BY PETER BRADLEY, EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
SORTATION
equipment&applications
Faced with mounting customer demands for swift order
turnaround and perfect accuracy, swimsuit manufacturer
A.H. Schreiber took a deep breath and invested in an
automated labeling and sortation system.
swimwear maker
takes the plunge
A.H. SCHREIBER MAY NOT BE A HOUSEHOLD NAME, BUT MILLIONS OF WOMEN
and girls know its products. The privately held company is one of the nation’s largest manufacturers and distributors of women’s and girls’ swimwear, producing some 14 million swimsuits
each year under brand names like Badgley Mischka, Beach Native, Delta Burke, and Longitude.
Schreiber distributes all of its swimwear from a 176,000-square-foot distribution center in
Bristol, Tenn., shipping about 900,000 cartons each year to customers throughout the country. “We distribute swimwear to virtually anyone who sells it, from the surfside shop to major
department stores,” says Sandy Nash, the company’s warehouse manager.
For years, the company relied on manual processes to fill all of those orders, literally lining
up cartons on the floor and sending workers around to apply shipping labels by hand. But
about three years ago, it realized that would no longer be enough to keep up with the demands
of one of its largest customers, Target. Like most retailers, Target expects its suppliers to conform to strict specifications when it comes to labeling and delivering shipments to its 26 DCs,
and it requires swift turnaround of even the largest, most complex orders. As Schreiber struggled to comply with all of Target’s demands, its overtime costs soared and accuracy began to
suffer. It was clear that the company was going to have to make some changes.
Man vs. machine
Although the swimwear maker was fully committed to meeting Target’s demands, the
Schreiber team knew it wouldn’t be easy. Schreiber ships a total of eight to 10 trailerloads to
Target a week—sending shipments three times a week during peak season and twice weekly
the rest of the time. Turnaround times are tight: From the time Target sends the Schreiber
corporate office an order, the company has just three days to the ship date. “We receive pick
tickets on Monday and ship Wednesday, or we receive pick tickets on Wednesday and ship
Friday,” Nash says. “We know the destination at that time, but we do not know which DCs’
[orders] will be combined together in a load until later in the process.”
