Magliner’s C-Store Rapid Delivery System has changed order picking from street to warehouse, and can cut service time up to 50 percent. The system begins with stock evaluation and order generation for each customer. The order then is transmitted to the office for fulfillment, and is picked and loaded onto Magliner Rapid Delivery Trucks in the controlled environment of the warehouse.

Each Rapid Delivery Truck holds 1,200 pounds – up to 55 cases of cans or 25 cases of bottles. After orders are picked and loaded onto the Rapid Delivery Truck, each order is verified and covered with a Magliner load containment curtain. The containment curtain ensures the load stays secure during transport and helps keep product clean and dry. Rapid Delivery Trucks are loaded onto the trailer in the reverse order of the delivery route. A cargo strap or load bar fastened onto each rack is used to secure each load.

The C-Store Rapid Delivery System utilizes end-load trailers with lift gates. Trailers handle more payload than bay trucks, allowing distributors to deliver more products with fewer trucks and reduce fleets by 25 percent or more. Once at the c-store location, a lift gate is used to unload trucks. The 1,200-pound capacity of each truck means fewer trips between the c-store and the trailer.

The Magliner Rapid Delivery Truck is designed with compound tires that make the loaded truck easier to push, and center tilt design that moves trucks over thresholds with ease. Drivers are able to check in the entire order with no off-loading or handling of product. Because the rapid delivery truck holds the equivalent of four hand trucks, check in is faster and more convenient, reducing store congestion. Mounted center casters provide a tight turning radius for maneuverability in narrow aisles and coolers. Removable handles provide easy access to product from all four sides. With account service time cut, drivers have more time to rotate stock and set up merchandizing displays.

“Before, the company delivered off of side-load trucks or we would palletize the account and deliver off of a rear-load,” says Billy Lyons, branch manager for Glazer’s Wholesale in San Angelo, Texas. “The downside to the pallets is you still have to break it down. With the cart system, I can roll the product into the account, have the store managers count it in, roll the product all the way into the vault or the display area, and I never have to move any product. I’m simply pushing a cart.”

LDF Sales and Distributing Inc. in Wichita, Kansas, has found the same ease. After testing one route for several months, LDF now has 77 percent of their total volume delivered through the new system. “The reason we went with the Magliner system is that we wanted to reduce our primary fleet and fleet costs,” says Bob Harley, vice president and general manager. “We’ve basically eliminated 30 percent of the primary fleet at our Wichita location.”

By reducing its fleet, LDF Sales and Distributing reduces its need for CDL drivers, which lowers the company’s labor costs. “The savings allowed us to add more merchandisers, so it’s a big benefit there as well,” Harley says. BI