S&S Activewear, a leading distributor of imprintable apparel in North America, has transformed its fulfillment operations using scalable Goods-to-person robotics solution powered by Geekplus. Starting at its flagship distribution center (DC) in Lockport, Illinois, the company has now deployed the system across five sites, achieving significant productivity gains and creating a more ergonomic, efficient work environment.

A Smarter Starting Point

In 2022, S&S faced an urgent challenge: how to support rapid growth amid ongoing labor shortages. The solution had to be scalable, flexible, and operationally reliable. After evaluating various technologies, S&S chose Geekplus' shelf-to-person system, deployed in collaboration with Infios (formerly Körber Supply Chain).

Lockport, a 750,000-square-foot DC, was the proving ground. The system launched with 220 mobile robots and 24 picking stations. Less than two years later, it now runs 600 robots and 50 stations, handling inventory across 3,200 mobile racks.

From Manual to Robotic Fulfillment

Previously, pickers traveled long distances through static aisles using order pickers and stock chasers. Between 50% to 60% of their time was spent in transit. Now, Geekplus robots bring mobile racks directly to ergonomic workstations, where associates pick into shippable cartons. Light-guided put walls behind the stations assist with carton preparation, allowing pickers to focus solely on picking.

The result: productivity at Lockport jumped from 40 picks per hour to 150. Turnover has dropped by 75%, driven by a safer, less physically demanding environment.

Engineering for Scale

Scalability was a top priority. The Geekplus system enables rapid capacity expansion by adding robots, racks, or workstations. For peak season flexibility, two of the Lockport workstations are dedicated auto-induct stations, which restock inventory into mobile racks autonomously.

Key features were customized for S&S, including:

• Custom-moulded totes, slightly taller to accommodate bulkier items like hoodies
• A quality control checkpoint within the conveyor system to scan dimensions and weight
• Vacuum-lift assist devices to minimize strain during decanting and restocking
• Raised flooring at workstations to preserve ergonomic working heights

All of this is orchestrated by a tightly integrated system. S&S uses its own WMS, developed in-house, which connects seamlessly to Geekplus' PopPick solution via REST APIs. The integration gives S&S full visibility over order progress and fulfillment timing.

Fast, Repeatable Rollouts

After proving the solution in Lockport, S&S rolled out the system to additional DCs in Reno (NV), Reading (PA), Dallas-Fort Worth (TX), and soon Georgia. Each deployment is faster than the last. For example, Texas reached operational targets in just one week, compared to one month at Lockport.

By mid-2025, the network will include 2,200 robots, 200 workstations, and over 600,000 totes. Across five key regions, S&S now runs on a robotics foundation built for speed, accuracy, and growth.

S&S Activewear didn’t just adopt automation. It partnered long-term and repeatedly with Geekplus to design a system tailored for its inventory, workflows, and pace of growth. From ergonomic gains to network-wide scalability, this collaboration sets a new benchmark for fulfillment in the apparel industry.

Are you ready to future-proof your warehouse operations? Let’s talk automation! For more information, contact sales@geekplus.com or visit www.geekplus.com.

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