Pierre Wybrecht, Logistics Manager for Clairefontaine Rhodia, explains how Baracoda barcode readers RoadRunners improved working conditions of order preparations operators in warehouse.
1 – Can you please briefly introduce Clairefontaine and give us some figures about your platform’s activity?
Clairefontaine Rhodia was created in 1958. Today the company offers over 8,000 product references dedicated to schoolchildren, students, adults and companies alike. We deliver our products all around the world and Clairefontaine is now the only manufacturer who uses its own paper for its products.
About our platform:
• Site of 30,000 sqm.
• 8 000 product references
• 1,400 parcels prepared per hour during rush period and a picking activity of 15,000 products in the retail area, where barcode readers are used.
2 – What kind of tracking system did you use before investing in Baracoda solutions? How did it work?
We used to work with « 2-in-1 » Psion Teklogix 7035 check picker terminals dedicated to logistics order preparation operations.
Unfortunately these terminals became end of life with strong failure rates and maintenance costs.
On the other hand, due to their form factors, the check pickers were placed on boxes and every product had to be presented to them to enable barcode reading. Thus our employees (most of them are women) had to carry up to 5.5 pound parcels about 200 times a day and 28 oz parcels about 800 times a day. We absolutely had to change these working conditions by investing in a mobile, ergonomic, modern and less expensive solution for our order preparation operators.
3 – What Baracoda solution did you choose and how does it work ?
We deployed 21 Baracoda RoadRunners 1D barcode readers, connected via Bluetooth to Psion Teklogix 7535 terminals and associated to the software solution Logistic Manager from A-sis, hosted on our central server. Scanned data are directly transmitted in real time to the server.
4 – What are the benefits of such a solution?
We had already had reached an optimal level of satisfaction regarding productivity and quality with the previous solutions. However the real added value of this new solution is the lightness of Baracoda barcode readers (140 grams only), they are particularly easy to handle and non cumbersome. Barcode reading is much easier than before and the products to be scanned do not have to be carried by the operator any longer.
At last but not least, working conditions of our order preparation operators have really improved: they do not have wrist rotations and do not handle charges any longer. This is essential to us.
Baracoda
www.baracoda.com
Psion Teklogix
www.psionteklogix.com
Clairefontaine Rhodia
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