VELOCITY VIDEO CASE HISTORY
Conair force
MOST CONSUMERS ARE FAMILIAR WITH THEConair brand of hair-care products, which include hairdryers, curling irons, and Scünci hair ties. But the companyalso manufactures and distributes a range of householdand personal care products. Among them are the Cuisinartand Waring brand kitchen appliances and Interplak dental-careproducts.
With its broad product lines, the company has diversified supply chains, including distribution to retailers and wholesalers, anddirect-to-consumer fulfillment. In the past, some of this distributionwas handled internally, while third parties took care of the rest, including distribution for Conair’s repair-parts business.
In 2017, Conair decided to bring all of these diverse channels in-house and to consolidate productsfrom some other buildings to reduce overall inventory and turn orders faster. It alsowanted to add capacity for its fast-growinge-commerce business.
Conair contacted DMW&H to help itdesign and build a new 850,000-square-footfacility in Glendale, Ariz. The multichanneloperation now fills most of the company’sdirect-to-consumer orders nationwide andalso handles West Coast distribution for retail customers. The companyadditionally brought its replacement-parts inventory back in-house fornational distribution.
A TRUSTED PARTNERKey to the new facility is an automation design that replaces manualprocesses found in the previous buildings.
“It’s not possible to use a manual process when you are handling
the volumes that we have to turn around within 24 hours,” explains
Stephen Alley, director of Western operations for Conair. “DMW&H
heard our needs clearly and provided the solution that offered capabil-
ity and flexibility. It was the proposal that we felt the most comfortable
with.”
The automation includes some 10,000 feet of conveyor that winds
through three large pick modules and other processes. Within the
modules, workers equipped with voice-directed technology perform
piece picking for retail customers and the booming e-commerce busi-
ness. Voice allows flexibility and speed for most of the 250,000 picks
performed each day in the 24/5 operation. In all, the facility ships an
average of 30,000 cartons daily.
CONAIR IN CONTROLInside the facility, the Manhattan warehouse management systemteams with the DMW&H-supplied Shiraz warehouse control system tomanage the fulfillment processes and to provide the data necessary formanagers to direct labor where it’s needed most.
“We know right away when we activate a wave what zones have the
most picks. That’s where we put our resourc-
es,” explains Thomas Phillips, shipping man-
ager. “So, we are always being proactive as
far as where we’re moving resources, all the
way to the dock.”
Elsewhere in the building, full cases are
picked directly to conveyor belts. Another
area handles the fastest-moving items, with
voice directing selection of items to carts.
Items eventually travel by conveyor to packstations and special labeling machines. The labelers allow the facilityto drop-ship e-commerce orders received from Conair’s retail partners.The label machines print logos and other markings specific to eachretailer, making fulfillment seamless to the end customer.
“This building was built with growth in mind,” adds Alley. “The
conveyor system and the automation were built to be done in sev-
eral phases, and the building as well was built not with the current
demands in terms of space and business in mind, but to be larger than
the immediate need.”
Since the facility opened, DMW&H has already expanded the mate-
rial handling systems. Two years ago, an “Early Out” conveyor and the
third “Pick-n-Pass” pick module were added. And last year, the shipping
sorter was extended to provide another 10 diverts, including an addi-
tional “Value Added” conveyor line.
To see a video of Conair’s distribution center in Glendale, Ariz., go to dcvtv.com and click
on Channel 2. For more information on DMW&H, go to www.dmwandh.com.
A DC VELOCITY SPEED CHALLENGE
A new automated distribution center has the power and flexibility to speed
orders for multiple customer channels.
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