In 2012 GAMA Healthcare started using the TOPS Pro and MaxLoad Pro software from AutoLogic Systems to improve their case and container fill. Two years later, they continue to benefit from increased sales, lower freight costs and improved product design.
GAMA Healthcare is a dynamic company specialising in manufacturing and distributing unique, innovative products within the healthcare industry. They have become one of the largest suppliers of disinfectant wet wipes to the NHS in the UK, and export products to over 40 countries worldwide.
They previously calculated case and container configurations manually but were introduced to TOPS Pro and MaxLoad Pro by a customer looking to improve efficiency throughout their supply chain.
Anita Jutla, Operations Manager at GAMA Healthcare says: “As soon as we saw a demonstration of the software we knew it would be a great tool for us. We needed to be achieving full capacity in our containers and it was clear that by improving the design our product and packaging we could also fit much more product in our cases.”
GAMA Healthcare use TOPS Pro for every stage of their production from designing the product and its carton to how best to load each case. MaxLoad Pro is then used to optimise their container fill – particularly key with mixed containers and multiple products.
The benefits have proved significant to date. Anita explains: “Most impressively the software helps us to increase sales. Our customers buy by the pallet not by the unit and so the more we can specify on a pallet, the more we sell. We actually increased our pallet fill by 50% through using the software.
“Our freight charges and production costs have also reduced. We know if suppliers are not filling containers to maximum capacity and can demonstrate where they are losing us money. As well as identifying wasted capacity, the price of the product we purchase also comes down the more we can fit in each container. The number of extra boxes may be minimal but it makes a big impact on our buying and transport costs.
“Moving forward we see TOPS Pro and MaxLoad Pro helping us a great deal and saving us a lot of money, particularly as we develop our product range further.”