NEPA Navigates Peak Season with Ease: Achieving 2.9 Million Item Storage and 66,000 Daily Dispatches
NEPA, a fashion-forward favorite among South Korea's youth, in collaboration with Boowoo System and Hai Robotics, has transformed its logistics with the deployment of HaiPick System 3 at their newly integrated logistics center in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province. The upgrade of their facility has significantly improved storage density and throughput efficiency, as well as sharply reduced labor and warehouse rental costs, perfectly aligning with NEPA's business growth and peak season demands.
- 2.9 Million Stored items
- 66,000 Items shipped daily
- 50% Labor savings
Journey to Automation
NEPA's minimalistic and practical designs have made it a household name among young Koreans. However, as the business expanded, its traditional warehousing methods hit an efficiency wall, especially during the peak shopping seasons of Halloween, Christmas, and Black Friday. NEPA urgently needed to upgrade its logistics and warehousing systems to enhance speed and efficiency.
One of NEPA's Retail Stores
Hai Robotics, with its experience of successful, mature solutions in the apparel industry, became the go-to choice for NEPA's upgrade, ready to revolutionize NEPA's operations with its proven goods-to-person approach.
Capacity Boost and Storage Cost Cut
NEPA managed two distant warehouses, separated by a 2-hour drive, where goods were stored using traditional pallet racking and manual systems that left the space above 2 meters largely unused. This resulted in limited storage capacity, the hassle of managing two separate facilities, with inventory accuracy and responsiveness suffering, and operational costs soaring.
Previous Warehouse vs. Current Warehouse with HaiPick System 3 Implementation
HaiPick System 3 has transformed NEPA's warehousing, maximizing efficiency within a 9,300 square-meter space. The fashion company was able to realize 130,000 storage locations using 8.7 meters-high racking, accommodating an impressive 2.9 million items. This storage breakthrough was crucial in streamlining NEPA's operations, enabling them to consolidate two warehouses into one advanced logistics center and cut rental costs. For NEPA, a fast-fashion leader with rapid product cycles and a vast array of SKUs, this means having sufficient storage to prepare for peak season demands—truly a game-changer in the industry.
- Double-deep Racking
- 2X Storage Height
- 130,000 Storage Locations
- 2.9 Million Items Stored
Exceptional Efficiency to Meet Logistics Demands
NEPA faces the challenge of managing a high volume of orders from retail stores, distributors, and direct-to-consumer channels, necessitating swift processing and dispatch. The solution, featuring 46 Autonomous Case-handling Mobile Robots (ACRs) and 108 Fast-Transit Companion AMRs, adeptly handles both full-case and piece-picking orders, ensuring rapid fulfillment across all channels.
With B2B dispatch reaching 60,000 items/day and B2C dispatch at 6,000 items/day, even peak seasons are managed with ease. This efficiency has not only sped up order fulfillment but also improved customer satisfaction, bolstering NEPA's competitive edge in South Korea's fashion logistics landscape.
- Mixed B2B and B2C operations
- 60,000 items/day B2B outbound
- 6,000 items/day B2C outbound
- 4,000 totes/day inbound
50% Reduction in Labor Costs
The physically demanding picking tasks in NEPA's original warehouses led to recruitment challenges, especially during peak seasons when order volumes surged. HaiPick System 3 automates the complex picking tasks, requiring only half the number of operators, thus saving 50% on labor costs.
Fast-Transit Companion AMRs Transport Totes to Conveyor
The system also includes 13 picking workstations, where the Fast-Transit Companion AMRs directly present totes for order picking. Now, order pickers can simply perform their tasks stationary at these ergonomic workstations, eliminating the need for them to walk multiple kilometers each day. This has simplified the picking process significantly, making the work easier for the workforce whilst also enabling them to comfortably handle even the heightened throughput demands seen during peak seasons.
With a more efficient and straightforward workflow, the operators can now handle the heightened demands of peak seasons with remarkable ease, thanks to the seamless integration of human and robotic efforts.
Flexible and Intelligent Inventory Management
Operating two separate warehouses made unified inventory management and quick adaptation to market changes difficult for NEPA. The HaiQ smart warehouse platform has brought clarity and order to warehouse information, enabling zoned storage based on product popularity, timely restocking during off-peak hours, and pre-sorting items closer to workstations for rapid dispatch. This flexible approach makes it easy for the company to deal with peak seasons, allowing NEPA to meet the demand for speedy order fulfillment and satisfy their customers.
Conclusion
NEPA's warehouse revamp has significantly amplified storage capacity and operational efficiency, conferring a notable competitive advantage. The implementation of HaiPick System 3 exemplifies the power of innovative technology to revolutionize storage and throughput. This upgrade not only readies NEPA to excel in customer service but also primes the company for sustainable growth and expansion.
