A 1.2M sq ft distribution center stabilizes scanner uplink during peak

Who we worked with.

A national third-party logistics operator running a 1.2 million square foot fulfillment center for a large e-commerce client.

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What they were dealing with.

Scanner-to-AP uplink reliability cratered during peak hours, costing the operator an estimated $400K per quarter in re-scans, missed cutoffs, and labor variance. The incumbent integrator had been brought back twice. Both engagements added APs in problem aisles, which moved the problem rather than solving it.

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How we engaged.

We ran a peak-hour measurement walk — the first one the building had ever had — and identified that the integrator's design used a channel plan that, at scale during peak, was driving every device in the building into the same handful of channels. Compounding the issue, the predictive model used had not accounted for the seasonal product mix in racking depth. We rebuilt the channel and power plan, recommended targeted AP relocations rather than additions, and documented an acceptance test the operator could hold the integrator to going forward.

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What changed.

Scanner uplink failures during peak dropped from a measured ~6.4% to under 0.3%. AP count did not increase; eight APs were physically relocated and three were retired. The operator now runs the same acceptance test annually as part of peak readiness.