Growth and change in the beverage market has created trends that impact not only new product development and packaging design, but also extend into warehouse and distribution centers. Among these trends, SKU proliferation, labor and consolidation have impacted beverage warehouse storage in recent years, experts note.
“The impact of labor availability, employee’s lack of desire to pick cases, and extreme SKU growth have been major trends effecting storage, replenishment and picking within the beverage industry,” says Tom Steininger, market development director at Dematic North America, Grand Rapids, Mich. “Mergers and acquisitions within the industry have created some very large companies, which has impacted the complexity of their operations due to added brands, delivery route size [and] fulfillment requirements, all of which can impact service levels if not handled properly.”