REWE Group, a German food retail company, has partnered with Cimcorp, a specialist in intralogistics solutions, to implement a project for an automated fulfilment system for fruit and vegetables at the REWE logistics centre in Oranienburg, approximately 50 km north of Berlin.
Cimcorp’s intralogistics solution provides reliable order picking for fresh products such as fruit and vegetables in plastic crates. The agreement also includes a comprehensive customer support contract with 24/7 system support for high availability of the system.
"Fruit and vegetables are an extremely important commodity group for REWE customers, but characterized by heavy physical labor in the warehouses, which makes it difficult to recruit personnel. Cimcorp offers a unique solution to automate fruit and vegetable picking and alleviate physical labor for warehouse workers and thereby ensure the reliable delivery of fruit and vegetables to stores also in the future." says Lars Sibel, Director SCM and Logistics at Rewe Markt GmbH.
Safe and sound through automation
Labor availability continues to be a major challenge for warehouses and distribution centers around the world. The physical strain that comes with handling heavy items day-in-day-out in manual warehouse operations is a significant workplace hazard. This is where the automated solution from Cimcorp comes in to automate the handling of heavy items.
“REWE expects a mature technical solution that facilitates the work of employees and offers customers consistently high delivery quality in terms of on-time-in-full deliveries,” says Torsten Prag, Logistics Manager for Region East, REWE Group.
Automation can alleviate ergonomic and labor issues, enabling operations to run faster and safer. Cimcorp’s order picking solution takes care of the the heavy lifting, leading to a safer and more productive work environment.
Automation ensures reliable deliveries
Automation in the distribution center is pivotal to meet the demands of REWE’s customers for order accuracy and freshness. REWE aims to increase automation, especially at its existing sites, to ensure rapid delivery in times of increasing labor challenges.
“We believe that the new fulfilment system will guarantee our customers high delivery quality, even in times of labor shortage,” adds Prag. “However, we also want to examine what other opportunities arise as a result of faster order processing.”
Sustainability in action
Automation and strategically planned intralogistics can enable businesses to become more eco-friendly. For REWE Group, sustainability is a fundamental element of its business strategy. The retailer is aware of its responsibilities and committed to sustainable activities.
Cimcorp’s order picking solution will help REWE’s supply chain and intralogistics to become greener and more sustainable. The service agreement includes maintenance and will extend the lifetime of the system. In addition, a faster supply chain enables longer shelf life, leading to less food waste.
For more information:
Cimcorp
Tel: +49 1525 92340 46
https://cimcorp.com/