- Nothing could be finer. To support newly opened stores in the Carolinas, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Virginia, Louisiana and Tennessee, Walgreen's broke ground last summer on a $180 million distribution center near Anderson, S.C. The 700,000-square-foot central distribution facility will feature high-end automation and robotics developed and supplied by SSI Schaefer. When finished, the DC will be equipped with state-of-the-art automated storage and retrieval technology for both pallets and totes.
- A sturdy backbone. WhereNet and Cisco Systems are teaming up to incorporate Cisco technology into WhereNet's wireless location and communications systems. The result will be a single, integrated wireless infrastructure that supports real-time location, messaging and telemetry applications, as well as mobile workforce communication. A majority of WhereNet's current customers already have Cisco wireless backbones in their facilities. The new technology will now allow extended coverage and functionality through the WhereLAN integrated wireless local network.
- DHL it. Talbots, a retailer of women's apparel, shoes and accessories, has chosen DHL to handle its catalog and online deliveries. Talbots makes about 10,000 direct-toconsumer shipments each day from its distribution center in Lakeville, Mass. By going with DHL's @home businessto- consumer delivery service, Talbots has cut delivery times from the DC to the West Coast from six days to four. DHL has also created a customized program for Talbots that includes specialized customer service and account monitoring to assure delivery requirements are met.
- Three-way collaboration. Psion Teklogix, KonaWare and Accord Software have joined forces to provide a complete mobile computing solution for the less-than-truckload (LTL) industry. The collaboration will help small and mediumsized trucking fleets move from paper-based reporting to a more efficient automated process. Customers will also benefit from improved pickup and delivery times, reduced paperwork and increased fleet visibility.
- Simulation success. Automation Associates, a company that provides simulation solutions for the global supply chain, has acquired Simulation Modeling Services. SMS is a consulting and software solutions provider to the material handling, distribution, manufacturing, healthcare and services industries. As part of the acquisition, the San Diegobased Automation Associates will open a new regional office in Chicago.
- Now that's stretching the Dollar. Dollar Tree Stores Inc. has just opened a new 1.2 million-square-foot distribution center in Joliet, Ill. FKI Logistex provided the material handling system, which includes conveyor, merge and sortation systems. The facility is the largest in Dollar Tree's network and will serve the discount variety chain's stores in the Midwest.
- Worth its weight. Jewelry distributor Quality Gold has installed a EuroSort sorter at its distribution facility in Cincinnati. The EuroSort ESF sorting system has improved sorting at Quality Gold from 7,000 pieces per hour to over 20,000 pieces an hour. The sorter, a quad-tray system using flat trays, represents the first EuroSort sorter installed in the United States for jewelry distribution.
- Exel-lent deal. Exel and RedPrairie have formalized a five-year agreement to jointly develop supply chain solutions. Though the two companies have collaborated on projects over the past 20 years, the new deal will formalize a framework to use RedPrairie's supply chain software (including inventory control, tracking and tracing, and warehouse and labor management systems) throughout Exel's worldwide logistics operations.
- On Wisconsin. Kewill Solutions North America has added SPSI (Systems & Programming Solutions Inc.) to its ranks of value-added resellers. With offices in Milwaukee and Madison, Wis., SPSI will market and deploy Kewill's shipping management solutions, including Clippership. SPSI is a supplier of information technology systems for companies in the Midwest.
- Stratum's sphere. Software provider LANSA has announced a partnership with Stratum Global to focus on the RFID market. Stratum Global is a new spin-off company headed by a former LANSA executive. It will sell LANSA products and act as an integrator for RFID applications marketed under the Stratum RF brand. Existing LANSA RFID Direct customers will be migrated to Stratum Global solutions.
- Going west. DHL has signed a lease agreement with Marhub LLC to establish a new West Coast distribution facility at the March Air Reserve Base in Riverside, Calif. DHL expects to invest $65 million in the site, which is part of an overall investment of $1.2 billion that DHL is making in its North American network. The new facility is designed to enhance customer service, increase network efficiency and enable greater connectivity within DHL's pickup and delivery network.
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