Our customer
Erima is the oldest still existing German sporting goods company with over 115 years of experience in team sports. Based in Pfullingen, the company has subsidiaries in France, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium and the Netherlands. Over the years, premium quality, design, innovation, passion, authenticity and team spirit have become firmly anchored in the sporting goods manufacturer's DNA. The eventful history of Erima begins with the company founder Remigius Wehrstein launching his company for the "Sale of Gymnastics Clothing” in 1900. In 1936, Erich Mak (hence the name Erima) became the new owner of the company, which he continued to run until 1975/76. After an intermezzo with Adidas, Wolfram Mannherz took over the company following a management buy-out in 2005. The company then begins to expand as a football supplier. In response to increasing order volumes and limited storage capacity, Erima had to expand their storage capacity. Since July 2019, the logistics centre has been located in Kirchentellinsfurt near Tübingen, where the administrative headquarters were also relocated in 2021.
Initial situation and customer requirements
- The new logistics centre in Kirchentellinsfurt operates a custom designed fully automated AutoStore system with 51 robots and a storage capacity of currently 150,000 BITO EQ folding containers; the system’s storage capacity can be increased to 180,000 containers. Folded EQ containers are stacked in aluminium shelving.
- There is also a manually serviced high-bay rack for bulky goods with a capacity of 3,800 pallet storage positions.
- The logistics infrastructure is capable of handling around 2,000 orders and 2,500 parcels per day.
- The range of products in stock is characterised by a wide variety of items and large inventories, partly due to a four-year availability guarantee.
- The goods are to be repacked from the Autostore containers into special containers at specific packing stations. The EQ containers are intended for internal circulation and, above all, for in-house order picking.
- Silent travelling on conveyors and space-saving storage were further requirements.
The BITO Solution
- Erima opted for EQ folding boxes. When empty and folded, they are extremely space-saving with a volume saving ratio of 1:4. The reinforced ribbed base carries loads of up to 50 kg during storage and transport.
- At Erima, EQ boxes are primarily used for in-house order picking and also for the internal cycle.
- Operation on conveyors is particularly quiet and the containers can also be used in ASRS systems. EQ boxes can be used in a temperature range between -20 and +90°C.
- The simple and ergonomically designed folding mechanism is what sets the EQ container apart from its competitors.
On-site application
- The sporting goods are repacked from the Autostore system into EQ containers at dedicated packing stations.
- The EQ boxes are then transported to the corresponding packing stations.
- The sporting goods are prepared for shipment at the packing stations. For this purpose, they are repacked into pre-assigned cardboard boxes.
- Grey containers are used as circulation containers and orange containers for the goods channelled out for quality inspection.
Customer benefits
- The EQ box is ideally suited for in-house handling, i.e. goods can be handled safely and without risk of damage on conveyor systems.
- The quiet operation of EQ containers on conveyors creates a more ergonomic work environment.
- In addition, the possibility of reducing the volume to just one quarter of the unfolded volume saves an enormous amount of space and hence money during storage and transport.
- Erima uses EQ boxes in two colour variants. Grey EQ boxes serve as circulation containers. Orange boxes are used to identify goods channelled out for quality inspection. This colour choice rules out any possibility of mix-ups.
