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Setting New Warehouse Safety Standards: How Rubix Leveraged Kardex Solutions for Hazardous Storage

Written by Anja Rösch | Dec 11, 2023 2:56:05 PM

Rubix, a renowned global distributor of industrial products, teamed up with Kardex, a global leader in smart intralogistics solutions, to develop a cutting-edge hazardous materials storage solution. In the Rubix national distribution center in Wolverhampton, UK, operators pick and maintain multiple components and provide the available stock to customers. Rubix has been a long-time partner of Kardex. With more than 30 machines nationwide, they rely on Kardex's advanced technology to ensure fast, accurate, and safe order picking.

 
 


The challenge: safe and compliant storage of hazardous items 

Faced with the daunting task of safely storing hazardous items like flammable liquids, Rubix needed a solution that adhered to strict regulatory standards. After an audit, they decided to meet strict HSE (health and safety executive) regulations and protect colleagues, customers, products, and the environment. "We were driven to find a best practice health & safety warehouse solution, particularly one that would meet the standards of COSHH (control of substances hazardous to health)", explains Alistair Yates, Programme Manager - Logistics Function, Rubix UK. 

The idea was to find a solution that would ensure safe storage while reducing the touchpoints between operators and hazardous items at the same time. 

The solution: two Kardex Shuttles and two Kardex Compact Buffers

"To create a secure environment for storing classified COSHH products like greases and aerosols, we installed two Kardex Shuttles and two Kardex Compact Buffers," explains Richard Ellis, System Sales Manager at Kardex Remstar UK. 

The Kardex Compact Buffers store all small items with a maximum weight of up to 35kg and fit into a 640x440 mm bin. All other items are stored in the Kardex Shuttles. A blast cage prevents damage in the rest of the warehouse in case of an explosion within the machine.  
Rubix selected Kardex VBM and VLM Boxes, which deliver flexible storage equipped with a divider system. This design optimizes the organization of storage locations and maximizes available space within the machines. 

The results: enhanced safety, efficiency, and growth potential

The Kardex solution enables Rubix to centralize hazardous item storage, significantly reducing touchpoints and minimizing risk. Labor demand is also more manageable requiring just 5 specialized and trained people touching these items. Overall, the solution supports fast and very secure picking.  

"Our future plans include implementing the Kardex Frame Pick System to enhance our processes further. This will provide complete stock transparency and facilitate batch picking, supporting the ambitious goal of a fivefold increase which will deliver growth in the near future," shares Matt Luke, Logistics Director, Rubix UK. 

About Rubix

Rubix is Europe’s leading distributor of industrial maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) products and services, carrying all premium brands. More than 8,500 employees are armed with the specialist knowledge and technical expertise to help customers solve their manufacturing and processing problems.
Learn more about Rubix: RUBIX UK | Industrial supply
 

About Kardex

Kardex is a leading intralogistics solution provider of automated storage, retrieval and material handling systems. With two entrepreneurially managed divisions, Kardex Remstar and Kardex Mlog, the Kardex mission is to provide solutions and services to increase the efficiency in storing and handling of goods and materials on a global scale.
 
The two divisions serve as partners over the entire life cycle of a customer's product or solution. From project analysis to realization and service, Kardex helps improve a customer’s performance every step of the way. With three own production plants in Germany and one in North America Kardex ensures high quality solutions. To maintain and strengthen its competitive position within technological innovation and outstanding customer loyalty, Kardex is investing in research and development, its supply chain, the expansion of its service organization as well as in new technology via acquisitions. Kardex actively partners with global leaders who share the same values and complement the Kardex solutions including AutoStore, Rocket Solution, Robomotive, Intertex and Sumobox.
 
Kardex employs 2,000 team members across 30 countries and has installed over 140,000 industry-specific solutions worldwide.

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