Alzamora Group, a leading packaging company with two AS/RS rack-supported buildings

In 1900, Pere Alzamora founded a small printing house in the town of Olot, Spain. Flash forward to more than 120 years later, and Alzamora Group is now one of the leading companies in the packaging industry in Spain and worldwide. The Group is made up of several businesses, each with its own speciality, but all united by their dedication to packaging. The Alzamora Group’s business transformation is the result of its commitment to the continuous innovation and improvement of its production and logistics processes. It does this with one goal in mind: to raise its competitiveness.

• Founded in: 1900
• International presence: 20+ countries in Europe, North Africa and South America

Alzamora Group, one of the top Spanish companies in the packaging industry, has a modern facility in Sant Joan les Fonts (Spain) for its cardboard products division. The logistics complex consists of two automated warehouses for pallets and a production centre equipped with the latest technology to manufacture all types of sustainable packaging and cardboard products.

Present in more than 20 countries in Europe, North Africa and South America, the company has a very clear objective: “To meet our customers’ needs in terms of quality, service and innovation by creating customised, efficient and environmentally friendly packaging solutions,” says company Manager Anna Alzamora. Alzamora Packaging closed 2021 with a turnover of over €41 million, a 25% increase over the previous year. Additionally, the Group has taken a giant leap forward on the international stage, with sales abroad up by 41%.

To absorb this growth, the company’s supply chain had to be agile and efficient. “On a logistics level, we needed a warehouse where we could store all our items: from raw materials to finished products, semi-finished goods and tooling,” says Alzamora.

Previously, Alzamora Group had a 2,500 m² facility for finished products outfitted with high-density racking for 3,000 pallets. Raw materials were placed directly on the floor next to the production lines. As the manufacturing pace went up, the business decided to move to a new centre to expand its production and storage capacity.

There, Mecalux built the first clad-rack warehouse. Connected to production, it enabled the organisation to house all its stock in the same area. Recently, the company built a second clad-rack warehouse next to the initial one to foster Alzamora Group’s future growth.

The two automated storage and retrieval systems (AS/RS) manage around 1,100 SKUs distributed among over 10,000 pallets. “We store raw materials, auxiliary materials, moulds and finished products in the two warehouses. Occasionally, we also use them to stock semi-finished goods,” says Alzamora.

Two personalised AS/RS

On analysing the features of the two automated warehouses, Alzamora highlights two benefits the company has seen: “The Mecalux solutions have brought order and efficiency to our logistics operations. From the start, we’ve always relied on new technologies as a basis for continued growth.”

Both AS/RS are clad-rack warehouses, i.e., they are formed by the racking itself, to which the roof and side enclosures are attached. Moreover, to gain in capacity, Mecalux dug a 5-metre-deep pit underground, where it installed double-deep racking.

In each aisle, a stacker crane inserts and removes pallets from their locations. With these two AS/RS clad-rack warehouses, Alzamora Group has benefited from a greater storage capacity and improved agility in product management.

The difference between the two facilities lies in their size and thus their storage capacity. The first AS/RS stores close to 9,000 pallets in two 90-metre-long aisles, while the second houses over 1,000 pallets in a single 65-metre-long aisle.

The front parts of the two warehouses share the same design and configuration. Both AS/RS have a conveyor line with a pallet checkpoint and a stacker for empty pallets. The conveyors are key for Alzamora Packaging: they move loads entering and exiting the AS/RS quickly and without error or human intervention.

Future-ready logistics

“With more than 120 years in business, our adaptability and customer orientation have helped us to achieve success. Our aim is to become an industry leader characterised by constant growth and an international presence. We want to stand out for our innovation, sustainability, continuous improvement and our human resources,” says Alzamora.

In recent years, the packaging industry has undergone an unprecedented transformation to meet new consumer habits. Alzamora Group has been adept at responding to market changes by improving its product offering and services. Innovation and the pursuit of excellence have helped to establish this business as a packaging industry leader. From its origins to date, the company has incorporated the latest technologies in all its manufacturing processes and warehousing facilities to meet its customers’ demands.

We chose Mecalux as our warehousing systems provider due to its technical support and the excellent performance of its storage systems. The AS/RS have brought order and efficiency to our logistics operations.