S&S Activewear Is On The Cutting Edge Of Warehouse Automation
S&S Activewear, a leading North American distributor of imprintable apparel and accessories, implemented a solution from Geek+ called PopPick. Warehouse robotics is going through an ongoing revolution. PopPick represents a new wave of flexible warehouse automation.
Founded in 1988 and headquartered in Bolingbrook, IL, S&S had revenues of $4.1 billion in 2023 following the acquisition of alphabroder, another leader in the branded merchandise industry. S&S ships more than 100 brands. Their 17 distribution centers, scattered across the US, have more than 4 million square feet of warehouse space, allowing them to offer next-day shipping to 41 states. If an order hits their warehouse by 5 pm, they will ship it out that day. The freight is free on orders over $200.
The company fulfills 6 million orders annually and claims to offer the deepest inventory in its industry, combined with the lowest error rates. Their investments in automation have been key to this.
A small order, for example, might consist of delivering 20 jerseys of the same color and basic design, but different sizes, that will be sent to a customer in the imprinting industry. The imprinter will print and decorate the apparel - t-shirts, hats, sweatshirts, socks, etc. - and then ship to the end user. Some imprinters can have very large orders that support concerts, marathons, trade shows, and other events.
So, while in some ways the S&S supply chain resembles an e-commerce supply chain in terms of speed of delivery, an e-commerce order is smaller, typically involving picking onesies and twosies.
Traditional warehouse automation was bolted down. There might be miles of conveyors with sortation, A-frames, carousels, or shuttle systems. John Santagate, the senior vice president of global robotics at Infios, points out that when warehouses with this bolted-down automation were designed to support multiyear growth, initially, the automation had greater throughput than was needed. Then, there was a period, often a relatively short period, when the throughput was a good match for shipments, and then, eventually, the throughput was insufficient. Adding more throughput is unwieldy and impractical. So, for most of the asset's life, it is underutilized.
Infios, where Mr. Santagate is employed, is one of the largest warehouse automation system integrators.
Warehouse robotics was revolutionary because it allows for greater throughput and flexible automation. Goods-to-person robots are used to move small racks containing inventory shelves to a picking station. A typical rack was small. It might be a short rack with four shelves on one side and four on the other. This is the primary type of robotics used in Amazon warehouses.
For each picking, this eliminates the redundant walking of the order selection workers. Compared to manual picking, the throughput is improved by a factor of 2 to 3 times. But this form of automation is also easy to install. It is nondisruptive to existing operations to add new robots and shelving as the throughput needs increase.
S&S implemented the PopPick solution from Geek+ Automation. This represents a new wave of automation. These X, Y, Z-axis robots transport much taller racks - up to 12 columns of totes - that contain full cases of a stock keeping unit. An arm with suction can grip a case or tote, pull it out, and ergonomically present it to a worker at an order selection station. Larger orders are easier to assemble, and warehouse storage density is many times larger than with the first-generation goods-to-person bots.
S&S has the largest implementation of the PopPick solution in the world. 100 to 200,000 square feet of racking have been replaced at five distribution centers – Lockport, IL, Reading, PA, McDonough, GA, Reno, and Dallas – with mobile robots and racks. At the 750,000 square foot Lockport DC, for example, 200,000 square feet are now devoted to 350 PopPick mobile bots, 3000 automated racks, and 120,000 customized blue totes.
The company was looking for automation. It is increasingly difficult to find workers willing to work in a warehouse. But what type of automation should they select?
Brian Tanquary, the vice president of information technology at S&S, said that one of 'the key decision factors that was used in selecting an automation solution was obviously the cost to implement, but it was also about how could that system fit within our current distribution footprint, and could that solution be adapted to work with our custom ERP platform.'
This solution is an excellent fit for apparel. An order to support a sports team might include two extra smalls, three smalls, 15 mediums, etc. These different SKUs are in different totes. Only a few SKUs would be brought over by a robot carrying a small rack. But PopPick allows for big racks – racks with up to 40 totes - to be brought to the picker. All the SKUs to complete the order are conveyed by one mobile robot.
The racks are reslotted every night to include SKUs likely to ship together. The same style and color of goods are placed on one rack. That leads to a more efficient delivery of racks to associates the next day.
Adam Kranich, an assistant operations manager at S&S, said that flexibility and productivity were both critical. One of 'the unique benefits of having PopPick is the ability to reslot and change your rack configurations on the fly, but it also offers an increased throughput that you won't get with standard goods-to-person. Our entire process has changed. Our associates went from spending 50 to 60% of their day driving around to the pick location instead of actually performing the job.'
Now robots do that. The workers have the work all lined up for them. They pick orders right into outbound boxes, and thus the downstream packing process has been streamlined. Cole Lohman, the director of automation, stated that 'in the past, we would see pickers work at 40 lines per hour, and we can get triple that. Now, under good conditions, we can see pickers that pick up to 200 lines per hour.'
Picking accuracy has also been improved because of the way the system was implemented. Mr. Tanquay explained that we 'weigh and measure the totes as they're being inducted into the system. This is a key checkpoint for us to ensure that we have the proper quantity and type of product in each tote. That helps us ensure that we get the correct product to the customer.'
The way product is inducted into the system is unique. Induction is putting goods into empty totes that will subsequently be picked. The process has been streamlined. Empty totes are extracted from the top of the rack while full totes are fed into the lower levels of the rack almost simultaneously. A multistep process has been simplified.
There have also been improvements in the speed with which new employees can be trained. Mr. Kranich said training 'went from upwards of 90 days to six months, down to about a week to two weeks.' The company believes that the simplified picking process, the fact that the workers don't have to walk as much, and improved ergonomics has also led to improved worker retention.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
12 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Unplugged Performance to Showcase Tesla Builds at Electrify Expo – North America's Largest EV Festival
3/4 Shot of 2024 Tesla Model 3 Performance with Unplugged Performance Carbon Fiber Aero Kit, UP Forged UP-03 Wheels, and Rear Dual Wing 2024 Tesla Model 3 Performance with Unplugged Performance Carbon Fiber Aero Kit, UP Forged UP-03 Wheels, and Rear Dual Wing 2024 Tesla Model 3 Performance with Unplugged Performance Carbon Fiber Front Aero Kit 2024 Tesla Model 3 Performance with Unplugged Performance Carbon Fiber Front Aero Kit, UP Forged UP-03 Wheels Birdseye view of a Tesla Model 3 Performance Highland with Carbon Fiber Aero Kit and UP Forged UP-03 Wheels Tesla Model Y with Leveling Lift Kit 2026 Tesla Model Y with Leveling Lift Kit and UP Forged UP-05 Wheels 2026 Tesla Model Y with Leveling Lift Kit and UP Forged UP-05 "Off-Road Spec" Wheels 2026 Tesla Model Y with UP Forged CYBRHEX Wheels Tesla Model Y Juniper with 22" UP Forged CYBRHEX Wheels Tesla Cybertruck INVINCIBLE build with 22" UP Forged CYBRHEX LOS ANGELES, June 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Unplugged Performance, the world leader in Tesla-focused performance upgrades, is headed to Electrify Expo, North America's premier electric vehicle lifestyle event. Taking place this weekend June 21st & 22nd, Electrify Expo invites EV enthusiasts, media, and families for an immersive look at the future of electrification. Unplugged Performance will be displaying four of its latest builds at the show, each with upgrades tailored for parts performance, durability, and everyday driving. Tesla Model 3 Performance 'Red Rocket' Track BuildBuilt to dominate the track and the streets, car features our: UP Race Pro Coilovers with Adaptive Canceller UP Carbon Fiber Front Aero Kit + Rear Dual Spoiler and Wing Set Up + Rear Spats and Diffuser 18x10.9 UP-03 Forged Wheels Yokohama ADVAN A052 295/35R18 Tires Satin Red 2026 Tesla Model Y Off-Road/Street BuildAdventure-ready, this MY build includes our: UP 35mm Leveling Lift Kit Off-Road Spec 18" UP-05 Forged Wheels Off-Road Sway Bar + End Links Yokohama GEOLANDAR Tires UP INVINCIBLE® Cybertruck Street BuildThe ultimate Tesla Cybertruck to take on anything on earth and beyond with: HD Front & Rear Bumpers, Bull Bar, Rock Sliders Carbon Fiber Hood w/ 50' LED Light Bar Side Sail Panel MOLLE Rack System 22' CYBRHEX Forged Wheels Yokohama GEOLANDAR Tires Quicksilver 2026 Tesla Model Y Off-Road/Street BuildReady for the streets, this MY build includes our: 22' UP Forged CYBRHEX Wheels Moderate option Dual Rate Lowering Springs Yokohama Parada Spex-X Tires Learn more about our products at Media Contact:Bryan Benitezpress@ Photos accompanying this announcement are available at: in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
16 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Scholar Rock (SRRK) Jumps 16.6% After Successful Weight Loss Drug Trial
We recently published a list of These 10 Stocks Boast Double-Digit Gains Amid Boring Market. Scholar Rock Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:SRRK) is one of the best-performing stocks on Thursday. Scholar Rock jumped by 16.6 percent on Wednesday to close at $36.32 apiece as investor sentiment was bolstered by the positive results from the second phase of its weight loss drug trial. In a statement, Scholar Rock Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:SRRK) said the trial, which aims to assess its drug candidate apitegromab's combination with tirzepatide, was generally well tolerated, leading to higher quality weight loss as compared with taking tirzepatide alone. According to Scholar Rock Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:SRRK), apitegromab therapy in combination with tirzepatide resulted in the preservation of 4.2 pounds of lean mass compared with tirzepatide alone. 'While this is an exciting development for our platform, we remain focused on preparing for the launch of apitegromab, and following its potential approval in SMA, we look forward to studying it in a range of neuromuscular diseases with high unmet need,' said Scholar Rock Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:SRRK) President and CEO Akshay Vaishnaw, adding that he was looking forward to exploring its potential in various rare, severe debilitating neuromuscular disorders. A scientist holding a flask of liquid in a laboratory, highlighting the research and discoveries of new treatments. 'We remain on track to file an IND application for SRK-439 in the second half of this year to support the first in human study,' he said. While we acknowledge the potential of SRRK as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an extremely cheap AI stock that is also a major beneficiary of Trump tariffs and onshoring, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Wall Street Journal
18 minutes ago
- Wall Street Journal
Trump Says He's Nearing a Possible Deal With Harvard
President Trump said his administration was 'working closely' with Harvard University and could announce a deal within the next week. The White House and Harvard have been locked in battle since late March. Trump has pulled billions in federal funds over antisemitism and DEI concerns, tried to block Harvard's ability to enroll international students and threatened its tax-exempt status. Harvard has sued the administration, saying the government has violated its First Amendment rights.
