How Eder-Goodman Doubled Throughput with Conveyor Handling Company & Hytrol

A Tight Window for Overnight Distribution

For Eder-Goodman, maintaining its nightly operating cycle is critical. With approximately 90 salespeople transmitting orders throughout the day, the warehouse operates on a tightly defined schedule. Orders close at 6:00 p.m., routing begins by 7:00 p.m., picking typically starts around 9:00 p.m., and trucks begin loading between 10:30 and 11:00 p.m. for delivery the following day.

 As Eder-Goodman prepared to consolidate three separate distribution operations into a single facility, the company needed a material handling solution capable of supporting significantly higher volumes while maintaining next-day delivery performance.

“The biggest challenge was trying to get those three companies with that inventory and the volumes that they were looking at out the door,” said Anthony Peruta, Sales Engineer at CHC. “They were running just one truck at a time in the former system they had, but now we wanted to run multiple trucks and handle the volume in a timely manner.”

The existing operation could no longer provide the capacity Eder-Goodman needed as the company grew.

“The system worked for what we needed it for, but the merger and acquisition were happening, and we needed a system that could produce more cases per hour and be able to load more than one truck at a time,” said Adam Casella, Warehouse Manager at Eder-Goodman.

Building a New System Without Stopping Operations

Working alongside Eder-Goodman and its consultant, Conveyor Handling Company designed a solution focused on increasing throughput while allowing warehouse operations to continue throughout installation.

That presented another challenge: Eder-Goodman still needed to fulfill orders every night while the new material handling system was being installed.

“The biggest consideration we had was to allow them to continue running on their legacy system while we were putting the new one in," explained Seth Karambelas, Project Manager at CHC. "In the beginning, we even rerouted one of their lines to make room for the new pick module so they could continue loading trucks while we were putting the new system in.”

Connecting Five Miles of Conveyor

The new system combines Hytrol conveyor technology, sortation, accumulation, warehouse controls, and AutoStore integration to support Eder-Goodman's overnight fulfillment process. A two-level pick module and ProSort 1431 help move and sort products throughout the facility, while the warehouse control system (WCS) coordinates orders across the different areas of the operation.

Orders are released in waves to both the AutoStore and conveyor picking operations. Products from the two areas then merge into a unified material flow before traveling through transportation and accumulation conveyor to a mezzanine-level sortation area. From there, the ProSort 1431 directs products to the appropriate truck-loading locations.

“We’re a wave-based picking system,” Casella said. “When the waves are in order at the pre-merge, they're sorted properly to release from all three lines. From those three lines, they're sent to the sorter, where they'll get sent down to the truck, and that whole process, they always stay in the correct order that they were put in on the conveyor system itself.”

The system was designed around a 30 case per minute throughput goal, which Peruta said it is successfully meeting.

Doubling Distribution Throughput

Since implementation, the system has enabled Eder-Goodman to double throughput while maintaining the overnight operating cycle required to support next-day delivery.

“Prior to this system, a 7,000-case night was huge for us. To get that done was a small feat in a single night. Now we do those numbers on our slowest nights, and we can go all the way up to 14,000 cases right now and feel comfortable about getting it done in a reasonable amount of time.”

— Adam Casella, Warehouse Manager at Eder-Goodman

Beyond meeting Eder-Goodman’s current volume requirements, the system provides additional capacity to support future growth.

“We have given Eder-Goodman a system that allows them to meet their productivity goals with room to expand in the future if they acquire other companies or get more orders,” Karambelas said. “We've helped increase their workflow and are continuing to try and help with that as well.”

A LONG TERM PARTNERSHIP

 The relationship between Eder-Goodman, Conveyor Handling Company, and Hytrol goes beyond the initial system installation. CHC continues to work with the Eder-Goodman team as its operation evolves and new opportunities for improvement emerge.

“CHC has been great for us,” Casella said. “We still talk to them monthly, if not weekly, on updates and things we may want changed or things that are going well that we've changed in the past. So, it's been a great experience.”

For Smith, that ongoing relationship is an important part of what made the project successful. “The people that are doing the work for you are almost just as important as the quality of the product you bring. If you can put them both together, it's a total home run and, and for us, it's been that.”

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