Accumulate and automate

Warehouse automation may conjure up images of big-ticket equipment, storing and retrieving goods in sprawling distribution centres. Aisles stretching as far as the eye can see; high-tech, fully automated storage bays, whirring with efficiency. Such is the advance of technology that, these days, automated storage and retrieval system developments are often driven by a range of manufacturing customers, as familiarity with robotics and automation on the shopfloor prompts them to look beyond production. That's a view shared by Steve Richmond, director of Jungheinrich UK's systems & projects division. "Some countries have always been more pro-automation than others and the strongest markets for automated handling systems have traditionally been those territories with a powerful manufacturing base – such as Germany, Switzerland and Italy," he says. "Manufacturing companies tend to have a much higher acceptance of automation. Because so many manufacturing processes are highly automated, the companies feel more comfortable with the technology and they see automated storage and handling as a natural progression within their business. They want to automate from the production line to the loading bay." According to Richmond, here in the UK it's still the automotive and pharmaceutical manufacturers who are most enthusiastic about the benefits offered by automation. "But regardless of the sector in which they operate, all companies want the same from their handling system – improved productivity and efficiency, reduced costs and greater picking accuracy, and enhanced customer service levels," he adds. Automation in action Richmond's assertion that Germany is one of the primary markets where manufacturers have adopted warehouse automation technology is certainly borne out by the case studies. Take Bollhoff, a manufacturer of metal and plastic fasteners, headquartered in Beilefeld, Germany. The company wanted to improve its processes and called in a consultant to analyse the logistics operation – with the result that it decided to invest in an automated system, designed, supplied and installed by TGW. TGW installed its Commissioner automated storage and retrieval system last year, including some new conveyors but also working in tandem with the existing conveyor system. The conveyors and Commissioner lifting beams were put in place outside of operating hours to ensure no disruption to Bollhoff. TGW also mapped the flexible retrieval processes using its own warehouse control software, CI_LOG, and integrated it with Bollhoff's own warehouse management software. The new equipment has removed bottlenecks from the operation, according to Bollhoff's technical director Sebastian Rose: "Today, the goods receiving, order picking and shipping areas work independently of each other," he says. "The Commissioner storage buffer ensures that overloading on one area doesn't negatively influence the operations in other areas." As well as boosting efficiency, Bollhoff reports significant energy savings compared with the conveyor loop buffer used previously. TGW's UK base is Market Harborough, and manufacturers it's worked with closer to home include Coca-Cola, Kimberly-Clark, Weetabix and Bentley. Cutting-edge application Carbide specialist Ceratizit makes a broad range of milling, cutting and stamping tools, and central to its success is its next-day delivery promise throughout Europe. A major investment has been made in a modern, automated Knapp order fulfilment system at its storage facility in Kempten, Germany. This system is integrated with the existing SAP enterprise software that links to all offices and its website. "An order could be placed in Italy and 90 seconds later somebody here could be picking tools for it," explains Sepp Rantscher, manager of the Kempten logistics centre. And if that order has come in by 18:30 UK time (19:30 German time), it will be delivered next day, before noon. Delivery vehicles arrive at Kempten at 20:00 each evening to ferry the tools to a central airport distribution point. Even the locations in the vans for the various orders are predefined – a place for everything and everything in its place. Ceratizit's automated storage system is the first of its kind in this industry sector, the technology having transferred across from the pharmaceutical industry – the Kempten facility itself is 10 years old. The Knapp system runs parallel to the previous arrangement: using pick lists on hand-held computers, individuals walk to static stock locations to collect items, covering anything up to 10 km per day – 300 km for the 30 people involved. But the Knapp system, with four workstations, is now responsible for 70% of picks. The pick rate for the system is 300/hour per station; for the existing system, it is 50/hour. A typical day will see 10,000 picks, although there is now capacity for 20,000, with the same number of people (105 work at Kempten). Investment of €2 million in the Knapp system has been made for one main reason – flexibility to cope with changing demand, without the need to either reduce or increase headcount in a directly proportionate fashion. This was underscored most recently by the latest, severe downturn, during which no redundancies were made. The Knapp contract was signed in February 2011 and the system was switched on in September that year, although it took two months to fill it. The installation is what Knapp describes as a 'goods-to-person' system, incorporating put/pick-to-light technology. Three aisles, each 54 m long and with 21 levels, are served by 63 shuttles that collect/return boxes from/to locations within the aisles – they are stored 'chaotically' in any one of 65,000 locations, meaning there isn't an assigned position for any box. Two lifts at the end of each aisle place boxes on and take them off the conveyors. Currently, there are 15,000 boxes in the system, each with a maximum of eight compartments; there are 45,000 compartments operating, as the maximum number is not always employed. Of the 62,000 lines held at Kempten, 12,000 are held in the Knapp system, from which 70% of the daily picks are made. The entire pick and pack process is overseen by just six employees, three for picking orders and three for packaging them, ready for overnight shipping to customers. Part and partial If the idea of a fully automated storage and retrieval system seems a step too far, many users are now choosing to employ hybrid systems that are part-automated and part-manual. "In the past some companies shied away from automation because they felt that such a move would mean every aspect of the operation would have to be automated," Jungheinrich's Richmond explains. "This is not the case. If designed correctly, semi- and fully-automated solutions can be flexible and scalable to allow for future growth and investment strategies. It is proving increasingly attractive." He adds: "It is easy to put forward a strong case for automation at any operation where high value goods are stored or where a high level of security and product traceability is required. In fact, any storage operation that is operating more than one shifts should consider automation."