Smooth global dispatch with Blickle special casters for postal logistics

Pressed steel swivel casters L-ALTH 160K-929082, L-ALTH 160K-RI-926440, L-ALTH 160K-RI-AS-926446

The customer

... is a listed American online mail order company with a varied product range. Its integrated sales platform allows individuals and other companies to sell new and used products online. The company has around 655,000 employees. It made a profit of 2.4 billion dollars off 136 billion dollars in sales in 2017, making it the 83rd largest company in the world.


The challenge

Pressed steel swivel casters L-ALTH 160K-929082, L-ALTH 160K-RI-926440, L-ALTH 160K-RI-AS-926446

The online retailer is currently investing significantly in expanding its logistics and transport activities in order to make its logistics processes less dependent on external providers. In addition to investing in air cargo and building new logistics centers, the company is also looking into ways to deliver goods directly to its customers. The customer has now launched its first distribution network in England.

The mail order company requested bids from manufacturers to produce the casters for their parcel trolleys. Each trolley needed to have a set of two casters - one swivel caster with a swivel lock, and another with a swivel lock and antistatic tread. The main requirements were a low level of rolling and swivel resistance, a low level of tread wear, a reliable swivel lock and a tread in the company color for the standard tread. The swivel resistance was required to stay below a certain level.


Our solution

Blickle beat out all of its competitors. In addition to finding an appropriate technical solution, the customer also wanted to find a supplier with experience of postal logistics who would be able to provide significant quantities of the product quickly.
The Blickle Design department developed a special version of the L-ALTH swivel caster to meet the requirements of the customer. The ALTH wheel installed in the casters has a tread geometry designed to optimise rolling resistance, making it more crowned than the standard wheel. Blickle‘s engineers also designed a special swivel lock which is operated using a cable pull.


The result

Blickle manufactured 40,000 L-ALTH special casters as part of the initial order and delivered them on time. The online mail order company will roll out its delivery processes in other European countries. The close-knit network of Blickle branches and knowledgeable advisors provides customers with the best possible level of support wherever they are.


Product advantages and technical information L-ALTH 160K-929082, L-ALTH 160K-RI-926440 and L-ALTH 160K-RI-AS-926446

  • Low-wear Blickle Extrathane® polyurethane tread in the customer’s color
  • Low rolling and swivel resistance thanks to special wheel with optimised tread geometry
  • Reliable swivel lock with cable pull connection