TGW to Design and Implement an Automation Solution for Urban Outfitters, Inc. New Fulfillment Center in Kansas City

Flexible Digital/Retail fulfillment solution for Urban Outfitters in the USA

• New distribution center in Kansas City planned to support the significant growth of Urban Outfitters, Inc.
• Key automation feature is FlashPick® – the smart order fulfillment system for automated split case picking

(Grand Rapids, Michigan, February 8, 2021) Urban Outfitters, Inc. (URBN), a leading lifestyle products and services company, which operates a portfolio of global consumer brands comprised of Anthropologie, BHLDN, Free People, Terrain, Urban Outfitters, Nuuly and a Food and Beverage division has appointed TGW to design and implement an automation solution for their new fulfillment center in Kansas City, KS in the US. The project is due to go live in 2023.

TGW’s FlashPick® system is at the heart of the solution. The FlashPick® design builds upon the URBN pilot program in the UK using TGW´s smart picking robot Rovolution, which picks orders fully automatically and ensures the next phase of picking is being addressed. TGW’s FlashPick® design incorporates two (2) PickCenter Rovolution workstations in Phase 1, along with forty-six (46) PickCenter One workstations. FlashPick® allows URBN to use the horsepower or “engine” to pick orders discreetly. The engine horsepower is harnessed by TGW’s PickCenter One workstations. TGW’s design incorporates the same workstations and software as in the UK.

At goods receiving, cartons are emptied into totes and transported to the storage warehouse, which is used to feed the shuttle system. Totes are then transported to 46 goods-to-person workstations, where items are picked into target totes. The different areas are connected by an energy-efficient KingDrive® conveyor system. The TGW warehouse control system interfaces with a Manhattan WMS.

Collaborative effort

The collaborative effort between URBN and TGW in the US and UK means that regardless of the channel (Retail or Digital), the operational processes remain the same and operational training for associates and maintenance support is simplified globally.
Strong partner

“TGW has been a strong partner, demonstrating agility of thinking in developing a solution that will enable capabilities to adapt our speed & efficiency to meet the needs of our rapidly growing business globally,” says Melinda McClure, Executive Director of North American Logistics.

She adds: “The new facility, located in Kansas City, Kansas, will be highly automated, incorporate robotics and provides the capacity necessary to support our fast-growing business. TGW supported us to design a modular solution we believe is simple, flexible and adaptable to the future needs of our customers”.

“The fulfillment center marks a new level of strategic collaboration between Urban Outfitters and TGW”, underscores Chad Zollman, CSO TGW North America, “It demonstrates our commitment to becoming the partner of choice for global warehouse automation fulfillment solutions.”

About TGW Logistics Group:
TGW Logistics Group is one of the leading, international suppliers of material handling solutions. For more than 50 years, the Austrian specialist has implemented automated systems for its international customers, including brands from A as in Adidas to Z as in Zalando. As systems integrator, TGW plans, produces and implements complex logistics centers, from mechatronic products and robots to control systems and software.

TGW Logistics Group has subsidiaries in Europe, China and the US and more than 3,700 employees worldwide. In the 2019/20 business year, the company generated a total turnover of 835.8 million euros.

Contact:
TGW Systems Inc.
3001 ORCHARD VISTA DRIVE, SUITE 300
GRAND RAPIDS, MI 49546
T: +1 231 798 4547
e-mail: usinfo@tgw-group.com

Press contact:
Andy Lockhart
Vice President of Business Development
e-mail: andy.lockhart@tgw-group.com
T: +1616 414 2633

Lisa Weilharter
Marketing Specialist
e-mail: lisa.weilharter@tgw-group.com
T: +1616 970 7163

 

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