HONORABLE MENTION

Student Design Team

Skimping on space, this winning design relies on a multiple-level mezzanine and proven equipment to serve an industry in transition

THE TEAM
David Blacklock
David Embry
Victor Sanchez
Jorge Valadez

Student advisor: Dr. Linda Riley

THE DETAILS

• The existing layout of the building was retained in order to minimize startup costs

• Large mezzanine employs existing columns as supports and effectively uses vertical air space

• Burden carriers, which transport cases to the two-level mezzanine center, have lower overall operational costs than conventional gas or propane utility vehicles

• SKUs are segregated by activity level to minimize travel distance, as well as bending and reaching motions

• “Case only” operation eliminates handling steps and need for different types of storage media

• Extensive use of bar codes helps maintain good control over operations, track orders and cases, and perform sortation

or a number of years, the shoe industry has been experiencing reduced margins due to competition. These market dynamics were a key factor in our decision to minimize the amount of capital investment for the operation,” says Student Victor Sanchez. The team’s main objective was to develop a system that takes advantage of traditional equipment with a heavy reliance on information systems and technology. Since Sneaky has the option to lease out unused space, Sanchez says considerable effort was made to minimize the amount of floorspace utilized and collect rent on the rest.

The Material Flow
Incoming merchandise is transported from the receiving dock via burden vehicles directly to the mezzanine picking center, where it is unloaded and placed onto carts. Cases are scanned and automatically assigned a storage location based on priority. Workers pick cases from racks onto carts, then transfer them to a conveyor belt that transports cases to a staging area. From here, cases are sorted off the conveyor onto a burden carrier and transported to the appropriate truck dock.

FACILITY LAYOUT