Classic Distributing & Beverage

A need to increase pick rates led this beverage distributor to Jungheinrich

It helps me pick faster. I can say it’s more than 50% that my work performance has increased.

Ralph Vasquez, Warehouseman

Classic distributing & Beverage

For more than 30 years, Classic Distributing & Beverage Group Inc. has served as the beverage distributor for the Greater Los Angeles area. Supported by a 250,000-square-foot warehouse, the company distributes approximately 8 million cases of beer per year.

3 jungheinrich order pickers in use in warehouse

IMPROVING EFFICIENCY

One of the biggest challenges Classic Distributing faced was reducing the time spent pulling orders for distribution. Its warehouse uses voice picking, a paperless order-picking solution designed to keep the operator’s hands and eyes free to make order picking more efficient.

However, even with voice picking, the company realized their operators were spending an increased amount of “lost” time while operators got on and off their forklifts during the order-picking process. Working with their local Jungheinrich® forklift dealer, Classic Distributing added 15 new Jungheinrich EKS 110 low-level order pickers to their operation’s lift truck fleet for use in retrieving warehouse orders.

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22% INCREASED PRODUCTIVITY

After making the switch to the Jungheinrich order pickers, Classic Distributing noticed improved performance – with an increase in pick rates by 22%. The EKS 110 order picker uses precise, responsive three-phase AC technology, allowing it to run longer on one battery charge. This saves Classic Distributing precious operating time due to the reduction in battery changes required during operation.

“The increased battery life has been essential to our productivity,” says Dan Chilson, fleet and facility manager for Classic Distributing. “Our operators are more efficient when they aren’t having to stop and charge the battery. In turn, they are able to pick more per hour.”

According to Ralph Vasquez, one of Classic Distributing’s lift truck operators, his work performance has increased by 50% since they made the switch to Jungheinrich lift trucks. Javier Martinez and Daniel Venegas also utilize the Jungheinrich order pickers at Classic.

“I have never had to stop my shift to charge [the forklift battery],” commented Martinez. 

“When I’m done with work, I’ll look at my battery and there will be 50% left in my 12-hour day,” says Venegas.

With lift heights up to 181 inches, the EKS 110 order picker is designed to extend the operator’s accessible pick positions beyond the floor level to provide access to more product SKUs. Unique to Jungheinrich’s warehouse product line, this is a lower cost alternative to a high-level order picker when picking is limited to the first few levels of racking.

“I like that the platform raises up – you don’t have to wait for a forklift to bring down a pallet. It saves us a lot of time,” says Vasquez.

“What stands out most about the Jungheinrich (order picker) is it’s easy to operate. We have dual steering so that no matter which direction of travel you’re in, you’re always facing in the direction of travel,” says Chilson. 

EXCEPTIONAL COMFORT DURING 12-HOUR SHIFTS

The optional premium drive and lift external controls also benefit Classic Distributing’s operators, allowing them to advance the truck and lift the pallet to a comfortable picking height.

“The guys (forklift operators) would rather use the Jungheinrich (EKS 110 order picker) over a forklift when they’re working a 12-13 hour shift. It doesn’t hurt their backs, there’s no wear and tear on (the forklift operator’s body),” says David Garcia, information technologies with Classic.

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“If we were to have gone out and tried to design a piece of equipment, the Jungheinrich (low-level order picker) is what we would have come up with,” Chilson adds. “It meets all of the requirements we need here at Classic – whether it’s SKU proliferation, or raising or lowering, or helping your operators – the Jungheinrich has just been a very good piece of equipment for us.”

“The increased battery life has been essential to our productivity,” says Dan Chilson, fleet and facility manager for Classic Distributing. “Our operators are more efficient when they aren’t having to stop and charge the battery. In turn, they are able to pick more per hour.”

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