Galvanized lift truck chassis: Three models of Toyota Material
Handling USA’s (TMHU) AC electric pallet trucks and walkie riders are now available with a galvanized chassis option. The models include the 8-Series AC electric walkie pallet truck ( 6,000-
pound capacity), 8-Series end-control walkie rider ( 6,000- to
8,000-pound capacity), and 7-Series electric walkie pallet truck
( 4,500-pound capacity).
The galvanized chassis protects the vehicles from rust and is
especially useful for those trucks working in salty, wet, and corrosive environments. Some examples of good fits for the chassis
include cold storage facilities, chemical and salt and brine industries, and areas where frequent washdowns are required to
remove contaminants.
Other features that have been added to extend the life of the
pallet truck include heavy-duty Teflon-coated Polylube bushings
that require no lubrication and a splashguard that helps deflect
debris and moisture from entering the traction motor-controller
area. Additional enhancements over the standard design include
galvanized metal frames; corrosion-resistant stainless steel and
nickel-plated linkage pins; galvanized lower linkages, pull rods,
and connecting links; and steer bearings that are easily accessible for lubrication. (Toyota Material Handling USA Inc., www.toy-otaforklift.com)
Supply chain execution software: RedPrairie Corp., a global
supply chain technology provider, has released version 2012.1 of
its product suite. The new release connects supply chain execution capabilities to the store and commerce sites so that retailers,
manufacturers, and distributors can achieve greater visibility and
accuracy. Enhancements include new integrations, a new traceability offering, global labor standards compliance, and
enhanced support of industry standards such as GS1 bar-coding
requirements, VMI, VAT, GSIN, and SSCC.
The new RedPrairie Traceability Solution is a hosted offering
that provides a complete electronic traceability chain of custody
down to the license plate number (LPN) level. RedPrairie also
made improvements to its warehouse management and enterprise workforce management product suites. RedPrairie
Warehouse Management now includes additional integration
capabilities and user configurable workflows to the RedPrairie
Enterprise Workforce Management product. Additional
enhancements include extended GS1 bar-code parsing to support various radio-frequency picking methods; bulk allocation
and bulk picking with configurable distribution workflows;
streamlined receiving without order or trailer dependencies; the
addition of more pick methods to support advanced cluster pick
and cart position capture; and cycle count and adjustment by
unit of measure breakdown. (RedPrairie, www.redprairie.com)
SaaS shipping solution: Kewill Flagship Express is designed to
provide small- and medium-sized businesses with a cost-effective
U.S.-origin multi-carrier parcel shipping solution.
The solution is offered on a software-as-a-service basis, which
minimizes costs. As a result, mid-market companies can now
afford a shipping solution with functionality previously only available in enterprise-level systems. (Kewill, www.kewill.com)
Turret truck: Mitsubishi Caterpillar Forklift America
Inc. (MCFA), a provider of forklift trucks in the
United States, Mexico, Canada, and Latin America,
has introduced the new Jungheinrich EKX
410 man-up turret truck. This forklift truck, which operates exclusively
in narrow aisles, can be used for full
pallet put-away and retrieval as well
as for picking individual boxes or
pieces.
The design of the new EKX 410
focused in particular on two key
components: energy efficiency and
performance. Many standard features of this forklift increase productivity in very narrow-aisle warehouse applications, including its
48-volt fourth-generation AC technology. The
three-phase AC technology helps provide high performance
while driving, lifting, and steering as well as high throughput levels and low energy consumption, according to the company.
The lift truck also features advanced regenerative braking and
lowering, which returns reclaimed energy to the battery. This
helps reduce the amount of downtime needed for battery charging and is especially beneficial in applications with high lift
heights.
Additional features help drivers operate the equipment safely.
The EKX 410’s low-swiveling side-shifting turret head gives operators good visibility of the load and aisle. Strobe lights located
under the cab and on the back of the forklift act as an additional warning device, helping to alert personnel in the surrounding
area when the truck is in operation. (Jungheinrich,
www.jungheinrich-lift.com)
Crash management system: Software company Vigillo LLC has
created a cloud-based crash management system (CMS) that
provides a Web-based accident register and tracks Department
of Transportation reportable and nonreportable crashes and tow-aways in a single place.
The Vigillo CMS identifies all mismatched data coming from
the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). The
system highlights any missing and erroneous data on crashes,
drivers, and vehicles. Users can then immediately correct the data
in all Vigillo Scorecard Reports and automatically submit an error
report to FMCSA’s DataQ system. In addition to identifying incorrect data coming from the FMCSA, the CMS can also assign a
status for each incident, making it easier for users to follow up
on the incident and comply with internal workflow rules.
The CMS also includes driver and vehicle status tracking as
well as data exports and reports.
The CMS is the seventh product in the Vigillo Daylight Suite,
which is designed to give carriers, brokers, shippers, insurers, and
drivers the tools they need to succeed under FMCSA’s
Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) initiative. (Vigillo LLC,
www.vigillo.com)
