Connecting the Dots: high speed inverters make the difference!

Overview
For a number of years, Cherry’s has worked with Dot Foods, North America’s largest food industry redistributor. Dot Foods delivers product to distributors nationally. Its preparation and transportation relies upon pallets at both ends of the supply chain.
 
Over the course of its work with Dot Foods, Cherry’s has designed, built and delivered nearly 20 pallet inverters for use at its different locations across the United States (there are 15 in all). Cherry’s most recent work has been working on a custom pallet inverter for use in the Vidalia, GA facility.
 
Greg Hamlin, the Account Manager at Cherry’s who works directly with Dot Foods, shares some details of Cherry’s work with this foodservice icon.
 
 
Over the course of its work with Dot Foods, Cherry’s has designed, built and delivered nearly 20 pallet inverters for use at its 15 facilities across North America. Cherry’s most recent work has been working on a custom pallet inverter for use in the Vidalia, GA facility.
 
Greg Hamlin, the Account Manager at Cherry’s who works directly with Dot Foods, shares some details of Cherry’s work with this food service icon.


The Challenge
Greg recalls, “Our initial work began with Dot Foods because the company did its loading, unloading, and swapping out of pallets by hand.”
 
Sometimes product the company received would have been loaded onto a defective or unstable pallet, and a load would need to be changed.
 
Swapping out a pallet or moving one would require at least two humans to accomplish the task, and this could be needed many times throughout a day. It was this realization that led the company to work with Cherry’s to develop a pallet inverter to reduce the need for humans to move the pallets.
 
The pallet inverter became the solution of choice for Dot Foods. “Some of the pallets could be extremely heavy, and with so many human hands-on pallets, the risk of worker injury increases dramatically.”
 
An additional challenge is that, because the activity level and specific needs at each Dot Foods facility may vary, there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution for a pallet inverter. A recent request was for a pallet inverter that would be used primarily in a freezer, a much tougher environment = where others might be used on the floor, or cold dock storage – or a mix of all. Because Cherry’s understands that each client is individual and unique, as are its requirements, they were able to develop a relationship with Dot Foods that addresses the company’s individual needs for each engagement.


The Solution
Greg says, “The relationship with our client is always important, and it guides our approach.”
 
Dot Foods sought a partner who would understand and be able to meet its needs, custom-designing equipment to align with the requirements of each facility.
 
 Greg says that the company has a strong relationship with Dot’s engineering and purchasing team, and in particular with its main purchasing agent.
 
In a recent project, Greg notes, “One location had much higher traffic and loads per hour than other facilities.” The solution was to build a high-speed option for the inverter, which can save about 30% of cycle time. In this latest case, the inverter would be used in a freezer with tougher working conditions.
 
Additional modifications included a longer cord on the pendant control, and adjusting voltage specifications to meet differing needs per facility.
 
“They appreciate our support, and our commitment to being there should they need us –for service, consulting and parts--as well as our deep understanding, built over the years, of their company and its individual needs.”


The Results
Greg says, “Everything we have done has led to cost savings and improved efficiency for Dot Foods. Our work has also reduced the likelihood of workplace injury.”
 
He continues, “Eliminating the need for human hands swapping out pallets in a fast-moving assembly line is a big win for the company. It saves in many ways. Time is money.”
 
And each engagement further strengthens the relationship between the companies. “Their purchasing agent alerts us when a facility is in need—often due to growth and expansion on their part—and we get to work with them to fulfill the needs.”


Conclusion
Trust matters in a business relationship. Our clients know that we say what we mean and we mean what we say – and that we are with them for the long run. They know that when they have a need, we will be there to address it promptly and find the individual solution that works for them.