The Material Handling Blog

MSC Industrial Supply Co. knew it was time to update how work got done inside its customer fulfillment centers. With growing demand and a vast product catalog, they needed a way to handle more volume while improving the day-to-day experience for employees on the floor. That meant reducing physically demanding tasks, increasing flexibility, and building a more efficient system for order fulfillment. As a leading distributor of metalworking and MRO (maintenance, repair, and operations) products, MSC serves manufacturers and industrial customers across North America. Their operation includes over 7,000 associates and millions of SKUs flowing through two major fulfillment centers in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and Elkhart, Indiana.

Growth. Striving for a $2 billion annual revenue goal, SMC Corporation needed a facility and automation technology solution that could meet them where they were and easily support their vision for growth. As a global leader and manufacturer of automatic control equipment, SMC had grown to over 80 subsidiaries and joint ventures around the world. They serve customers in a variety of industries and had grown to 30% of global market share in the pneumatics industry.

The future of warehousing lies in optimizing every aspect of your operation. The AutoStore system, a cutting-edge automated storage and retrieval solution, offers unmatched efficiency and flexibility. This innovative system uses robots on a grid to store and retrieve bins, maximizing space utilization and dramatically improving pick rates. However, the true success of AutoStore results from the precise configuration that meets your unique high-throughput needs.