Packaging & Labeling

The Rapid Packing Container, a new design for the cardboard box invented by two current students at the Albert Nerken School of Engineering, claim the new box design will “revolutionize the cardboard packing industry” as it is more environmentally-friendly, quicker to pack, and easier to open, store and recycle.

How well do you know the different types of corrugated cardboard? If your answer was “I didn’t even know there was more than one type,” you probably don’t work in the packaging industry. For those of us who aren’t sure how to tell the difference between C-flute and Double wall, here’s a handy guide on what different types of corrugated is commonly used.

With environmental impact concerns and process optimization primary considerations for the supply-chain environment, companies are making strides in using the minimum amount of packaging at the lowest possible cost to meet their sustainability goals.

With On Demand Packaging, a technology-enabled corrugated box production process becomes part of the material flow.

On Demand Packaging system is demonstrating that packaging can meet consumers' expectations for functional improvements, including a demand for less packaging material and better product protection.

Reading more than one barcode at a time is a challenging application for many manufacturing and material handling engineers. In these applications there is a need to read multiple codes of the same symbology as well as multiple codes of mixed symbologies within one field of view (FOV). Even more difficult is reading one or more codes on multiple sides of a product to verify that the codes match or to output both sides’ read results as one piece of...

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.

With a wide selection of styles, rue21 was growing rapidly, opening eight to 10 stores per month. With more than 750 stores in more than 45 states, they needed to cost-effectively improve operations to support not only their existing stores, but also the hundreds of planned retail stores.

Augusta engaged FORTE to develop a long-range strategic plan that as manufacturing within the facility was phased out, the storage and picking capacities in the distribution operation would expand in phases.

FORTE designed and implemented a new 255,000 sq. ft. distribution center in Jackson, Tennessee. After a WMS needs analysis, vendor evaluation and selection, the material handling system was integrated with the WMS utilizing FORTE’s Automation Director™ WCS.

FORTE developed a new pick-by-wave system with an automated print and apply station. A new U-shaped induct conveyor moves the cartons through a scanner and down one of three divert lanes directly into a truck.

FORTE planned, designed and implemented an expansion to the Cranbury distribution center, including process development, material handling systems design and technology integration, for increased capacity and capabilities to support the growth in the direct-to-consumer channel.

Blame it on the Internet. Blame it on Amazon. Whatever the reason, there is no debate that shoppers have different expectations today than in the past and that retailers are being forced to rethink how they interact with shoppers and the distribution center is in the middle of a transformation in the way retailers interact with customers.

Our full case order picking systems apply varying levels of warehouse automation based on the requirements of the application. Optimizing your picking processes, these solutions minimize your labor requirements, reduce the amount of floor space required for storage, improve ergonomics and eliminate errors, all while increasing the productivity and efficiency of your operation.

Larry Sweet of Symbotic and Chris Ray of Hartness International presented their work in robotic applications of material handling in distribution centers covering the historical applications, the market drivers that are challenging these approaches and the emerging software and mobile robotic technologies that are attempting to solve these problems.

Westcoast Warehousing turned to Bastian to automate and improve their picking process. After learning more about Westcoast Warehousing's operation, light-directed picking was chosen as the best solution to improve productivity, reduce errors, and decrease employee training time.

Oz Development joined the UPS Ready Program in 2004 and is now a UPS Ready Strategic Technology Provider. Since then, we have OzLINKed over 15,000 happy users. All of our products are designed, built and supported right here at Oz; therefore, if you call us, you’ll be sure to get the right answer the first time!

Oz Development, a provider of OzLINK, a cloud-based product that integrates and automates the order management process, announced their promotion to Strategic Alliance within the UPS Ready Program.

Staples, Inc. the world’s largest office products company and second largest internet retailer, announces the launch of new packaging technology nationwide that customizes delivery box sizes to each order. Staples “Smart-size” packaging, developed by Packsize International, brings more convenience to customers in every delivery order and improves supply chain sustainability and efficiency.