Talk walks the walk
September 1st 2009 Faster than anticipated return on investment, improved pick rates and 70 per cent fewer picking errors have convinced Co-op to invest more in voice picking solutions from Zetes
The Co-operative Group first
implemented a voice picking
system in its West Thurrock DC in
2006. Since then, Zetes has implemented
voice at three more Co-operative sites
with usage of voice also extending to the
Thetford, Norfolk DC and Birtley,
Gateshead, two new DCs which have
replaced older facilities.
Zetes' is a long standing supplier to
Co-op and its voice solution supports
over 1200 warehouse users based across
six Distribution Centres (DCs) and
serving over 3,200 retail stores. Voice was
selected as the right technology to enable
faster stock picking because of the speed
and complexity of Co-op's warehouse
operation and the high numbers of
product lines stocked.
Although the business case for Co-op's
WMS overhaul and voice
implementation was built around a three
to four year payback, the organisation has
seen much higher than anticipated
returns, particularly for Zetes' voice
system, with pick errors down by up to
70 per cent and picking rates improved
beyond original business case
estimations. Operational and
management performance targets are also
being continually improved upon beyond
expectations at live 'voice' sites, and
training of new users can now be
completed in less than four hours.
Zetes claims it was selected as Co-op's
preferred voice technology partner
because of its reputation as an auto ID
system integrator with extensive voice
expertise and pan-European experience.
"Zetes not only matched our
requirements regarding availability, cost
and other critical criteria, they also
understood our issues from the
beginning and we were impressed by
their pro-active approach," says Tim
Edwards, retail logistics business projects
manager at The Co-operative.
The Co-Operative Group is using
Vocollect's Talkman devices which Zetes
has integrated with Co-op's Manhattan
WMS. The voice system is used for all
picking and marshalling activities across
multiple warehouse environments
including ambient, produce, chilled and
frozen areas.
"We are very pleased that such a highly
reputed organisation as The Co-operative
Group recognises the added value of our
experience and ability to deliver large
projects to major retailers. This project
was an important roll-out which perfectly
illustrates the advantages a company can
get from working with Zetes as a voice
solution provider. In particular our voice
solutions are adaptable for use within
most warehouse environments and
pickers working in frozen areas will be
very appreciative of the positive benefits
of using a voice interface," says James
Hannay, VP of Northern Europe at Zetes.
The voice system has also proved very
popular with The Co-operative's
multilingual workforce who found it both
easy to begin using and convenient to
work in their native tongues. "Ultimately,
voice technology allows us to ensure our
customers receive a timely and accurate
service, and that's what is most important
to the business," concludes Edwards. More articles from Zetes: | 
