NA-KD expands its automated warehouse a few months after launch

When NA-KD’s warehouse in Sweden, went live in July 2020, it had a storage capacity of 100,000 bins – where picking and storage was carried out with the help of 100 robots and 16 ports. In addition, Element Logic supplied NA-KD with conveyors and manual packing stations for consolidating goods from oversize. All packages are automatically sorted to different shipping suppliers with the help of a sorting system.

Ready for Black Friday

Already at the initial installation, they prepared a grid for another 25.000 bins, to be able to quickly scale up in case of increased need. After a very smooth start with the simple and flexible AutoStore solution, the design & analysis of an upcoming expansion began early. Ahead of Black Friday the same year, another 21 robots and 8 ports were installed to handle the increased growth. This is a good example of the flexibility of Element Logic’s AutoStore solutions where software, service and material flow handling solutions enable high availability, and scalability for any future expansions.

We had a chat with Fred Skantze, Head of Fulfillment at NA-KD.

Why did you choose to automate your warehouse?
– We wanted to optimise our warehouse space and productivity.

What is the result?
– The result has been good. In a very short time, we have managed to achieve good productivity even though the warehouse just started up approximately half a year ago. It has been relatively easy to get started and the operation has been successful.

How has Element Logic helped you before and during Black Friday?
– We got help with optimising the system to achieve maximum productivity. Element Logic also had a technician on site during Black Week who helped us prevent problems.

How did Black Friday go compared to previous years?
– We had a very successful Black Week. Despite very large volumes, we managed to deliver all orders without any significant backlog.

How did your warehouse employees manage the new system?
– Since it is a completely new warehouse, we have had many workers who have never worked with AutoStore before. Nevertheless, it has been easy for our employees to quickly learn the system and achieve expected productivity.

Would you recommend AutoStore to other companies?
– Depending on the company’s conditions and targets, AutoStore is definitely a great warehouse solution.

Can you give a summary on your automation project?
– In a very short time, we built a completely new warehouse, implemented a completely new WMS system, IT infrastructure and installed an AutoStore system very successfully without any major disruptions. We would never have done everything we did in 7 months without very good partners.