BITO helps Kofferprofi.de to grow with ease

With its height, it makes optimum use of the space in the warehouse. The lightweight design of the system provides Kofferprofi.de with the right performance at a good price. Whether you are a globetrotter, business traveler, woman of the world, recreational athlete or parent looking for something comfortable and stylish for your children's school supplies - at Kofferprofi.de, everyone will find the right accessories. On average, around 800 to 1,000 suitcases, handbags and satchels leave the company premises every day.

"If we receive the request by 3 p.m., we send the goods out the same day," emphasizes Stefan Maurer, member of the management team and founder of the online store. "We send around 60 percent of the products to customers in Germany, the rest is distributed across Europe." In addition, the retailer aims to have all desired items in stock. This places high demands on intralogistics.

Smooth intralogistics required

The online store is doing so well that he continues to increase the number of employees from two at the beginning - the premises also quickly become too small. In 2014, the retailer finally reached its maximum capacity. In order to continue to ensure reliable delivery to customers, he needed a new logistics center. Since September 2015, the company has had sufficient space in the Lisdorfer Berg industrial estate in Saarlouis (Saarland) on an area of 10,000 square meters. What was needed now was efficient shelving technology that would make optimum use of the available space and handle the different products safely and easily. "When looking for a suitable provider, our general contractor introduced us to BITO-Lagertechnik," recalls Stefan Maurer.

"With the new shelving system, we can continue to pursue our ambitious goals with the new logistics center."

Stefan Maurer Member of the Management Board Horst Condé GmbH

"The demands on the shelving technology were particularly high," explains BITO Area Sales Manager Peter Schneider. On the one hand, the goods are stored chaotically - with a high turnover. On the other hand, Kofferprofi.de needed a compact solution with an optimum price-performance ratio. The managers therefore quickly agreed that an automated solution was not worthwhile for this variety of items.

Three-storey shelving system: compact and high

"We therefore installed a three-storey shelving system with a floor area of 1,250 square meters and a height of 7.5 meters," explains Peter Schneider, Sales Manager at BITO. Each floor is divided up in exactly the same way. On each level, Kofferprofi.de has a total usable area of almost 6,000 square meters. In order to avoid an expensive sprinkler system, the company also invested in a comprehensive fire protection concept.

There are days when containers with almost 600 packages are delivered. The manufacturers often stack their different sized products inside each other, just like the Russian Matryoshka dolls. The employees transport the pallets on hand pallet trucks to an intermediate picking station, which is located directly next to the shelving system. The packages are scanned and the warehouse management system assigns them their position on the shelf.

The new system has made it possible to close expensive external warehouses that were cumbersome in the process flow. This also pleases the order pickers. Photo: BITO-Lagertechnik Bittmann

One by one, the employees use hand pallet trucks to push the palletized boxes into a goods elevator, which transports them to the appropriate floor. There, a colleague picks them up. He is equipped with a tablet that shows the correct storage location and the fastest route. The employee places the cartons from the goods elevator onto a mobile packing table and takes them to the relevant compartments. These packing tables are also used by the order pickers who are working at the same time. The tablet shows them exactly where to find which product for the corresponding order as quickly as possible. If the goods are still stacked inside each other, they repack them on the trolley and put the other parts back in the compartment. To bring them together, the suitcases and rucksacks just need to be brought downstairs.

On the second floor, an employee takes picked goods to a spiral chute that is connected to the multi-storey system. They glide down quietly and smoothly. "A big advantage of this chute is that we are not dependent on electrically operated components," says Stefan Maurer. "This means we are safe from long downtimes in the event of a power failure or defective parts." The chute is directly connected to a roller conveyor that transports the cartons to the picking stations. Goods from the first floor are placed directly onto the conveyor line. Order pickers take the products and pack them into containers. These are given an identification number and then placed on pallets. Employees use hand pallet trucks to transport them to the outgoing goods area, where they are ready for collection.

Satisfied all round

"Once the building was up and running, everything went quickly and smoothly - especially the quick and uncomplicated installation and commissioning of the shelving solution by the BITO employees," says the Managing Director enthusiastically. The goods were moved in just three days. Shipping only came to a standstill on one day. And because Kofferprofi.de has significantly more space with the shelving solution than before, the company was able to expand its portfolio by around 6,000 products through bulk purchases after the move. The warehouse is currently operating at around 80 percent capacity. "This means we can continue to pursue our goals with the new logistics center. We want to grow by 15 percent annually," says Stefan Maurer confidently.

www.kofferprofi.dewww.bito.com