Goodbye Roll Pallet. Hello Dolly!
A new transit packaging system designed by Arca Systems for Boots is set to revolutionise the way goods are carried from the warehouse to the retail store.
The system will make roll cages and transit containers a thing of the past. They will be replaced by a modular range of stacked containers wheeled on a specially designed dolly. Containers can be easily taken into the store as shelves are replenished, still stacked on the dolly or carried separately to the shelf. Once empty, they can be collapsed and stacked back on the dolly for return to the warehouse.
Building on their success with Boots, Arca is now talking to other retailers about how the system can improve the efficiency, safety and flexibility of their supply chain operations.
The Arca system comprises stackable and foldable crates in various sizes and a unique dolly which can be moved without mechanical handling equipment. The dolly has a 800 x 600mm base and two integral inertia reel safety belts which are simply extended from the dolly base and clipped shut. The result is a stable and secure load carrier.
The unit is easier to move than the traditional roll cage and requires little or no maintenance. It should help to reduce injuries in the warehouse. According to the Health and Safety Executive, one of the five main causes of accidents in the food and drink industry is the pushing and pulling of roll cages.
Other advantages of the new dolly include removing the need for shrink wrapping and its subsequent disposal, a low deck height which makes it easy to load and stable, and an easy clean design. Also, product picked in cases can be loaded directly onto the dolly and strapped in the normal way, eliminating intermediate containers and increasing space utilisation.
Arca managing director Tim Ansell said: “Working with Boots we have been able to develop a Eureka solution which should bring tangible benefits to the whole of the retail sector. Those lines of empty roll cages taking up storage space at the back of the store will become a thing of the past.
“This is an exciting example of how suppliers like us can work in partnership with customers to develop simple solutions which bring real added value to the supply chain.
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