Package Handling
DCS’s design and engineering team has more than 40 years of experience creating unique parcel handling systems for diverse customer applications. With installations including semi-automated handling in small city distribution centers and fully automated, integrated hubs with advanced conveyor and sorter equipment, DCS routinely thinks outside the box.
E-Commerce and Multi-Channel Fulfillment
DCS designs and implements end-to-end warehouse automation solutions for e-commerce and multi-channel retailers that address numerous workflow challenges. This includes solutions for receiving, putaway, storage, replenishment, order fulfillment, picking, packing, sortation, and outbound shipping. Our custom integrated warehouse, distribution, and fulfillment systems draw from a deep pool of conventional, semi-automated, and automated material handling technologies.
Various Distribution Applications
Whether an operation is considering the construction of a new distribution or fulfillment center, or a retrofit or expansion of an existing facility, it’s important to create a solution that fits the overarching supply chain strategy. DCS has four decades of experience designing and integrating comprehensive, end-to-end material handling solutions that meet a multitude of operational goals. Whether conventional, semi-automated, or fully automated, DCS can help your organization implement a custom solution that meets its goals while maximizing return on investment (ROI).
Supply Chain Consulting
The DCS Supply Chain Consulting team offers a range of services to help your operations address the challenges it faces. Working in partnership with you, DCS consultants analyze your business data- existing workforce, workflow processes, inventory, order data, operations, and more- to determine a strategy that addresses your unique needs. Whether you need an operations assessment, process improvement recommendations, or distribution design services, DCS consultants will help guide you to the material handling system or operational solution that best meets your current and future needs, as well as your budget.
Customer Support
Keeping your warehouse operations and material handling systems running smoothly and at the peak of productivity are the goals of DCS’ Customer Service Team. By partnering with DCS, your warehouse automation solution is supported from commissioning to end of life. You’ll receive comprehensive in-house training of your personnel, including specialized training of your designated internal system expert. Plus, DCS offers a complete package of spare parts and expert system troubleshooting support from qualified engineers dedicated to your installation.
System Design & Integration
DCS offers a broad range of material handling equipment and automated system design, installation, and integration services for a multitude of projects. These include retrofits, expansions, upgrades, and more. While every project is unique, our system design and execution processes are the same, encompassing meticulous attention to detail, frequent communication, and a dedicated partnership with our clients.
Lifecycle Services
Stop reactive repairs. Lifecycle Services provides expert preventive maintenance and 24/7 technical support to protect your automation and MHE availability.
Life Science & Healthcare
Pharmaceutical, healthcare, and life science companies face mounting pressure from evolving regulatory requirements, rising fulfillment costs, and intensifying accuracy demands. In this environment, automation isn’t optional—it’s essential. Designed Conveyor Systems (DCS) helps distributors of these critical products stay compliant and competitive.
Pet Food
Pet food distribution operations are anything but standard. From bulky kibble bags to delicate fish tanks, stock keeping unit (SKU) complexity and fulfillment pressure are always on the rise. Designed Conveyor Systems (DCS) partners with leading pet retailers to design and engineer automation, software, and material handling systems that keep operations agile, accurate, and ready for what’s next.
Home Improvement
When your distribution center handles everything from hammers to hot tubs, operational complexity isn’t a challenge—it’s your daily reality. Home improvement retailers face intense pressure to meet rising consumer expectations across multiple channels—from in-store pickups to last-mile delivery. At Designed Conveyor Systems (DCS), we specialize in engineering material handling and automation solutions that help home improvement distribution centers keep pace, reduce cost, and drive accuracy at scale.
Sporting Goods
Navigating the unique demands of the sporting goods retail industry requires a distribution strategy that’s both agile and precise. From handling seasonal surges to managing a diverse range of products—from bulky equipment to small accessories—your warehouse operations are the key to a seamless customer experience. Our expertise helps sporting goods retailers streamline their distribution warehouses, improving order accuracy, boosting productivity, and ensuring your team can efficiently move products from the receiving dock to the final customer, no matter the season.
Footwear
In the fast-paced world of footwear retail requires a distribution strategy that can handle a vast array of styles, sizes, and seasonal trends with precision and speed. From managing a high volume of SKUs to ensuring accurate order fulfillment and returns processing, your distribution center is the engine that drives customer satisfaction and brand loyalty. Our expertise helps footwear retailers streamline their distribution centers, improving inventory management, accelerating order processing, and ensuring your team can efficiently move products from the receiving dock to the final customer, no matter the season.
Wholesale & Industrial Distribution
Designed Conveyor Systems (DCS) partners with wholesale, industrial, and electronics distributors to design efficient, optimized fulfillment solutions. Every operation DCS designs streamlines end-to-end functional processes—from inbound receiving and putaway to picking, packing, and shipping. Designed Conveyor Systems (DCS) partners with wholesale, industrial, and electronics distributors to design efficient, optimized fulfillment solutions. Every operation DCS designs streamlines end-to-end functional processes—from inbound receiving and putaway to picking, packing, and shipping.
About Us
Designed Conveyor Systems (DCS) has 40 years of experience serving major clients in multiple industries by providing material handling, full-scale warehouse operations, and conveyor design solutions that are custom crafted for their needs. DCS does not sell ready-made conveyor systems but builds relationships that empower collaboration to craft custom warehouse designs together. DCS utilizes consulting, engineering design, project management, installation services, and client support to ensure our customers can keep their promises to deliver on time.
Projects
With more than 40 years of experience providing automated system design, installation, and integration services, DCS has created solutions for companies throughout the United States in a broad range of industries and markets. We’ve completed more than 1500 projects ranging from greenfield facilities with completely new systems to expansions and retrofits of existing operations.
Upcoming Events
Designed Conveyor Systems values building strong relationships with our clients. Join us at our upcoming events to collaborate and discover how we can design a custom warehouse solution tailored to your unique needs.
DCS Designs, Installs Spare Parts DC for Meyn Controlled by DATUM WES
DCS Designs, Installs Spare Parts DC for Meyn Controlled by DATUM WES
Meyn Americas LLC is a subsidiary of Meyn Food Processing Technology B.V. The company engaged DCS to design and install a new distribution and fulfillment system for its new spare parts distribution center (DC) in Westminster, South Carolina. The system incorporates autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) for order picking and inventory put away, and a shipping sortation conveyor. Additionally, DCS deployed DATUM, its proprietary warehouse execution system (WES), at the facility. DATUM enhances the functionality of Meyn’s existing enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. It also optimizes and directs picking workflows, and interfaces with software and hardware controls for the AMRs and conveyors. The project was completed in six months, meeting Meyn’s target go-live date.
The Challenge
In 2023, Meyn Americas announced plans for an 80,000-square-foot spare parts distribution center (DC) in South Carolina. The new building is just two hours from the company’s U.S. headquarters in Georgia. Meyn wanted to enhance customer service by stocking 80% of its parts portfolio in the new DC, then shipping those parts within two days of receiving an order, noted Michael Otterbach, Vice President of Parts Operations for Meyn Americas.
A global leader in automated poultry processing equipment and solutions, Meyn America’s parent company, Meyn Food Processing Technology B.V., is headquartered in The Netherlands. Prior to building the new DC, the company maintained a partial spare parts inventory in its Georgia manufacturing facility. However, the building offered limited space.
“We wanted to make sure that the parts that we recommend customers keep on hand, plus the ones that are ordered most often, are always readily available,” Otterbach said.
Order picking in the Georgia operation was manual and paper based. Even with 21 associates picking in a single shift, the process was inefficient and error prone. Otterbach and his team wanted to equip the new operation with automation that could scale as business grew. The system also needed to interface with Meyn’s existing enterprise resource planning (ERP) software. Finally, Meyn wanted the new facility operational one year after breaking ground.
For help achieving these goals, Meyn contracted with DCS in February 2024.
The Solution
After analyzing the 10,800 stock keeping units (SKUs) destined for the new facility, the company’s end-to-end fulfillment process, and expectations for future growth, DCS considered multiple automated solutions.
The inventory’s size and weight variability led DCS to recommend conventional, static rack for parts storage. Additionally, DCS proposed implementing a fleet of five autonomous mobile robots (AMRs). The AMRs transport 15 picking carts for order picking and put away. For outbound packing and shipping, DCS designed a conveyor sortation system. Tying the entire solution together is DCS’ proprietary warehouse execution system (WES), DATUM, which integrated with Meyn’s ERP.
DATUM receives item master updates and product put away data from — and communicates order, wave, pick, and inventory status back to — the ERP. This ensures real-time visibility both company-wide and to customers via an online portal.
Additionally, large monitors mounted throughout the building display DATUM’s productivity dashboards. This allows associates to track progress rates and other key performance indicators (KPIs).
For picking, DATUM allocates SKUs from active inventory upon receipt of queued waves and orders from the ERP. Next, it batches and sequences orders in an optimized pick path. The majority of orders are filled utilizing carts outfitted with eight tote positions — one per order. DATUM also manages, tracks, and optimizes Meyn’s fleet of five AMRs.
The AMR Process
Upon arrival in the picking zone, each AMR carries its cart from one pick location to another, stopping at required SKUs. Each cart has a tablet running the mobile version of DATUM.
Associates with hand-held radio frequency (RF) scanners interface with the tablets. They scan, select, verify, and place picked items into the correct totes. Additional scans of pick face, order tote, and SKU, plus visual instructions from the tablet — including images of each required item — ensure accuracy.
After an associate confirms on the tablet that all picks are complete, DATUM directs the AMR to deliver the loaded cart to the pack out stations. In addition to order picking, DATUM controls all product replenishment, put away, and cycle counting audits. It also manages reporting of issues such as stock outs and inventory adjustments.
The Pack Out Process
For pack out, DATUM manages all tote and shipping carton routing. It interfaces with the Allen Bradley programmable logic controllers (PLCs) that control the powered conveyor.
Fully picked totes move from the carts to the packing workstations. Associates remove parts from totes and pack the items into corrugated shipping cartons or padded mailers. Empty totes return to the cart staging queue. The packer seals the package, affixes a shipping label to the top. Next, it inducts the parcel onto the outbound sorter where it passes through a scan tunnel. The scan determines to which spur the parcel will divert.
The Results
The facility went live on schedule in August 2024. It was completely operational by September 2024. A team of 15 associates works a single shift to fill all of the day’s orders. For customers with an urgent part need, the facility is accessible 24/7.
Thanks to DATUM and the automated equipment, the facility significantly increased its order fulfillment throughput rate per full time employee.
“The picking efficiency has been tremendous because our associates no longer pick by paper to fill one or two orders at a time. Now, DATUM optimizes the picking, and the associates and AMRs work together, hand-in-hand,” Otterbach said. “Together, they are much more efficient, and the associates enjoy working with the automation.”
Picking Errors, Carbon Footprint Reduced
Otterbach further noted a significant reduction in picking errors over the previous process. Deploying the AMRs and carts for both picking and put away of received inventory also allows Meyn to maximize both associate and AMR utilization.
“Once the new DC opened, we were able to implement a new global parts shipping process between our locations, which is more cost effective and reduced our carbon footprint,” said Otterbach.
On Working with DCS
As for working with DCS to design, install, and implement the automation and WES, the Meyn Americas team appreciates the partnership between the two companies. It’s a relationship built on transparency and trust, explained Otterbach.
“If you’re looking for an independent, boutique systems integrator who will work with you to determine the correct solution that you need — not the one they happen to sell — then DCS is a great partner,” he said.
“They analyzed the data and shared their honest opinion of which technologies were the best fit for our budget and our process,” concluded Otterbach. “They were always available when we needed them, and they’ve continued to be involved after the initial project was completed as we’re working on the next phases. It’s a real partnership.”
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About DCS
Headquartered in Franklin, Tenn., Designed Conveyor Systems (DCS) has 40 years of experience serving major clients in multiple industries by providing material handling, full-scale warehouse operations, and conveyor design solutions that are custom crafted for their needs. DCS does not sell ready-made conveyor systems but builds relationships that empower collaboration to craft custom warehouse designs together. DCS utilizes consulting, engineering design, project management, installation services, and client support to ensure our customers can keep their promises to deliver on time.
About Meyn Food Processing Technology
Headquartered in Oostzaan, Netherlands, Meyn is a global leader in poultry processing solutions, providing innovative equipment, and services to the poultry industry. With a focus on automation, efficiency, and sustainability, Meyn continues to drive advancements in the poultry sector. The company serves customers in over 100 countries.