Background
Based in Paris, Sante Service is an association that ships medical supplies to people who have just been discharged from hospital and need the medical supply in their homes. The materials – medicines, dressings, syringes, and other essentials – are packed in a centralised location and dispatched directly to the patients. The high volume of shipments and the need for accuracy were straining the operation.
Pain Points
Sante Service had a large volume of medical supplies to process and send to some of its 1,300 patients everyday, and accuracy is extremely critical. The service aimed to provide 80 percent of its orders within two hours after receiving a request. But this was a very challenging target, especially when operators had to search more than 1,000 items a day on shelves and retrieve them manually. It was impossible to avoid picking errors.
Solution
Sante Service chose two Modula Lift ML25 VLMs to improve picking speed and accuracy while handling the medical supplies. With the VLMs, the organisation benefited from quick and error- free picking. Using radiofrequency terminals, orders for medical supplies are sent to the Modula VLMs to preapare. Operators then retrieve the items, with clear guidance of a laser indicator pointing at items to pick from a tray, and then place them in containers. Those containers are then transferred to the various departments through conveyor belts. Sante Service chose double, opposed bay configuration that allows access to the machine from two positions. Thus way, picking and transfer operations can be performed by two operators simultaneously. The Modula VLM also made the best use of their vertical space, parts previously stored in 225 square meters shelves all fit in Modula machines which only takes 15 square meters of floor space now.
Thanks to Modula’s warehouse management system (WMS) solution, Sante Service can also monitor inventory in real time.
