Covenant Logistics installs a pallet racking system in Atlanta

Covenant: values-based logistics solutions

Many companies entrust their supply chains to the logistics and transport services provider Covenant, founded in 1986. The firm’s primary capabilities in expedited, dedicated warehousing and managed freight transport are executed through a blend of management systems and employees empowered by a unique values-based corporate culture.

David Parker grew up in the world of road haulage. As a boy, he regularly watched lorries navigating terminal yards, given that his entrepreneurial father had founded a successful long-distance transport business. In 1986, David and his wife, Jacqueline, had a vision to create their own haulage company. They invested their hard-earned seed money to start Covenant Transport, with 25 lorries and 50 trailers.

Decades later, Covenant has grown its portfolio of logistics and transport solutions to help customers engineer value-driven supply chains to get products where they are needed quickly, cost-effectively and seamlessly. The business’s growth has been unstoppable: in 2022, its adjusted net income rose 8% to €18.5 million.

One of Covenant’s new clients, a major US airline, required a storage solution for a new location in Atlanta, Georgia. As a result, the company turned to Interlake Mecalux (the Mecalux Group’s US subsidiary) for help. “Our customer needed a cost-effective, single adjustable racking solution for its new facility,” says Leslie Price, Warehouse Project Specialist for Covenant. Interlake Mecalux worked with Covenant on the warehouse layout and devised the best solution to provide the storage density Covenant required. “Covenant supplied the storage needs and a layout to Interlake Mecalux, which then modified and installed the solution,” says Price.

From start to finish, the design and installation process took only five months to complete, two months before the stipulated deadline. “Our customer had to house its products in the new storage system and lead times were tight. The project was installed quickly and ahead of anticipated dates,” says Price.

With the Interlake Mecalux storage solution, Covenant is now prepared to ship 1.56 million boxes a year for the prominent US airline. The Warehouse Project Specialist for Covenant says: “Every day, we prepare between 70 and 100 orders containing anywhere from one to 20 lines. We also receive and ship up to 500 pallets daily, both domestic and international.”

Elevated capacity and throughput

When designing the installation, Interlake Mecalux and Covenant considered the building’s floor space (83,613 m²), the loading docks (73 in total), process flows and racking requirements. The companies also calculated the storage system’s number of levels (three to five) by taking into account product specifications and the building height.

The solution installed for the airline provides a total capacity of over 25,000 pallets — 6.3 times more product in the same space. This storage system is ideal for working with many pallets of varying characteristics, volumes and weights. The racking also stands out for its strength, versatility and adaptability to any type of load.

The new facility's pace of work is high. Every day, operators are busy unloading lorries in the goods receipt area; they then sort the merchandise, palletise it and store it. Picking is one of the warehouse’s key operations. When it comes time to prepare orders, the operators pick products from the racking according to the person-to-goods method, stage and audit them and prepare them for shipment.

Scalable solution

The Interlake Mecalux solution is scalable and can be tailored to changing needs. For example, Covenant could incorporate a new picking method or house unusually sized SKUs. The company will also be able to reconfigure its bolted racking system should the airline require this.

The partnership between Covenant and Interlake Mecalux responds effectively to the airline’s storage challenges. Moreover, it has transformed the Atlanta warehouse into a logistics centre capable of shipping up to 1.5 million boxes a year.

Our customer, a major US airline, needed a new storage solution for its products and lead times were tight. The project was installed quickly and ahead of anticipated dates.