Dematic Automates Woolworths’ New Distribution Center in Australia

Dematic has received an order from Primary Connect, the supply chain branch of Australia’s largest supermarket chain, the Woolworths Group, to deliver a state-of-the-art automated fulfillment system for the new National Distribution Center (NDC) in Sydney. Dematic builds on its 30-year partnership with Woolworths.

(Sydney/Australia; Heusenstamm) As a global leader in warehouse automation innovation, Dematic has been serving the supply chain sector in Australia for over 50 years. “With our local capabilities of more than 600 employees and a manufacturing facility in Sydney, we ensure our customers in the region receive systems and services of the highest quality,” said Michael Jerogin, CEO of Dematic APAC. “We are proud that Woolworths places special trust in us as a partner and we look forward to building on this partnership by playing a key role in the company’s automation strategy.”

Palettes Customized to Store Layout

The Dematic solution installed in the new NDC assembles pallets tailored to the store layout of Woolworths’ retail outlets. Additionally, the Flexible Mixed Case Order Fulfillment System, based on the Dematic iQ Warehouse Management System (WMS), will be designed for over 9,000 products from 900 suppliers and for daily deliveries to more than 1,000 markets across the country.

To ensure the necessary flexibility within the 40,700 square meter NDC, Wall-to-Wall automation is implemented. This allows the supermarket chain to meet seasonal and other demand peaks, such as those currently occurring during the COVID-19 pandemic. The solution is not only designed for delivering store orders but also addresses Woolworths’ expected growth through integrated scalability and modularity.

Saving 26,000 Truck Trips

Through transportation advantages alone, the supermarket chain expects to save at least 26,000 truck deliveries between Woolworths facilities annually.

Paul Graham, Managing Director at Primary Connect and Chief Supply Chain Officer at the Woolworths Group, summarizes the objective: “With this investment, we aim to completely redesign the delivery of our stores, strengthen our distribution network, and realize our ambitions to build the best food supply chain in Australia.”

Graham further stated: “With advanced automation technology, we will be able to provide customized pallets for specific aisles in individual stores. This will improve product availability on the shelf because we can restock products faster. Additionally, congestion in particularly busy aisles will be reduced, creating a safer working environment for our teams with fewer manual tasks.”

Expanding Product Range

Woolworths also expects to expand its local product range with the new installation, as thousands of additional products can now be stored centrally, for which there was no space in the existing facilities.

Pas Tomasiello, Senior Director for Integrated Systems at Dematic, and his team worked closely with the Woolworths Supply Chain Development Team to optimize the Dematic systems and leverage their full scalability.

“The new facility is fully designed to help Woolworths manage a broader range of packaged goods that do not need to be sold quickly, more efficiently at a central location, rather than having to distribute them across multiple sites,” explained Tomasiello. “Centralization, combined with advanced automation, will enable Woolworths to handle larger volumes and achieve significant improvements in speed and accuracy of deliveries to stores across the country.”

Commissioning in 2023

To this end, the Dematic iQ WMS will create an interface to Woolworths’ systems and equip the distribution center with Industry 4.0 capabilities regarding system interconnectivity, data-driven intelligence, and decision support tools. This will further enhance processes through faster insights and provided decision-making functions. The new NDC is planned to be operational by the end of 2023.

Photo: © Dematic / Image Caption: Dematic is delivering a state-of-the-art automated fulfillment system for Australia’s largest supermarket chain, the Woolworths Group, for the new National Distribution Center (NDC) in Sydney.
www.dematic.com    www.woolworthsgroup.com.au    www.primaryconnect.com.au