From Manual to Automated: Ariat's Transformation in Apparel Warehousing

Webinar Description

Join Exotec and Hy-Tek Intralogistics for an in-depth look into the warehouse automation journey of Ariat, a global leader in performance apparel. Discover the innovative automation strategies and cutting-edge technologies that propelled Ariat to new heights of efficiency. Learn how they achieved an impressive picking rate of over 1,650 lines per hour with just seven employees, while successfully transitioning 80% of their picking labor to more productive, value-added tasks.

Presenters

• Matthew Hardenberg, Vice President of Distribution at Ariat
• Michael Fiorito, Senior Sales Executive at Exotec
• Derek Miller, Director of Robotic Solutions at Hy-Tek Intralogistics

Webinar Q&A

Below are answers to the questions asked during the webinar. Feel free to contact us if you have additional questions.

1. Can you talk about the reliability of the Skypod system?

Via Matthew Hardenberg – This is one of the things I think you guys undersold to me—the reliability is great from the perspective of your team’s engagements. We’ve got the Exotec team in multiple locations, proactively monitoring the system. We’ve also partnered with Hy-Tek on physical maintenance. So, when there’s an issue with the bot itself, it drives over to the maintenance cage, and the Hy-Tek team is there to step in and fix what needs to be done on the ground. Your commitment to uptime is rock solid, and we appreciate that we maintain it and consistently hit the agreed-upon SLA levels.

2. What is one lesson that you learned operationally that you would pass along to others looking to implement a Skypod system?

Via Matthew Hardenberg – One of the big ones is that we didn’t spend enough time considering the downstream impacts of these changes. For example, how is it going to affect our PAC operations? What will it look like at the sorter? We designed around the idea of what a tote looks like coming out of the pick mod, and we assumed everything else would kind of stay the same. But once we started increasing the speed of things, we realized we needed to think a lot more about line balancing. That’s one of the big takeaways.

3. You mentioned you may be storing cases on trays within the system in the near future. How will that work?
Inbound cases are placed on a conveyor, either by a person or robotic arm. A tray is automatically placed underneath the case before it reaches a Bin Interface, which automates the entry and removal of bins and cases on trays into the Skypod system. For a 3D view of the process, click here.

4. How much weight can the robots hold?
Skypod system robots can carry loads up to 66 lbs. Our bins are 17.5 x 25.5 in. They are available in three different heights – 8.6 x 12.6 x 16.5 in. For increased storage density, these bins can be partitioned into 2, 3, 4, 6, or 8 compartments using removable dividers. The Skypod system also enables you to store cases on our trays, eliminating the necessity for decanting out of existing cartons if they can fit the footprint. These trays are suitable for carton sizes up to 23.5 x 15.5 x 15.5 in.

5. Can you explain how Ariat handles order consolidation across apparel and footwear in an automated environment?
The Skypod system manages storage and picking for apparel items, while an Autonomous Guided Vehicle (AGV) system handles footwear. Orders from both systems are consolidated via a conveyor that runs between the two systems and feeds onto a unit sorter for final processing.

6. What fire suppression is required within the tote area? Behind you we see around three stacks of totes, how many totes are in a stack width, depth, height? What size totes are available and can one system handle different size totes?
To comply with FM Global regulations, fire suppression is required every 9 feet. For our most common bin height of 12.6 inches, this means fire suppression is needed every seven levels. We also use vented bins that are 8.6 inches and 16.5 inches tall. The Ariat Skypod system includes 73,000 bins stacked 25 levels high. The Skypod system can store both cartons of various sizes on trays and uniform-sized bins. However, all bins must be the same size.