Smith's supply chain revamp a winner

PepsiCo Australia & New Zealand has been presented with the Supply Chain Management Award and the Storage & Materials Handling Award at the 2015 Australian Supply Chain and Logistics Awards.

Presented by the Supply Chain and Logistics Association of Australia (SCLAA), the awards recognised PepsiCo ANZ’s broad-ranging supply chain project, including investment in the implementation of one of the most advanced automated logistics systems in Australia at PepsiCo’s snacks manufacturing and distribution centre at The Smith’s Snackfood Company, Regency Park, Adelaide.

Commenting on the project, Senior Engineering Manager PepsiCo ANZ Steve Reilly said: “A key driver for the project was the desire by our major customers for Smith’s to deliver direct to their central warehouses, and we have worked to change our supply chain model to meet that requirement.

“One of the key benefits of the new project at Regency Park is that now, we essentially go straight from our automatic case packers within the manufacturing packaging room through into the warehouse, where we automatically palletise every carton onto a pallet, which is then automatically stretch wrapped and labelled,” explained Reilly.

“The pallet is then picked up by an automated guided vehicle (AGV), which transports the pallet to either our new automated warehouse or direct to the shipping dock. The only process that is not automated is the actual loading of the pallet onto a truck or into a container for transport.”

Key partners in the project were JMP Engineering from New Zealand, which was responsible for the robotic palletising system and interlinking conveyor system from the adjacent manufacturing plant; and Dematic, which was responsible for the automated warehouse storage system, cranes, conveyors and control systems, plus the interlink between the robotic palletising system and the warehouse, utilising NDC AGVs.

Other winners at the 2015 Australian Supply Chain and Logistics Awards included:

• Information Management Award: Aurizon and SVS Australia
• Industry Excellence Award: Scott Young, Managing Director, Young Guns Container Crew
• Future Leaders Award: Samantha Lowry, Senior Procurement Advisor, Department of Education & Training; and Danielle Brennan, Category Specialist, Stanwell Corporation
• Training, Education and Development Award: Ostwald Bros/QGC Partnership for the Plant Operator Training Program