We can all agree that technology has changed our lives in many ways compared to even a few years ago. These days, the packages that land on your front porch from your online order are expected to arrive quickly, cheaply and damage-free.

Companies have had to innovate to stay competitive in the marketplace using technology in their distribution systems. And whether their materials are being shipped to a consumer’s own home or to a retail store, this requires logistics systems that are flexible and accurate.

This can seem like a daunting undertaking for small or mid-sized companies that have always done things in a certain way, yet they are finding that their customers are expecting more speed and efficiency in getting product.

That is why having an experienced partner can help to solve your distribution problems. One of our suppliers, Rockwell Automation, published a recent blog that summarized it best: not a single executive has ever said, “I wish we’d waited longer to modernize our facilities, lower costs, improve performance, and boost the bottom line.”

One of CDI’s contributions to the distribution industry has been to develop a high-speed conveyor sortation applications using Entivity VLC software. The requirements of identifying, tracking and diverting cartons at up to 600fpm can be very demanding on a control system. TrueSort® easily handles the situation using the VLC, Interbus I/O and some custom developed OPC applications.

One of our flagship project installations of TrueSort® is an order fulfillment application in a distribution warehouse located in Mississauga, Ontario. The sortation conveyor runs at 230 fpm, has 11 diverts and can sort cartons in excess of 85 cartons per minute. 

Interested in how technology can improve your distribution center? Know you need to innovate but don’t know where to start? Contact us today to start the conversation.