Spex Ltd cuts picking times by 50% with Zebra Technologies RFID deployment

New Zealand-based medical equipment manufacturer Spex Ltd has deployed a Zebra Technologies RFID solution across its warehousing and fulfilment operations, reducing picking times by more than 50% and achieving near-perfect dispatch accuracy.

Spex, a member of the Medifab Global Group, builds wheelchair accessories, rehabilitation tools and mobility solutions.

The company had relied on manual barcode scanning, paper order sheets and checklists for more than three decades - a system that offered no verifiable proof of dispatch and exposed the business to automatic product replacements when customers reported missing items.

Working with Zebra and implementation partner Synergic Technologies, Spex deployed Zebra's MC3300 RFID Series mobile computers for picking, ZT400 Series industrial printers for shipping labels, and FX9600 fixed RFID readers at a nesting station that performs an automated 10-second completeness check on outbound shipments.

The hardware is tied together by Zebra's MotionWorks enterprise software, which maintains a real-time inventory ecosystem and automatically updates the company's ERP system on dispatch.

Picking tasks that previously took 15 minutes now take five, according to Spex.

The automated dispatch verification means the company can confirm exactly what was shipped and when, speeding up responses to customer queries and eliminating unnecessary replacement orders. Every product movement is recorded, supporting serial and lot histories for quality investigations and recalls.

"By reducing 15-minute picking tasks to five minutes, Zebra's RFID solutions have cut our picking times by over 50% while helping us achieve near-perfect dispatch accuracy," said Shaun McDonald, integrations engineer at Spex.

"This has reinforced the trust our customers place in us to deliver every order correctly, giving us absolute certainty without sacrificing efficiency and speed."

"Equipping a connected frontline with RFID technology is essential for modern manufacturers facing growing delivery pressures," said Brian Van Ginkel, country manager for New Zealand at Zebra Technologies.

"Spex's success is a powerful example of how real-time inventory visibility empowers workers to modernise operations and deliver reliable service to the customers who depend on their mobility solutions the most.”