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Del Monte finds a 'brite' way to customize secondary packaging: load mixing, labeling and multipacking operations give Del Monte's Rochelle distribution center the flexibility to quickly deliver retailer-specific packs.

Article Excerpt
The seasonal nature of Del Monte's fruit and vegetable operations make flexibility essential. From June to December, the number of workers more than doubles at the packing plants, from approximately 8,600 to 17,500.

On top of the stresses of peak production, Del Monte's processing operations face the same challenges as other companies: The need for fast order response and special packs for different retail customers.

In 2005, one of the ways the company enhanced its ability to serve retail customers was by improving its supply chain and operational capabilities. Nils Lommerin, Del Monte's executive vice president of operations, explains, "We consolidated some of our distribution centers to offer a full portfolio of Del Monte products. Our customers can order mixed truckload quantities of Del Monte products--StarKist Seafood and Del Monte's many pet products on the same truckload with fruits and vegetables, for example--from our regional centers. In the past, multiple DCs in the same geography were dedicated to individual product groups."

The Production Planning & Inventory Control (PPIC) department works with both the manufacturing plants and the DCs to get the right product in the right place at the right time. The goal is to minimize the number of times the product is handled to keep transportation and related labor costs down.

Retailer specials

Flexibility in secondary packaging has become critical to meeting retailer demands for custom cases and/or pallet loads. In response, Del Monte has set up secondary packaging operations in two of its 13 distribution centers in Rochelle, Ill., and Lathrop, Calif.

These DCs also receive pallets of "brite"--that is, cans that are coded for product identification, but not yet labeled--from the company's processing plants around the country. Cans are then labeled, case packed or multipacked, and palletized. According to Lommerin, "These special...

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