“A fusion of the best of the good old days and the best of today is at the heart and soul of the Fossil brand.” With those words, the American company known for vintage-style fashion products sums up its style. Fossil is an international company specializing in the design and marketing of handbags, watches, fashion and jewellery, which are sold under its own brand as well as other licensed trademarks. In addition, it markets fashion accessories from brands such as Emporio Armani, Adidas, Mark Jacobs, DKNY, Burberry and Diesel, to name just a few. Fossil is a growing company, whose avant-garde approach makes it popular among all age groups.
Today, Fossil has a presence in more than 100 countries. New products, as well as new sales channels that give customers easier access to its merchandise than ever before, are the driving forces behind this expansion. Fossil sells its products through brick-and-mortar stores as well as online: retail, wholesale and e-commerce thus go hand-in-hand. This multi-channel approach presented Fossil with entirely new challenges, especially in terms of logistics. Josef Otter, CEO of Fesco GmbH, the European logistics provider for Fossil and a wholly-owned subsidiary headquartered in the Bavarian town of Eggstätt, explains the situation: “With its relentless creativity, Fossil is currently opening up new business segments in the market. As a result, its online business is gaining in importance. Consequently, our logistics operation is in a constant state of change and faces an increasing pressure to optimize its operations.”
High sales figures with strong seasonal fluctuations, a broad product range with constant additions, large and small order quantities from customers, as well as dramatic reductions in delivery times, characterize the nature of Fossil’s logistical challenges. The former logistics infrastructure could not keep pace with this development. Fossil required a considerable expansion of its former warehouse and picking capacity. In addition, the intralogistics process of the fashion accessory provider needed to support multi-channel sales.
COMPETITIVE EDGE
Highly flexible, very fast, compact and reliable: By equipping an existing zone-to-zone picking system with state-of-the-art shuttle technology from Swisslog, Fesco created a multi-purpose logistics center which provides Fossil with a clear competitive edge.
Based on its requirements profile, Swisslog helped create a new multi-purpose logistics center for Fossil. It is highly flexible and very fast, whilst also being compact and reliable. The intralogistics system fits harmoniously into Fossil‘s vision to achieve a “fusion of the best of the good old days and the best of today.” Dr. Volker Jungbluth, Managing Director of Swisslog in Germany adds: “We have implemented a future-proof solution for Fossil by combining an existing five year-old zone-to-zone picking system with state-of-the-art shuttle technology. In this way, we were able to considerably improve the performance of the overall system in every aspect.” The adaptability of the system to constantly changing items and order sizes is exemplary, and the flow of goods is time-saving and efficient. Every workstation is optimally utilized without idle time. Error rates for picking are virtually zero. Swisslog further highlights the benefits: “Fesco’s logistics center is a pioneering facility for multi-channel logistics, which has provided Fossil with a clear competitive edge.”
THE SOLUTION
The new intralogistics solution went into operation in 2013, comprising an expanded zone-to-zone picking system, implemented by Swisslog in 2008 based on a pick-by-light principle. Swisslog updated the existing infrastructure with a state-of-the-art shuttle facility: the SmartCarrier system.
SEAMLESS INTEGRATION OF OLD AND NEW
“By connecting our state-of-the-art SmartCarrier system to the existing zone-to-zone picking system, we have made the picking process lean and seamless,” explains Swisslog’s Dr. Volker Jungbluth. “Only B and C items are stored and picked in the new automated system, which are slower moving products. This prevents slowing down the workflow in the existing zone-to-zone picking system, which now only handles bestselling A products.” This has greatly improved efficiency; thanks to a continuous flow of merchandise, the picking stations in the old system are now optimally utilized.
DYNAMIC HANDLING OF A, B AND C ITEMS
In addition to handling less popular products, the new SmartCarrier system also performs an important warehousing function, by providing the flexibility that Fossil needed from its intralogistics infrastructure.
HIGH PERFORMANCE SMARTCARRIER SYSTEM
SmartCarrier is a powerful logistics solution with a throughput of more than 1,600 totes per hour. The shuttles are designed for a speed of up to two meters per second. Up to 6,000 totes can be stored in each aisle, and each tote can carry a load of up to 35 kg. The system is designed for continuous operation and can be expanded when its capacity limit is reached.
ACCURACY AND EFFICIENCY AT THE PICKING STATIONS
To prevent operator errors, Swisslog made sure that the system is straightforward, with easy to operate picking stations. The merchandise is automatically retrieved from the SmartCarrier warehouse and transported to the workstations.
Swisslog
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