Time for a new technology solution
Hobson Engineering recently developed a new 15,000 square-metre distribution centre (DC) in Melbourne, due to the old building, which was 3,900 SQM, being too small for operations.
With the development of this larger DC in Melbourne, Hobson started looking for a new warehouse solution to combat rising
costs and ensure they could make the best use of their warehouse space.
“Hobson needed a solution for its new DC catering for 63,000 storage positions for pallets and handpicking,” said Brett Clapham, co-owner of Total Racking Systems. “Total Racking Systems and Colby Storage Solutions came up with a solution to optimise the rack design for
Hobson’s unique needs.”
Hobson currently dispatch over one million order lines or 25,000 ton of product per annum, with 80 percent dispatched same day and 15 percent dispatched next day. This meant it was crucial they installed a solution that would enable them to continue to meet these high volumes.
Hobson Engineering maximises warehouse footprint with Colby Storage Solution
Case Study
Established in 1935, Hobson Engineering is a family-owned and operated Australian business, that maintains a reputation for quality fasteners and coatings in the construction, oil, gas and mining industries.
Hobson prides itself on having the experience, technical knowledge, warehouse capacity and full product quality traceability to provide its customers with the most comprehensive fastening solution available in the Australian market.
Hobson has manufacturing cells and warehousing in Sydney, Brisbane, Townsville, Melbourne and Perth.
Total Racking SystemsTel: 1300 301 144Email: info.totalracking.com.auwww.totalracking.com.au
Geoff Lunz, National Asset and Property Manager
Hobson Engineering
“Hobson had previously worked with Total Racking Systems and Colby Storage Solutions very successfully, so when the time came to look for a solution for our new warehouse, we knew we could rely on them again,” said Geoff Lunz, National Asset and Property Manager, Hobson Engineering. “They made it their business to study our warehouse and and came up with a tailored solution that maximised the space and accounted for many different profiles.”
Maximising space
A typical day within Hobson’s warehouse involves picking and packing stock from storage locations, with incoming stock to be located in the vacated racks. The warehouse operates 24 hours, seven days a week, which means Hobson needs to constantly unpack the containers coming in to replenish for each days’ sales.
Total Racking Systems and Colby Storage Solutions created a new profile pallet racking beam to meet the specific storage needs of Hobson’s products.
“They worked out that as we use only Euro pallets, they could reduce the size of standard racks and fit more racking into
the same space, which was a huge boon for our storage,” explained Geoff.
Colby installed Narrow Aisle racking with a new boxed profile for the required spacing between beams, which also allowed for some bay loadings to hold up to 27,000kg. The space between racks was designed for staff to be able to clear any packaging with ease and the 1800mm wide aisle spacing was designed
to allow the movement of wire guided
Linde trucks.
“We recognised that Hobson could fit
more racks in by minimising wasted rack
width,” said Brett. “Narrow Aisle racking
suited Hobson’s warehouse requirements
and allowed them to fit more racks within
the same space and store more product
than they were previously able to.”
Total Racking SystemsTel: 1300 301 144Email: info.totalracking.com.auwww.totalracking.com.au
Benefits for customers and warehouse
workers
Colby’s racking solution is sturdy and
oversized so it makes it easy to navigate
and it allows more stock to be held in
the same space, maximising the use of
available space. The increased efficiency
and productivity of the DC allowed
Hobson to supply their customers faster
than any other supplier in the industry and
ship products overnight.
During the two-month installation of the
new Colby Storage Solutions racking,
Hobson found that its warehouse
employees reacted well, as the benefits
to the efficiency of warehouse operations
were obvious from very early on.
Future proofing the warehouse
Hobson maintains a vision for a
sustainable future through continuous
improvement and technology-based
workflow.
“Total Racking Systems and Colby Storage
Solutions again worked out the best
solution for our warehouse requirements
and we look forward to continuing our
strong relationship with them,” said Geoff.
“They have also assisted us in looking to
the future operations of our businesses,
and the racking has been future proofed
for self-driving forklifts in the future.”
ColbyRACK is designed, engineered,
and manufactured in Australia by
Dematic Pty Ltd.
www.totalracking.com.au
Total Racking Systems185 S Creek Rd, Cromer NSW 2099 Tel: 1300 301 144Email: [email protected]
Total Racking SystemsTel: 1300 301 144Email: info.totalracking.com.auwww.totalracking.com.au