Back when side-load equipment ruled the beverage industry, refrigeration generally was an afterthought, with just a few refrigerated trucks dedicated to delivering dairy products and limited varieties of draft beer. But as product mixes have expanded, a paradigm shift is taking place in the equipment world.
The ever-increasing number of SKUs within the beverage industry has been one obstacle beverage warehouse operators have been facing the past several years. However, the proven benefits of, and further innovations to, voice-picking technology has made it a staple in many beverage distribution centers today.
As the beverage industry continues to experience significant levels of consolidation, distributors on the local, national and global level are being affected.
The formulation has been carefully and meticulously perfected and packaged. And the next step is just as crucial to marketing the product and ensuring success of the brand — printing and applying labels.
As summer draws closer, many consumers daydream of sitting by the pool with a drink in hand, and that's exactly what those in the beverage industry are daydreaming of too.
Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) have been quick to respond to increasing demands within the beverage industry by creating equipment that accommodates faster filling times, flexibility in processing, and quick handling of multiple SKUs.
When packaging beverages, the process to fill a container can require efficient practices as beverage-makers look to accommodate changeovers that commonly are associated with SKU proliferation.
With changes coming so fast, it can be tough to stay ahead of the game. However, marketers and other beverage industry executives searching for competing products in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) market might have a new tool to make things easier.
A trip to the local retail store can be an enlightening experience. Because of the considerable amount of SKU proliferation, a retail shelf might look quite different from one month to the next.