Dorsett - Bendigo

View the details behind our VLM Case Study

Dorset is a family owned business that supplies quality components to joiners, cabinetmakers, furniture manufacturers, shop fitters and architects.

Project Background

Dorset Australia, based in regional Victoria, faced a growing challenge: expanding inventory demands within a fixed warehouse footprint. With no room to scale outward, they needed to scale smarter. Their existing manual shelving system was slowing operations, creating bottlenecks in picking speed and compromising order accuracy. The solution required a strategic transition from outdated manual processes to a fully automated system—one designed to maximize vertical space, streamline workflows, and future-proof their fulfillment capabilities.

Project Details

Constraints

The project came with significant constraints that demanded a precision-engineered solution. The high-ceiling warehouse presented an opportunity to maximize vertical cube space, but the system needed to maintain a compact footprint to preserve valuable floor area. Additionally, the operation handles a high volume of small components and hardware items—requiring storage technology capable of organizing, protecting, and rapidly retrieving thousands of SKUs without sacrificing speed or accuracy.

Implementation

The implementation centered on deploying five high-density Vertical Lift Modules (VLMs), creating a centralized storage hub that dramatically increased capacity within the existing footprint. Each unit was strategically positioned to optimize workflow and minimize picker travel time. To complete the transformation, integrated inventory software was introduced, delivering real-time stock tracking and enabling seamless “Goods-to-Person” delivery—bringing items directly to operators and eliminating wasted movement across the warehouse floor.