Integrated Materials Management at Emmi, Kirchberg

Emmi is the largest Swiss milk processor and one of the most innovative premium dairies in Europe. In Switzerland, Emmi focuses on the development, production and marketing of a full range of dairy and fresh products as well as the production, ageing and trade of primarily Swiss cheeses. Outside Switzerland, Emmi concentrates on brand concepts and specialities in European and North American markets. The primary focus in fresh products is on lifestyle, convenience and health products. In the cheese business, Emmi positions itself as the leading company worldwide for Swiss cheese. Emmi's customers are primarily the retail trade, the food service sector and the food industry. In 2008, Emmi achieved net sales of CHF 2.7 billion and employed a total of 3,500 people (full-time equivalents) in Switzerland and abroad.

apixxo AG implemented an integrated materials management solution for EMMI in the Kirchberg picking location. The picking location is designed as a short term storage warehouse with 140 roll conveyors of three different lengths. (20, respectively 40 bin locations). One host controls all processes within the plant. The allocation of articles to bin locations is freely configurable.  

In the adjacent manufacturing facility, cheese is processed using twelve production lines. The cheese is portioned, labelled and then stored by article and batch in the picking location. Packaging units consisting of up to ten individual packages are tracked by article as well as by batch until picking.   

apixxo AG implemented the featherlite framework as well as the components Warehouse Management and Warehouse Control. 

The implemented solution provides extensive functionality that guarantees a seamless as well as efficient control of all material flows in real-time. In a first step, picking orders are created that consist of article ID, batch ID and order quantity. The system then runs an availability check for available storage locations. Subsequently, it compares the target quantity to the manufactured quantity. The manufactured articles are allocated to storage locations. The system controls and coordinates the to-bin transfer via rack feeders

A comprehensive batch management solution tracks all packaging units from storage to picking. The system also provides all required functions for inventory management and physical inventory as well as a visualization of batch distribution across storage locations.