Beverage and snack food giant PepsiCo has installed Dematic automation at its production and logistics facility in Rojana on the outskirts of Bangkok.

The Dematic solution includes an automated storage and retrieval system (AS/RS) that links both the production and order fulfilment areas of the plant, which makes potato chips and other snacks that are distributed in Thailand and Vietnam and other neighbouring countries.

“We foresee a manpower shortage being a major challenge for our local operations in Thailand,” says PepsiCo logistics manager Charan Techapattaraporn. “Automation, therefore, is the perfect solution to take on this challenge, whilst also improving our facility operations across the board.”

The AS/RS stores pallets within five aisles of double-deep, high-bay racking with a total of 16,520 pallet locations.

A network of pallet conveyors and rail-guided vehicles (RGVs) receives pallets automatically at the end of the production lines and transports them for storage, then directs them from storage to despatch docks or to automatically replenished pick locations for full-case order picking.

The solution includes Dematic Warehouse Control System (WCS) software to manage all the automation, the material flow and the inventory as well as to provide real-time tracking and visibility of all transactions.

“Previously we had a very manual solution that took a lot of time for people to go around and understand exactly what products we had in the warehouse,” says Colin Matthews, PepsiCo supply chain senior director – IndoChina Foods.

“In contrast, the Dematic solution is very intuitive. It enables our team to look across the whole of the AS/RS and understand exactly where we have the stock, and they can intuitively and quickly make any adjustments they need to.

“The AS/RS has more than doubled our capacity and the automation takes us away from the very manual operation we had before.”

The Dematic AS/RS solution also improves warehouse operator safety by reducing the amount of forklift trucks and other materials handling equipment such as pallet movers, which in turn has reduced accidents, damage, and injuries to people and equipment.

The Dematic solution can be expanded to accommodate additional growth and adapted to changing business requirements.