Nestled at the foot of the Adirondack mountains in Upstate New York is an artesian well, fed by two aquifers to naturally create perfectly balanced drinking water.
REALM Artesian Water captures this liquid luxury and bottles the ready-to-drink water for distribution throughout the Northeast. Shaker Logistics helps the company perfect its supply chain as REALM expands its operation.
Before the First Pour
REALM’s story began when the founders Joe and Mark Miller discovered an untouched artesian well of clean, potable water on their land in the Adirondack Park. When the Miller brothers drove barrels of this water to supply a nearby town battling a contaminated water supply, they encountered a hurdle in their relief efforts: all water needs to be tested before it can be distributed in New York State.
Lab tests revealed the Miller’s water to be remarkably pure. With optimal pH and Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) levels, that water was safe to drink and perfectly mineralized for a smooth, clean taste. The Miller brothers wanted to share their discovery with the world, and so REALM Water was born.
Pasquale Minuto, COO of REALM Artesian Water, says its mission is to preserve the water’s natural taste and quality: “It’s our job to make sure what comes out of the artesian well is exactly what goes into the bottle.”
That preservation is baked into every aspect of the supply chain, starting with transportation first.
Protecting Natural Purity
REALM draws water from the artesian well into a dedicated, food-grade potable water tanker that is used exclusively for drinking water. The tanker follows a strict sanitation protocol between loads, and is rinsed with cleaning agents that don’t leave behind harsh flavors. If the tanker sits for more than 24 hours between loads, it is cleansed and sanitized again before it can be loaded with the water.
After the tanker delivers the water from the artesian well to REALM’s bottling facility in Clifton Park, NY, the water is tested for microbes. Then, it’s added to holding tanks to be treated to spec with NYDOH, FDA, and FSMA standards.
Because REALM water is naturally pure, no additives or chemicals are needed to make the water safe to drink. Instead, the water is cleansed with UV light and oxygen to purify without adding flavors or removing minerals.
“Refining this process was the initial challenge, and now it’s all about rinse and repeat,” said Pasquale.
From Flow to Fill
REALM’s water is bottled in a custom-built sterile clean room enclosure – but a logistics snag building out that clean room nearly kept REALM’s facility shuttered before it even opened. Thankfully, Shaker Logistics was there to sort it out.
The clean room enclosure components were scheduled to be delivered to REALM during DOT Blitz Week, an annual law enforcement effort to ramp up commercial vehicle roadside inspections. Many carriers would rather park their trucks than be put out of service for safety and compliance violations, creating a week of tight trucking capacity.
So, when the carrier broke down on the way to pick up the clean room materials, the Shaker team worked diligently to secure a new truck in that challenging market. The team was quickly able to find a carrier that was in good working order with top safety scores, and the clean room delivered with plenty of time for REALM to set it up before the official open date.
Packaged to Protect Every Drop
REALM artesian water is bottled in locally manufactured glass bottles and sealed with custom aluminum caps.
For glass bottles that will hold potable water, storage requirements are non-negotiable. Shaker’s carefully maintained warehouse keeps REALM’s bottles and packaging safe and dry, and daily cleaning and inventory checks ensure that the water company always has bottles ready to move to its facility for each round of production.
Once filled at the REALM facility, these bottles are painstakingly packaged for transportation.
“The product has to arrive to the customer in the same exact condition it was sent out,” said Pasquale. REALM water is shipped in custom packaging to keep the bottles in top condition from the dock to the customer’s door.
But between the water, premium glass bottles, and quality cardboard packaging, a pallet of REALM water makes for a heavy piece of freight – approximately 1,800lbs. For comparison, a standard pallet of tissue paper is about 800lbs.
The REALM team is constantly working to optimize how they palletize their product to maximize stability, use pallet space efficiently, and reduce packaging waste, all while ensuring the freight can safely travel.
“Continuous improvement is part of our process,” said Pasquale. “Not to the water, which is already pure, but to our intake, throughput, and output systems.”
If these heavy pallets aren’t set up properly for transportation, there’s an increased risk of damaging the freight. As trucks brake and turn, water shifts inside the bottles, subtly changing weight distribution across the pallet. Without precise palletization and securement, even a short regional haul can turn into a loss for REALM and its customers.
At best, that might mean dented boxes, not ideal for a luxury product experience. At worst the bottles can shatter, and the water, as well as the REALM team’s effort behind each bottle, is wasted.
That’s why this luxury water needs to be transported by a luxury transportation partner.
Moving Luxury Water with Care
From hauling REALM’s clean room during facility startup to securely storing bottles awaiting the bottling process, Shaker Logistics supports multiple points of REALM’s supply chain.
“When it comes to trucking,” Pasquale said, “We look for someone who will pick up where we left off, keeping the same goals for quality control in mind.”
Transportation providers like Shaker Logistics prioritize safety to protect fragile freight like REALM artesian water by:
- Incentivizing safe driving and ensuring that drivers understand they need to treat these loads with extra care while loading and unloading;
- Making sure drivers have enough straps and dunnage to secure and cushion the freight on the truck;
- Committing to on-time performance and excellent service to match REALM’s luxury brand identity.
Ready to Flow Forward
“We’re just starting, and we’re always getting better,” said Kelly Lepheart, Director of Strategic Planning at REALM.
As REALM scales production and introduces sparkling water, logistics demands will only increase. Shaker Logistics looks forward to continuing its role as a transportation partner that helps protect REALM Artesian Water’s promise of purity, presentation, and sustainability.
Reach out to Shaker’s team today to keep your valuable freight moving ahead safely and securely.