Explosive e-commerce growth in 2020 sent many companies scrambling to meet increased order volumes, but not Florida-based Monat Global. The multinational distributor and direct seller of premium beauty products had already been hard at work developing a strategic plan to modernize its storage and fulfillment processes to meet growth projections, and was able to accelerate those plans to meet 2020’s burgeoning demand. The end result? A company that took a 200% increase in fulfillment volume in stride, and that is poised to meet double-digit growth projections through 2024.
“We were already growing at a good organic pace toward the end of 2019, and we knew at some point in time, we would run into space issues,” explains Matt Warner, Monat’s chief operating officer. “There was not enough space for all the storage of our product, and we knew that we’d cap out with our current shipping facility as well. And then our sales just took off [during the pandemic].
“[Thankfully,] we had already done a lot of the pre-work and were ready to meet the demand.”
Monat Global had teamed up with supply chain consulting company Alpine Supply Chain Solutions to get the ball rolling on expansion plans in 2019. The companies accelerated those plans in 2020, splitting the project into two phases—first addressing bulk storage and international shipping operations, and then installing automated solutions to streamline direct-to-consumer order picking and fulfillment. The plan involved moving to a new warehouse and distribution facility that would more than double the company’s existing space, and installing a set of material handling solutions that would allow for better space utilization and improved labor performance.
BULKING UP ON STORAGE
Monat had been outgrowing its 70,000-square-foot facility in suburban Miami, but the company would need more than just a larger facility to accommodate its projected growth. With Alpine’s help, company leaders found a 159,000-square-foot facility in Doral, Florida—close to its existing location—and immediately launched plans to maximize that footprint to allow for future growth. Monat’s existing facility featured single-deep pallet racking that was accessed by very narrow-aisle (VNA) forklifts; the new facility would feature high-density storage, incorporating drive-in-, select, and push-back racking to maximize space and improve overall productivity. This helped the company go from what would have been 5,000 pallet positions with its previous storage setup to more than 9,000 pallet positions in the new facility, according to Warner.
“We were really able to optimize that space,” he explains, emphasizing the benefits of the high-density storage system for the company’s long-term plans. “We had the space to grow; that was key. Next was space optimization and the flow [of products through the facility]. With our strategic master plan and storage-type analysis, that gave us great insight into how much of each type of storage and picking equipment we needed for all our activities.”
The phase one storage analysis and facility design/layout project streamlined the flow of pallets into and out of the facility, as well as cases of product going out, according to Michael Wohlwend, managing principal at Alpine Supply Chain Solutions.
Phase one was up and running by the summer of 2021.
STREAMLINING THE PICK PROCESS
Automation took hold in phase two, replacing Monat Global’s largely manual picking processes with a combination of solutions designed to increase speed and efficiency in the new warehouse and DC. Those solutions included conveyors and sorters, a pick-to-light system, and mobile computing and bar-code scanning as well as the implementation of SAP’s Extended Warehouse Management (EWM) system, which streamlines inventory management and goods movement through the warehouse. Those and other automated solutions helped minimize the labor required for picking and yielded a 48% improvement in lines filled per hour. Overall production through the facility per hour improved by 65%, according to Warner and Wohlwend.
“We also saw a major quality improvement to our customers with the new system,” Warner reports. “We have made a major leap forward. We’ve moved from a manual process to an automated system.”
The EWM system also helped with inbound receiving and pallet putaway—improving those processes by more than 300%. On the shipping side, automated packing and cartonization solutions helped streamline those functions, further reducing labor demands.
Phase two was up and running this past summer.
MAKING WAY FOR MORE AUTOMATION
Monat Global is now moving into phase three of its expansion plans, which includes beginning a discovery phase for opening another distribution hub in the Dallas area. Warner and Wohlwend say they will use the lessons learned in Florida to build a similar facility with maximized storage space and a slate of automated warehouse technologies. But they also plan to keep ramping up the automation in Florida, by continuously improving processes and adding new technologies where it makes sense. Future plans include implementing a learning management system for employee training and education, a labor management system, and an automated dock door scheduling system.
All told, the project is expected to deliver more than $3 million in cost savings.
“From my experience, having worked on a lot of big projects in my career … with the scope we have taken on, we’ve seen very good results,” says Warner. “We’ve taken steps that have changed our work in a big way.”
Wohlwend says it all comes back to strategic planning, adding that “world class preparation leads to flawless execution.”
