ECORNATURASÌ: WHERE ORGANICS AND LOGISTICS GO HAND IN HAND
Italian company EcorNaturaSì is the result of a merger between Ecor, Italy’s largest producer and retailer of organic and biodynamic products, and NaturaSì, the country’s top chain of organic supermarkets.
Sector: Food retail
Company: Production and sale of organic and biodynamic products.
Sites: San Vendemiano and Bologna
Challenge: Maximum efficiency of logistical processes and absolute safety for employees during all work activities.
Solution: For reach trucks, video cameras on the forks, lift height preselect system, automatic centring of the forks, glass roof and Curve Speed Control.
STILL products: 68 low level order pickers, 14 reach trucks, 8 high lift pallet trucks, 6 pallet trucks with driver platform, 2 front loaders.
Today, the Group employs around 1150 people and is directly represented on the market with 250 NaturaSì outlets and 230 CuoreBio outlets. EcorNaturaSì is therefore ideally positioned to take advantage of the increasing tendency among consumers to choose organic foods.
Each day, approx. 45 lorries leave EcorNaturaSì’s warehouses bound for all of Italy’s regions, supplying more than 9000 different items to around 8000 customers throughout the country. "One of the deciding factors that has enabled us to achieve a jump in quality and become a leader in our sector is the efficiency of our logistical processes," explains Mario Cicolecchia, Head of Logistics at EcorNaturaSì. "Industrial trucks play a crucial role in all of our logistics processes. We began working with STILL around thirty years ago and it has proved to be a successful partnership right from the start in every respect."
EcorNaturaSì already has a STILL fleet in use in its long-standing logistics hub in San Vendemiano. The company recently acquired 41 new STILL trucks to assist with handling tasks in the logistics centre in Bologna – an entirely new system covering an area of 40,000 square metres. The centre contains around 14,000 goods pallets and thousands of items are handled there every day. Cicolecchia continues: "Over the years, we have developed some very specific logistics processes, which means we have special requirements for forklift trucks and equipment. STILL was the only provider to understand how to cater to our requirements and to work together with us to develop tailored solutions. The results have always met our requirements with regard to efficiency and safety. That’s why we have also decided to use STILL forklift trucks in the new warehouse in Bologna."
In the new logistics centre, the STILL trucks are used for all handling tasks, from unloading the lorries to storage in the warehouse, through to preparing customer orders and loading products for dispatch. The new warehouse in Bologna now has 32 low level order pickers, four reach trucks, two pallet trucks with driver platform, two forklift trucks with stand-on platform and a front loader, all from STILL. The biggest challenge for STILL was to ensure maximum efficiency of the logistical processes and absolute safety for the driver when working between the high shelving in the warehouse. In order to solve this, the reach trucks were fitted with the most innovative assistance systems available: video cameras on the forks for improved control when working at heights, lift height preselect system Easy Target Plus, automatic centring of the forks, glass roof and Curve Speed Control for automatic speed adjustment when cornering.
"STILL’s driver assistance systems have proved essential for our logistics," states Cicolecchia. "In the warehouse in Bologna, we have positioned a camera between the forks of the reach trucks to assist the driver when working with a restricted view at heights. And even the glass roof has proved extremely important for all tasks when working at heights. These aids are crucial when controlling the truck: the operator can rely on driver assistance systems that make their work easier, reduce stress, provide greater comfort and increase productivity. All trucks also fully comply with our own safety requirements, which exceed the legally prescribed standards, as we place particular emphasis on our employees’ health. Once again, STILL has produced outstanding work in direct contact with the customer."
