Shipping container company Royal Wolf has created a tailored container solution for My Food Bag to help the company meet demand for orders during the COVID-19 crisis and enable safe work practices during lockdown.
Royal Wolf partnered with container shelter provider, SmartShelters, to create a covered plaza-style area constructed from two 20-foot lunchroom containers and a fabric shelter at My Food Bag’s new site in Highbrook, Auckland.
My Food Bag Head of Supply Chain, Robert Hughes, says with lockdown restrictions and less people using supermarkets the company’s orders increased rapidly.
“Our business model means people don’t need to go to the supermarket, so the volume of orders for My Food Bag had a spike of around 35-45%.”
Hughes says it was essential My Food Bag was able to service the increased customer demand while also ensuring its employees had a safe environment to work in and comply with social distancing guidelines.
“The solution had to provide a larger staff lunch area that would allow the packing team to prepare food, make tea and coffee and rest during their shifts while keeping two metre distancing between each other.”
He says the area also needed to provide an area for checking staff in, taking temperature readings from every team member, and ensuring sufficient PPE was available.
“The turnaround from Royal Wolf and SmartShelters was phenomenal. The containers and shelter were installed and up and running in under a week even with substantial product customisation needed to meet the tight food print requirements of the site,” says Hughes.
As well as allowing workers to comply with distancing guidelines, the site also enables My Food Bag employees to work in separate teams if someone is sick meaning the business can continue while ensuring staff are protected.
Paul Creighton, Royal Wolf Executive General Manager, says the My Food Bag space is an example of an innovative and tailored container solution that meets a customer’s specific requirements.
“It highlights the versatility of containers and how they can be used alongside other structures to provide an efficient and effective solution to enable business continuity.
“In My Food Bag’s case it not only plays a part in streamlining the work of an essential business during the COVID-19 lockdown but provides an improved experience for their staff during a very busy and demanding time.”
Silas Cottle from Smart Shelters, which has 100 years of experience in shelter protection systems and created some of the country’s largest spans, says Royal Wolf containers provide a fast and cost-effective subframe as well as secure kitchen areas with both power and water supplies.
“We use the world’s toughest coverings, have the best technical features available on the market, and products like shipping containers help us to construct something that protects a company’s valuable assets and ultimately helps them grow their business.”
