CGT S.p.A. is a landmark Italian company that forms part of the TESYA Group. It has been a Caterpillar dealer for Italy since 1934 and garners over 1,100 employees with 28 direct branches in the country.
CGT’s principles promote innovation geared towards process improvement, efficiency and the highest quality whilst maintaining a top priority of environmental protection as well as the well-being and safety of personnel.
This same philosophy leads the operations of the spare parts warehouse; it aims to ship all components requested by customers within the same day, in addition to the 28 CGT branches located throughout Italy.
These demands and perspectives inspired the consulting activities that first led KFI to analyze and optimize warehouse workflows and, subsequently, to implement of new technologies aimed at improving operator comfort, reducing errors and increasing productivity in this pivotal area of the company.
Circa 30 operators in CGT’s spare parts warehouse work double shifts and must process over 3,000 order lines daily. Previously, this process was guided by paper lists and required operators to move among different warehouse areas before reconvening in the Put-to-Store area to consolidate and complete packaging operations.
After thoroughly examining the entire process, KFI suggested for a revision in the sequencing of activities and recommended implementing wireless Pick-By-Light technology with electronic labels (ESL) in the area dedicated to small items and using the VOCALIZE system to manage the medium-sized items area.
The shelf layout in the first area was restructured to improve the visibility and efficiency of the ESLs. Here, the operator can choose the list of items needing preparation using a handheld device; then, multicolored lights embedded in electronic labels indicate the locations where the components must be picked and stored. At this stage, the Put-to-Store activity is synchronized with picking operations. After confirming the retrieval using a handy ProGlove wearable reader, employees move with a cart and distribute the items by following the LED lights on the ESLs that identify the boxes corresponding to each customer’s orders.
Voice technology was also introduced in the area that holds medium-sized products. Thanks to the flexibility deriving from the native Android technology, VOCALIZE lets operators make use of the same devices (in this case, paired with a headset) to set a Voice-by-Light process, allowing them to do the work in a hands and eyes-free way. This integration permits the use of voice for picking operations as well as using lights for Put-to-Store. In addition to optimizing movement, the integration also ensures a high concentration level in activities; this is an essential element, especially when forklift support is needed.
The implementation of new technologies has significantly accelerated picking operations, ensuring a significant reduction in errors, so much so that extending the use of VOCALIZE to the heavy-items warehouse is currently under consideration.
Further, adopting projects focused on digital transition has allowed CGT to minimize waste and take significant steps towards an ecologically sustainable approach, such as by eliminating the use of paper in processes and achieving a notable reduction in the overall environmental impact.
New technologies have also led to ergonomic improvements and made tasks increasingly intuitive. Through user-friendly screens that highlight only essential information or through targeted messages stemming directly from the headset, work has become easier; this has ultimately sped up the training time needed for new operators.
"It is fundamental for a company to put its employees at the center of consideration, and to create the conditions for them to work peacefully and efficiently. Given this, the solutions introduced by KFI do not intend to replace human beings, but rather aims to help them improve by performing a supporting function in daily activities. Thanks to VOCALIZE and ESLs, today, with the same number of operators, the spare parts warehouse can cope with the increase in work without any difficulty”.
