Yale Materials Handling Corporation announces recognition on Supply & Demand Chain Executive’s annual list of 100 top supply chain projects. Yale made the list for its work with Goya Foods, designing a custom Goya-Spec lift truck to efficiently serve the company’s high-density storage racking.

To keep up with growing demand for a large, 2,700-SKU inventory, Goya built a 643,000-square-foot facility in Jersey City, New Jersey with new, taller racking and narrow aisles for higher-density warehousing. Yale and the local dealer, Barclay Brand Ferdon, developed a custom Goya-spec lift truck capable of navigating the low clearance of the high-density drive-in racking.

“When we moved into this facility, the overhead guard on the standard lift truck we were using wouldn’t allow us to drive into the new, lower-clearance rack,” says John Quinones, Director of Operations for Goya Foods. “That would have forced us to use two different vehicles for putaway and retrieval. But by modifying the truck to our custom spec, we were able to eliminate that extra touch and work more efficiently.”

The Goya spec truck features larger tires, no fender over the front wheels, and an overhead guard with camber on both sides – still providing protection while avoiding contact with low-clearance racks. Modifications and key features on other lift truck models included an onboard laser positioning system and camera for reach trucks and Yale’s tri-form mast on very narrow aisle models for support and visibility at a great height.

The Jersey City facility moves 60,000 to 90,000 cases per night, with overnight turnaround from order receipt to shipping. The storage configuration and custom-spec Yale® lift trucks are now the standards across Goya distribution centers.

The SDCE 100 is an annual list of the most innovative, effective supply chain projects. To read the full Goya Foods case study, click here.