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“Automation has provided a number of benefits”
About British Sugar
British Sugar is the leading sugar producer in Great Britain and Ireland. Founded in 1912, it operates 4 manufacturing plants, employing 9,500 workers and producing 1.3 million tons of sugar annually. In recent years, the ever-expanding company has invested more than over $280 million to double its production capacity.
Mecalux interviews Michael Burton, Customer Supply Lead at British Sugar in Wissington, to gain insights into the benefits of automating internal material transport and storage operations.
How would you describe British Sugar’s logistics activity?
British Sugar is an agile business, so it’s vital for us to have flexibility in production and logistics processes. This flexibility enables us to manage fluctuations within our production demand effortlessly and seamlessly. Logistic operations are crucial to British Sugar’s business strategy. We’re committed to being supplier of choice for our customers, and this involves optimizing all our post-silo supply chain operations, of which logistics are a critical part.
Logistic operations are crucial to British Sugar’s business strategy
Why did British Sugar opt for the latest technologies and innovation in manufacturing and storage processes?
Innovation is at the heart of everything we do and is fundamental to our factories of the future. So we’re continuously looking to improve our logistics operations and optimize our warehouse to provide first-rate service. Maximizing efficiency is essential for meeting the needs of our customers and becoming that supplier of choice.
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“Easy WMS allows in-depth analysis of each product” What benefits have you seen from automating your logistics operations?
Automation has provided a number of benefits. We’ve noticed major improvements in the safety and health of our operators as a result of the reduction of forklift movements within the facility. In addition, automatically connecting the production plant with the warehouse has streamlined the flow of goods.
Why did you install Easy WMS warehouse management software?
As the main sugar manufacturer for Great Britain and Ireland, it’s extremely important that we have full traceability of our product. The Easy WMS warehouse management system allows in-depth analysis of each item: it knows the full history and origin of any pallet in the warehouse.
When selecting a storage system supplier, what made you choose Mecalux?
Having a single provider such as Mecalux — which was able to supply both the automated storage solutions and the software — provided key benefits during the design and the commissioning phase. Moreover, this has proven invaluable now that the system is operational.