Portech replaces paper stock processes at Orapi in eight-week warehouse project

Birmingham technology company Portech has replaced paper-based stock processes at chemical manufacturer Orapi UK with a barcode system providing real-time visibility of inventory locations.

The project was completed in six to eight weeks as Orapi prepared to move into a new manufacturing and distribution facility.

Orapi manufactures products for the automotive, metal treatment and janitorial sectors, with customers including Toyota, Jaguar Land Rover, JCB, Howdens and Wren Kitchens. Before the move, its warehouse processes relied heavily on paperwork and employees’ knowledge of where individual items were stored.

Although Orapi recorded stock quantities and values, it did not always have visibility of where inventory was physically located in the warehouse.

Orapi operations manager Karl Parsons said: “People would say, ‘we haven’t got the stock’, but realistically it was more to do with not being able to find the stock.”

Rather than carry those processes into the new facility, Orapi worked with Portech to introduce barcode-based stock management. Portech collaborated with the manufacturer’s operations and IT teams and its mainframe provider to map the warehouse, establish stock locations and connect the processes with Orapi’s existing systems.

Warehouse operators now use handheld scanners that direct them to the location of the required stock, while movements are recorded as they take place.

Parsons said: “The amount of downtime has reduced enormously because people know exactly where they’re going.”

The next planned stage is the introduction of perpetual inventory, which would allow Orapi to count stock throughout the year while continuing operations instead of shutting down for an annual stocktake.

Portech is based at Tyseley Energy Park in Birmingham and supplies Auto-ID, data capture and warehouse management technology. Its systems cover warehouse and inventory management, mobile labelling, RFID and other applications for sectors including manufacturing, healthcare, retail and utilities. Portech Systems Ltd

Parsons added: “I would recommend Portech. Where we needed further modifications added to the system to help us with our working life, it was done, and it was done quickly.”

TechSparx has previously covered a similar Portech deployment at Birmingham manufacturer Webster and Horsfall. In that project, Portech introduced a stock management system that reduced the manufacturer’s stocktake from five days to two working days and paved the way for perpetual stock counting. The earlier project provides relevant context for Orapi’s planned move towards the same approach. TechSparx

Read more: Portech cuts Webster and Horsfall stocktake from five days to two

Image source: Orapi