TIMCO National Distribution Centre
Established in 1972 by Tim Midwood, TIMCO is celebrating its 50th anniversary as a family business. Renowned as a wholesale supplier to the construction and industrial sectors nationwide, the company specialises in producing quality everyday essentials made for the trade.
One of the key strengths of the business has always been supporting its customers with unbeatable stockholding and overnight deliveries. To achieve this, Timco has always invested heavily in its storage and distribution facilities.
The Brief
The last few years have been a really exciting period of growth for Timco, during which time it has launched over a thousand new products each year. This continuous expansion led to increased storage space and a more efficient, automated materials handling solution for its distribution centre (DC) in Nantwich, Cheshire.
Competitive pitch process
In order to find the right automation company to partner with, Timco invited several companies to tender for the expansion project. Timco’s Head of Marketing, Charlie Du Pré, takes up the story: “The expansion project was critically important to our business and so we undertook a very competitive pitch process for the contract.
“From the first meeting, Conveyor Systems Ltd (CSL) demonstrated a clear advantage in their willingness not only to listen to our requirements but also to understand our business model and how that may evolve in the future.”
Timco’s Distribution Center (DC) transitioned from a manual pick and pack operation to an automated system with CSL’s help. CSL designed and installed a 24v zero line pressure conveyor system serving both the mezzanine and ground floors, along with a spiral conveyor to move totes between levels. The system efficiently moves packed cartons to outbound carrier stations, using a barcode scanner array for sortation via swivel wheel sorters.
Charlie Du Pré praised CSL for their attention to detail and adaptability, noting the increase in throughput with over 3,000 lines dispatched from the mezzanine and 5,000 from the ground floor daily. He commended CSL for delivering solutions on time and within budget, and expressed confidence in continuing their partnership as Timco grows.
