NEW LOGISTICS PRODUCTS & SERVICES
EDITED BY ERICA MAC DONALD AND SEAN MALONEY
rollouts
Uplifting: Columbus McKinnon
Corp. has launched a new line of wire
rope hoists in capacities from 25 to 50
tons. The new Yale Global Max HC hoists
have an external hoist motor to optimize
cooling and maximize accessibility. The remote mounting of the
hoist motor and brake prevents heat transfer in either direction
and allows for easy maintenance.
The hoists also feature a sealed, fully enclosed, pressure-test-ed gearbox with all of the gears inside the gearbox submerged
in oil for maximum protection. The hoist’s fully enclosed free loop
guide is designed specifically to eliminate a slack rope condition
during operation. Optional features are also available, such as a
mechanical overspeed device, a block-operated limit switch, and
twin ropes for dual motor hoists. (Columbus McKinnon,
www.cmworks.com)
Shelf help section: Studies show that 50 percent of retail supply chain costs occur at the store itself and that there is still great
improvement potential. To address this issue, Witron has engineered an innovative system to automatically replenish the sales
front (shelf) within a supermarket or retail store.
With the new SRS (Shelf Replenishment System), the retail
store shelves are automatically replenished by shuttles. The shuttle is loaded in a replenishment area of the supermarket, which
is located outside the sales floor and cannot be seen by the customer, then quietly transports goods from the store’s back room
into a replenishment aisle, which is integrated inside the sales
rack.
The SRS shelf and the replenishment area are connected
through a network directly integrated in the roof above the sales
floor, which makes it possible for one shuttle to supply several
shelves at the same time. The number of shuttles used depends
on the size of the supermarket and the number of racks.
In terms of IT, the SRS is connected to the supermarket’s ERP
system. The SRS always knows the entire shelf inventory based
on regular scanning, and it determines the optimum replenishment volume and replenishment time for each article. Customers
also have the option of integrating electronic pricing with the
SRS, controlled through the ERP system via radio frequency.
With the SRS-supported replenishment of store shelves, there
are no more gaps in the shelves. All articles are permanently
available and properly and clearly arranged in the front part of
the sales shelf. Replenishment takes place directly into the sales
front of the shelf—at the right time with the right quantity. With
system-controlled shelf replenishment, access to the store
shelves is no longer blocked by employees filling up the shelves,
and aisles are no longer blocked by roll containers or pallets.
Even on peak days with high customer frequency, shelves are
always filled and all articles are easily accessible. (Witron,
www.witron.com)
Air free: The Electro-Wrap Series of automatic rotary tower
stretch wrappers from Arpac require no pneumatic hookup. This
reduces the machine’s total energy cost as well as its installation
cost, as no special pneumatic plumbing or air compressor is
required.
The machines are suitable for stretch wrapping unstable pallet
loads that are either too light or too heavy to rotate on a
turntable wrapper. They wrap faster than a conventional
turntable system and offer the flexibility to load the wrap zone
with either a fork truck or pallet jack, the manufacturer says.
A worker sets the pallet on the floor in front of the wrapper
and activates the wrapping cycles from a remote lanyard. The
device completes the job with the film carriage revolving around
the stationary pallet load. Upon completion of the cycle, the system automatically clamps, cuts, and wipes the film to the pallet.
A safety sensor is included for instant stopping of the rotating
film carriage arm. (Arpac, www.arpac.com)
Easy cell: Crown Equipment Corp., a manufacturer of forklifts
and related products, introduces a new version of its SP 3500
Series Stockpicker that’s designed to accommodate fuel cells.
The SP 3500 Series Stockpicker is specifically engineered for narrow-aisle applications, smoothly moving from pallet handling to
picking at heights to transporting. The truck designed to accommodate fuel cells maintains the same features and benefits
offered by the standard model.
In the new fuel cell-powered Stockpicker model,
the Crown Access 1 2 3 System Control is connected directly to the fuel cell power unit to
increase safety, efficiency, and productivity. Access
1 2 3 is the electronic system that manages all truck
functions and proactively facilitates two-way communication with the operator.
The system’s on-board display now features a
fuel cell hydrogen level indicator that allows
parameters to be set for a low fuel warning.
Operators receive an alert when the fuel cell
hydrogen pressure reaches a predetermined level, based on
the facility’s size and the distance to the hydrogen refueling
stations. The truck also has a lift lockout feature that prevents lift when the fuel level reaches a predetermined level
below the initial low-charge alert. This feature protects the integrity of the fuel cell
and encourages operators to immediately
visit the hydrogen refueling station.
The Access 1 2 3 display screen on the truck’s dashboard
also calls attention to detailed information about fuel cell performance and allows authorized users to adjust performance settings. Technicians can use the dashboard display to view fault
codes, including the last event code, for maintenance and troubleshooting purposes. A refueling mode uses a bar graph to
show refueling status. Since the byproduct of creating electricity
from a fuel cell is water, a high-water warning alerts operators if
too much water is in the holding tank, which can cause overflow
onto the floor. (Crown Equipment Corp., www.crown.com)
