Supermarkets

CUSTOMER:
Supermarkets

LOCATION:
Nationwide

INDUSTRY:
Retail

REQUIREMENT:
Pallet truck

In retailing it is vital that the shelves are always full with their fastest moving lines. The largest retailers would suffer losses running to hundreds of thousands of pounds if, for example, Coca-Cola was out of stock on its shelves for even a fraction of the trading day.

To ensure that this never occurs a system was required that would allow retailers to replenish stock to their shop floors quickly and efficiently and remove the associated dangers that transporting a full size pallet through a busy store would bring. The innovative solution came from Polymer Logistics, a specialist in packaging and supply chain management for the retail sector. They developed a ‘half-size’ pallet which could be placed into the shelf fitting itself. This negated the need to de-stack the pallet onto the shelf at all which saved crucial time in ensuring it was fully stocked at all times. The other important feature of this pallet was that it had recessed wheels mounted at one end which only made the pallet mobile when it was tilted and supported at the opposite end.

Polymer Logistics had only solved half of the problem as now a small lightweight truck was required to connect to the pallet and tilt one end to make it fully mobile. This would then allow the pallet to be moved safely and efficiently from the back to the front of the store. Advanced Handling, a company with a long pedigree in the design and manufacture of all types of materials handling equipment, were approached to develop the perfect solution. Advanced Handling were asked to work to an exceptionally tight brief to design in a short space of time a unit that was light, easy to use and durable enough to survive the day-to-day rigours that are associated with major retail groups.

These units are now being effectively employed at nearly all the major retailers in the UK, including Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Netto to name a few.