PepsiCo, a leading food and beverage conglomerate, has revealed its plans to implement a fully automated storage and retrieval system (AS/RS) at its facility in Vuerne, Belgium. The facility, spanning over 430,000ft², stands as one of the largest potato crisp factories in Europe.
“Furthermore, the Automated Pallet Shuttle system from intralogistics company Mecalux will be introduced to accommodate the daily production of 2 million bags of crisps and snacks from renowned brands like Lay’s, Doritos, Bugles, and Cheetos.”
Connecting PepsiCo’s production plant to the Automated Pallet Shuttle system will be a conveyor line stretching over 100m. Mecalux has outlined that the system will consist of four aisles with two blocks of racking on each side. Additionally, 12 transfer cars will be in place on each storage level to move goods to the respective storage channels, where a motorized shuttle car will automate the transport of pallets to their allocated locations.
A spokesperson for PepsiCo stated, “The implementation of the Mecalux solution will assist us in meeting the high production demands at our Veurne factory and supporting our future growth initiatives.”
Moreover, alongside the installation of the AS/RS, PepsiCo will leverage Mecalux’s ‘Easy WMS warehouse management system for real-time stock control’. This software will be seamlessly integrated with the company’s ERP system to ensure smooth operations and streamline the coordination of product flow.
“PepsiCo’s journey in producing potato crisps in Vuerne, situated in the West Flanders region of Belgium, began 25 years ago. By 2021, the Vuerne site was contributing over 72,000 tonnes of crisps to 13 European countries.”
“In 2022, the company unveiled plans to invest approximately €7.5 million in initiatives aimed at tackling drought in West Flanders due to the high water consumption involved in potato crisp production. PepsiCo highlighted that producing 1kg of crisps requires about 5.5 litres of water.”
“To address this challenge, key strategies included focusing on water consumption at the site, enhancing water purification processes, and implementing improved water management practices in local nature reserves.”
