Handling Groceries from Warehouse to Retail Store Shelves

Excerpts from the report Summary: Improved handling of groceries from the warehouse to the retail grocery store shelves offers the opportunity for substantial savings An estimated five billion cases of grocery products are moved each year from warehouses into retail food stores. Handling time per case ranges from 3 to 6 man-minutes depending on the method used. If this time were reduced by 1 minute and the time saved used effectively, an annual savings in food handling costs would total $160 million. Eight combinations of methods of handling groceries were studied. Costs ranged from $124.50 to $155.70 per thousand cases, a difference of 25 percent. The eight systems were: (1) Merchandise assembled and shipped on pallets and priced In the storeroom; (2) merchandise assembled and shaped on pallets and priced at the store shelf; (3) merchandise handstacked in trailer. And priced In the storeroom after receiving; (4) merchandise handstacked in trailers and priced at the store shelf; (5) merchandise loaded on trailers with a multiforklift truck and priced in the storeroom after receiving; (6) merchandise loaded with a multlforkllft truck and priced at the shelf, (7) merchandise handstacked in trailers and priced as received; and (8) merchandise loaded with multifork truck and priced as received. Of the eight systems, loading by multifork, receiving by conveyor, and pricing at the shelf using 4-wheel stock trucks (Number 6) was the lowest cost system ($124.40 per thousand cases) when the warehouse was 30 miles from the retail store. Second lowest cost system ($125.90 per thousand was handstacking in the delivery truck, receiving by conveyor and pricing at the shelf (Number 4).