The European headquarters and the Spare Parts Centre of CLARK Europe are only a stone's throw away from the A40, known as the Ruhrschnellweg. A wide variety of storage options, including three-tier shelving based on the META CLIP racking system, ensure professional storage and optimum order picking speed for a wide variety of individual parts.
With more than 100 years of experience in the industrial truck business and over 1.3 million forklifts sold worldwide, CLARK is one of the global market leaders in this field. The product range of the forklift specialist consists of forklifts with electric and combustion engine drives with load capacities from 1.5 to 8 t, warehouse technology equipment and a comprehensive range of services for industrial trucks. The operations of the industrial truck specialist are handled by four central offices around the world. CLARK Europe GmbH in Duisburg looks after the European, Middle Eastern and African regions with around 168 CLARK dealers in a total of 58 countries.
The International Spare Parts Centre in Duisburg, the spare parts centre for CLARK Europe, is a state-of-the-art complex in which around 23,000 components for more than 100,000 product applications are stored across an area spanning 17222,26 square feet. All orders that arrive in this spare parts centre by 5:00 p.m. will be delivered by 12:00 p.m. the following day.
In addition to a shuttle system for the smallest spare parts and pallet racking systems providing buffer storage and pallet storage, the three-tier shelving with steel components based on the META CLIP racking system forms an essential element of this distribution centre.
As the new racking system including the steel structure was to be added to an existing two-tier shelving system, extensive planning was required by META. This included the addition of several stairwells and pallet transfer stations. Structural adjustments for seismic zone 0 were also necessary. The aim of the project was a tailor-made and flexible storage facility for a wide variety of product groups with maximum use of space across three levels and short, optimised order picking routes.
The result is three-tier shelving with steel components based on the META CLIP racking system. Warehouse halls are where the flexible and robust META QUICK shelving systems display their many benefits. They are designed to be able to form multi-tier shelving systems. With a wide range of accessories, the META CLIP system also offers maximum options for organising all kinds of stored goods. The system can adapt to shifting requirements without major effort, saving customers time and money.
Various individual parts, such as filters, spark plugs, service kits, glass panes, lighting accessories, electrical components etc. are stored on the two lower levels. In accordance with the structural requirements, the racking system was designed with 2,140 large shelves with a shelf widthof 51.181 x 23.622 inch and 39.370 x 23.622 inch. This offers maximum flexibility, even for larger and more fragile goods. Drawers with suitable plastic boxes are used for space-saving and efficient storage. Cable pulls are also provided on pegboard hooks on the side panels in the centre aisle.
The top level is equipped with a full chipboard cover and is used to store large overhead guards and cab parts for a wide variety of truck versions. With a permissible load of 1102,31 lbs per m², the top level is optimally designed to store heavier items on special pallets. Gratings are used as floor coverings throughout the main centre aisle on fire protection grounds, to evacuate smoke quickly and to allow daylight to reach the lower level.
"The requirement was a tailor-made multi-tier system in which we could flexibly store a wide variety of spare parts. We have found the perfect provider in META", explains Torsten Schiebold, Warehouse Team Leader at CLARK Europe. "The entire collaboration and contact with the sales force and back office staff, including the professional assembly team, was a success and, as a result, we were able to work closely to develop a suitable and flexible storage concept".