Tech Data Corp.
Hytrol Distributor: Curlin Inc. (Tampa, FL)
Conveyors Help High-Tech Distributor Keep
Pace With Market Boom
Streamlined conveyor system overcomes old space constraints, keeps
Tech Data responsive to customer demands.
 When
you're operating in a fast-paced industry like Tech Data Corp., you need
fast, flexible systems that allow you to respond quickly to dynamic
market conditions. And Tech Data operates in one of the fastest-paced
businesses of all-computer technology. The Clearwater, Fla.-based
company is one of the world's leading distributors of computer equipment
and peripherals-everything from monitors, disks, and cables to the
software itself. Its broad customer base includes value added resellers
(VARs), wholesalers, and retail outlets.
Tech Data operates six distribution centers in the United States as
well as in Canada and France. These centers are charged with supporting
sales growth across an expanding product line. But one of these centers,
the facility in Atlanta, had been struggling to keep pace with that
demand. The main problems: the building was too small and the operation
too manually intensive.
The solution: Build a modern 207,000 square-foot distribution center.
The new Atlanta regional distribution center, which became operational
in August 1997, serves customers in and around that fast-growing part of
the Southeast. It features sophisticated computer controls, a carefully
designed layout that facilitates order flow from product infeed to final
shipment, and a highly integrated conveyor system.
Challenged by Space Constraints
 Tech
Data prides itself on fast, efficient customer service. The
distributor's goal is to ship every order, placed by 5 p.m. on the day
it is received-even if the order comes in as late as 6 p.m. But space
and operational constraints sometimes posed an obstacle to achieving
that objective.
The old Atlanta facility was only 50,000 square feet-not nearly
enough to support Tech Data's double-digit growth. Space for the
critical packing operations was cramped and tight. And there was hardly
any room for staging incoming product at the receiving dock or outgoing
orders in the shipping area. In fact, during peak periods Tech Data
sometimes had to resort to off-site warehousing of goods.
Perhaps most problematic of all, the old facility had only one
conveyor line going to the shipping area. This meant a lot of manual
handling along with an excessive amount of "walking around" in
an already congested area. The net result: wasted motion and low
productivity.
Working with Curlin Inc. of Tampa, a systems integrator and
distributor of Hytrol conveyor equipment, Tech Data effectively
addressed all of these issues. The team designed a modern, efficient
distribution center with ample room for all receiving, staging, putaway,
storage, packing, and shipping activities.
The new Atlanta center is designed to expedite the order-fulfillment
process from the moment merchandise is input into the building. A series
of Hytrol conveyors, which include high-speed sorters and a "sawtooth"
merge, move orders from the three main picking areas, to the packing
stations, and then to the shipping lanes. The new system marks a quantum
leap in productivity for Tech Data's Atlanta operations. The
distribution center now can process more than 3,500 cartons a day.
"Tech Data has built one of the most successful systems we've
been associated with," says Dave Frey, vice president of sales for
Curlin Inc.
Streamlined Order Flow
The order-fulfillment process begins when Tech Data's centralized
customer service center at its Clearwater headquarters electronically
transmits orders to Atlanta. Pick tickets then are generated for each of
the facility's three storage areas: (1) a three-level pallet-flow
module, where the fastest-moving products are kept; (2) a ground-level
storage area for full pallet loads; and (3) a mezzanine storage area for
small, non-palletized items.
 The
operators check for completeness and accuracy as the orders rest on
zero-pressure accumulation conveyors in the picking areas. Once an order
is filled from the various storage locations, they determine whether it
can move directly to the shipping area or whether it requires further
packing and consolidation. Orders that include multiple, smaller items
typically move in totes for ease of handling and loss prevention.
Orders travel on live roller and belt conveyors from the picking
locations toward the packing and shipping areas with incline and decline
segments used to connect the mezzanine. Prior to reaching the packing
stations a sawtooth merge conveyor consolidates four incoming lines into
one.
The orders then proceed to a high-speed QS-1 sortation
"shoe" conveyor. Divert shoes move diagonally across this
conveyor to physically push the order onto skatewheels that lead to the
zero-pressure accumulation conveyors at the packing stations. Hytrol's
EZ-Logic "photo-eye" feature keeps space between the orders on
these lines and prevents any damage to the product.
Orders are consolidated, manifested, and labeled at the packing area.
From here, they move on live roller conveyors to another high-speed QS-1
sorter. This unit swiftly directs the completed orders to the correct
shipping lane. Computer controls give Tech Data the capability to sort
the lanes by carrier (UPS, Federal Express, LTL, and so forth); by
priority of the shipment (overnight or second-day); or by customer zip
code.
For a company like Tech Data where service is the only business,
having a fast and flexible materials-flow system like the one at its new
Atlanta distribution center is not a "nice-to-have" add on.
It's an absolute competitive necessity-to accommodate both the growth
already experienced and the growth expected to come. In fact, if the
high-growth curve continues, Tech Data has the option of building a
duplicate 200,000 square foot distribution center on land adjacent to
the new building.
Tech Data's Regional Distribution Center
The Atlanta center has three storage areas-a multi-level pallet-flow
module for fast moving items; a full pallet section on the ground floor;
and a mezzanine storage area for small, non-palletized products. The
mezzanine area (see cutaway illustration is connected by incline and
decline conveyor segments. Orders move from the picking areas to a
sortation convyeor that diverts them to the appropriate packing station.
After the orders are manifested and labeled, they move to another
sorter, which sends them to one of six shipping lanes. The system
is fast and efficient. Orders recedived by 5 p.m. are shipped that
day.
A Closer Look At The Distribution Warehouse
Company: Tech Data Corp
Facility: Regional Distribution Center
Location: Atlanta GA
Size: 207,000 square feet
Employees: 78 (three shifts, five days a week)
Distribution Manager: Steve Harris
VP Development & Facilities: Joy Perkins
Product Handled: Computers, peripherals, and software
Output: 3,500 cartons per day (average)
Types of conveyors: Horizontal power (minimum pressure and zero
pressure, high speed sortation, inclines, skatewheel, sawtooth merge
Conveyor Supplier: Hytrol Conveyor Inc., Jonesboro AR
System Integrator: Curlin Inc., Tampa FL
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