our RDCs for delivery to the customer, without the need for intermediate storage. This has eliminated spurious vehicle movements, delivering both efficiency and environmental benefits.
"Having a single stockholding for the north and the south has also improved product availability in line with our commitment to service excellence."
