Crown meets the challenge
Happy Birthday FTD – the logistics industry sure has changed over the last 25 years … and will continue to change. The drive in the industry to do more with fewer resources will carry on, despite taking a short recessionary break. Companies will constantly be on a journey, investigating new methods of improvement in productivity and ways to reduce cost.
Not that long ago, narrow-aisle warehouses were something
special – now they are standard practice
For the last 25 years Crown New Zealand has always looked for opportunities to work closely with customers to define and develop materials handling systems that maximise space and improve productivity. The challenges facing the New Zealand logistics industry are quite unique, so the ability to deliver costeffective customised solutions is important.
Firstly there are physical challenges to overcome. These include meeting the demands of servicing a diverse, sparsely populated distribution channel built on seismic plates and spread over two islands.
To gain improvements in payback, companies are investing in more specialised warehouse equipment and systems to maximise productivity. Balancing the trade-off between the benefits of specialisation while maintaining a degree of business flexibility can also add complications to the decision-making process.
Reliance on technology
Another factor contributing to the change challenge is the embedment and ever-increasing reliance on technology to improve performance and reduce costs. This reliance on technology is not just restricted to warehouse management systems and data interchange improvements. Productivity gains and performance enhancements of warehouse and logistics equipment owe much to their advancement to software integration technology.
For example, even the most basic LPG or diesel-powered forklift is loaded with sophisticated engine management hardware and software to meet emission and safety standards. Take this technology evolution a step further and apply it to high-lift narrow-aisle reach trucks, and a distribution company can quite easily and reliably increase its storage capacity by up to 40 percent. Not that long ago, 10 m lift, narrow-aisle warehouses were something special; now they are standard practice to stay in the game.
As a leader in materials handling solutions, Crown sees that a systems approach is required to meet the specific requirements of it customers and to synchronise with the evolution of the materials handling market. Finding the best solution involves linking customer needs with excellent product support, as well as considering flexibility to meet future challenges.
The use of technology in machinery is also opening up new and exciting opportunities for customers to collect, analyse and integrate data, both inside and beyond their materials handling fleet, providing increased knowledge about productivity and efficiency.
Fifty years of innovation
For more than 50 years, Crown has focused on delivering innovative products and solutions that can be trusted and relied on. World-class product design is a central driver for Crown, impacting on reducing product downtime, improving service responsiveness and the ability to deliver a cost-effective product support infrastructure.
Crown’s systems approach to design also enables it to take an integrated viewpoint when developing customer solutions. “It’s not only about assessing a customer’s current needs, but also considering the customer’s long-term plan specific to their materials handling requirement,” says Crown managing director, Mike Fogarty.
This total integration and systems approach is further enhanced by Crown’s partnering arrangement to represent SSI Schaefer Storage Systems in New Zealand. “Schaefer is the world’s largest logistics systems supplier, and via Crown’s nationwide distribution network and experience, Crown is bringing a totally new and innovative approach to the New Zealand logistics industry,” says Mr Fogarty.
By combining innovative mobile and fixed-storage solutions with real-world knowledge and experience, Crown gives companies the opportunity to explore advanced and more efficient materials handling and storage methods that could lead to a much greater bottom-line profit, proving you can sometimes have your cake and eat it.
Once again, Happy Birthday FTD! To discuss warehouse solutions for your business, contact the team at Crown: www.crown.com or email mike.fogarty@crown.com