Increased shipping rates are posing one of the biggest challenges as of recently to e-commerce and fulfillment operations managers. When companies ship a high number of small packages, such as consumer electronics, there is a significant chance that the orders are packaged in oversized boxes using void fill, resulting in increased freight costs.
In an effort to face these challenges, fulfillment and shipping managers are looking at options to improve their operations to improve throughput efficiency and reduce labor and per-unit packaging costs.
A growth in e-commerce sales for one major electronics manufacturer meant that the company had to look at solutions that would fulfill their increased demand without adding more labor or increasing prices. Their current shipping situation relied on standard air pillows as void fill and cushioning, which couldn’t be automated. This meant that the company was required to use boxes that were larger than necessary and resulted in greatly inflated shipping costs.
Enter - Automation
The company found that Sealed Air’s
I-Pack Packaging system was the perfect solution. The I-Pack is designed for a company such as theirs, that are seeking to minimize costs across the board while simultaneously optimizing productivity. This particular company was able to reduce the packaging time by 35%, which enabled the center to process more packages per hour.
The
I-Pack also allowed this fulfillment center to reduce the size of the boxes being used, resulting in a 20% decrease in dimensional weight. These factors combined added up to a savings of approximately $1.6 million dollars.
Total Transformation
Our
systems integration services can completely transform a business’s bottom line. The automation process is more effective and efficient. Automation frees up valuable employee time, which allows companies to redistribute their labor force and get the most out of their business.
E-commerce is not expected to slow down at all in the near future- it is estimated that a total of $3.81 billion dollars will be spent online alone for Cyber Monday 2017. Companies must be prepared for this trend to continue in the coming years. Evaluating the ways that systems integration services can benefit a business will be the most important step for forward-thinking companies.
To find out if automation can enhance your operations
contact us today!