O'Reilly Automotive
Systems Integrator: Siggins Company, Inc. (N.
Kansas City, MO)
Keeping the Commitment
Streamlined
conveyor system helps O’Reilly Automotive distribution center keep its
promise of next-day delivery to the retail stores.
 O’Reilly
Automotive started out 45 years ago as a small family-owned business in
Springfield, Missouri. Today, the publicly traded company is one of the
country’s largest retailers of automotive aftermarket parts, supplies,
and accessories.
Fueling that growth has been an aggressive
acquisition program over the years. O’Reilly Automotive now has more
than 730 retail stores across a ten-state area stretching from Illinois
to Texas. A network of 12 distribution centers supports these stores.
O’Reilly views its distribution centers as a
source of competitive advantage. The mission of the DCs: To supply the
stores with exactly what they need, when they need it—while keeping
inventory costs to a minimum.
 That
mission is being expertly carried out at the company’s distribution
center in Seagoville, Texas, just outside of Dallas. The 225,000
square-foot DC was once a warehouse for another auto parts company. When
O’Reilly came into the Dallas-Ft. Worth market almost two years ago,
it greatly upgraded the facility—adding new racks and shelving
equipment, upgrading the dock area, and introducing advanced computer
controls. Another key component was the installation of a new conveyor
system from Hytrol.
“In
designing the distribution center, a great deal of emphasis was placed
on the reliability of the systems and equipment,” says David McCready,
O’Reilly’s director of distribution. “This was extremely important
to us because we commit to our stores that if we receive their order by
5 P.M., the parts will be in their stores by 8 the next morning.”
McCready reports that the Seagoville distribution center is consistently
meeting that commitment to the 130-plus stores in its service area. That
performance is particularly impressive considering that the DC handles
more than 120,000 SKUs.
Smooth from Start to Finish
O’Reilly Automotive teamed up with Siggins Co. to
create a streamlined and efficient order-flow system that incorporates
proven conveyor and sortation equipment.  Kansas
City-based Siggins is an experienced systems integrator and a
distributor of Hytrol equipment.
The order-fulfillment process begins in the two
picking modules, each of which has three levels. One module, which uses
Burroughs Shelving equipment, is dedicated to the slower moving
products. The other module (shown in the accompanying diagram) is
designed for the fast-moving items. This carton flow module uses an
Interlake racking system and has an overhead trash takeaway conveyor
(Model TH) to keep the work area free of empty cartons.
On each level of the modules, orders are picked
into totes that rest on gravity conveyors on either side of a
live-roller takeaway unit. The totes are placed on the takeaway conveyor
when picking in the zone is completed. Bar codes applied during the
order-picking process are used to direct the totes as they move through
the distribution center to the shipping docks.
 A
series of incline belt conveyors (RB) transport the totes from the
picking modules up to the merge level. There they connect with live
roller conveyors (ABEZ) that have Hytrol’s unique EZ Logic feature.
These photo-eye controlled, zero-pressure conveyors effectively manage
the accumulation and release of the totes as they move through
three-to-one merge tables.
The single line of powered conveyor then moves the
orders toward the shipping end of the building, makes a 90-degree turn,
and then runs in parallel with a segment of the recirculation loop.
These two parallel lines then merge into one zero-pressure accumulating
line as the totes are readied for induction into the high-speed
sortation system (SC).
A blow-through belt induction system uses speed
changes to space totes prior to sorting. Orders are diverted down one of
eight shipping lanes according to store destination. If a lane is full
or if the scanner cannot read the bar code, the tote stays on the main
line for recirculation. The sortation system is engineered to handle as
many as 50 totes a minute.
At
the shipping docks, the completed orders are staged on gravity lines for
stacking onto pallets. The pallets are unitized via stretch wrap and
then loaded on the trucks for delivery to the stores. From initial
picking to staging and loading, the operation is simple,
straightforward, and efficient.
Ready for Expansion
Reflecting on Seagoville’s first 18 months of operation, the
management team at O’Reilly Automotive is pleased with the results to
date. “The materials handling systems, coupled with our WMS (warehouse
management system), has allowed us to slot, replenish, pick, and ship  product
far more effectively,” says Distribution Director McCready. “The
Hytrol conveyor equipment has been a big part of that. It has performed
reliably and met all of our expectations.”
Looking ahead, there’s every indication that
O’Reilly’s growth pattern will continue. For that reason, the
company designed the Seagoville DC with expansion in mind. In fact, a
100,000 square-foot expansion program currently is underway.
O’Reilly
is working closely with Siggins Co. to ensure that when order volume
increases, the conveyor system will keep pace. Then, as now, the central
mission will remain the same: timely and accurate replenishment of auto
parts to all of the retail stores.
The Dallas-area Distribution Center
The schematic shows order flow from the tri-level carton-flow picking
module. When the orders are
completed at each level, they are  moved
on incline belt conveyors to the merge level. There they proceed through
a three-to-one merge and are transported toward the shipping area. The
totes move on live roller conveyor around a 90-degree curve enroute to
the sortation system. They run in parallel with totes being recirculated
and then pass through another merge before entering the sortation
system. The high-speed sorter diverts the totes down one of the eight
shipping lanes where they are staged, palletized, and loaded for
delivery. On average, the distribution center processes 40,000 line
items a day.
Snapshot of the Operation
Company: O'Reilly Automotive
Facility: Dallas Area Distribution Center
Location: Seagoville, TX
Size: 225,000 square feet
Employees: Approx. 300
Director of Distribution: David McCready; DC Manager - Jeanetta
Redden
Product handled: Aftermarket auto parts
Throughput: 40,000 line items/day (average)
Types of conveyors: Belt,
live roller, zero-pressure accumulating (EZ Logic), high-speed
sortation, trash takeaway, gravity
Controls: Allen-Bradley SLC-505
Conveyor supplier: Hytrol Conveyor Inc., Jonesboro, AR
Systems Integrator: Siggins Co. Inc., North Kansas City, MO
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