FORTE Helps Maui Jim See Their Distribution Operations More Clearly

The Challenge
Maui Jim offers their fans high-performance design and developments in frames and lenses. A resulting cult-like following created a growth rate of nearly 20% per year.

The acquisition of an additional full line of sunglasses and goggles furthered the need for increased picking capacity in their less than 100,000 sq. ft. distribution center (DC).

Maui Jim’s “Aloha Spirit” permeates their culture and that high level of commitment to their employees was the driving factor to identify other areas of potential improvement to ensure an efficient operation with the right tools in place.

The Solution
FORTE provided an Operations Assessment to identify improvement opportunities within Maui Jim’s DC. The primary focus of the assessment included the pick line, material flow and layout, warehouse management system (WMS), and distribution processes.

FORTE provided a prioritized list of dozens of improvement opportunities across all main DC functions and highlighted two main areas for specific enhancement. Number one, expansion and reconfiguration of the pick line to support future growth, pick efficiency and replenishment.

And number two, creation of an automated take-away conveyor system from the manifesting stations to free up the necessary space to expand the pick line. The
assessment also identified the need to evaluate the capabilities and configuration of the existing WMS to determine its ability to properly support the growing distribution operation.

The Result
FORTE delivered sets of prioritized recommendations based on cost and benefit as well as the time required for their deployment. Maui Jim has begun the expansion of the pick line to accommodate their SKU growth and extended the life of their current facility.

Maui Jim has also kicked off an initiative for a focused WMS evaluation and gap analysis via distribution center process mapping to ensure that the long-term needs of their growing distribution operation can be properly supported.