MHI bestows first-ever
ProMat Innovation Awards
One of the highlights of the recent ProMat 2013
trade show was the announcement of show sponsor MHI’s inaugural ProMat Innovation Awards. The
material handling industry association received more than 75 entries
from ProMat exhibitors seeking recognition for both new and existing
products. The contest defines innovation as a new product, product line,
technology, or service—or a new application of existing products or technology—that creates quantifiable and sustainable results in terms of
return on investment (ROI), cost savings, and customer satisfaction.
The award for Best Innovation of an Existing Product went to Fox IV
Technologies Inc. for its TwinPrint shipping label system. The TwinPrint
printer-applicator prints both the shipping information and a confidential packing slip onto a single label—with the shipping information on
the label’s top, and the packing slip on the label liner. Because both the
shipping label and packing slip are printed and applied at the same time,
the information is guaranteed to match. Fox IV says the TwinPrint system reduces waste generated during the shipping process by an estimated 33 percent compared with traditional methods.
Other finalists in the Best Innovation of an Existing Product category were Bishamon Industries, Daifuku Webb, Dematic, Digital Lumens
Inc., and Jungheinrich.
Packsize LLC won the Best New Product Award for its IQ Fusion cor-
rugated converting machine. The device, which produces custom-sized
boxes for every shipment, has a working footprint of just 48 square feet.
It can be placed in just about any pack line, requires no additional cap-
ital investment, and uses z-Fold, a proprietary 97-percent recyclable
corrugated material, for the box-making process, according to the man-
ufacturer. The system saves users an average of 35 percent on carton
costs, Packsize says. [To read more about Packsize’s technology, see
“That was easy (on the planet)” on p. 43.]
Other Best New Product finalists included Blickle Casters, Engineered
Lifting Systems, Intelligrated, Kuka Systems, and Opex Corp. ;
Master the logistics of health and
humanitarian response
Recent disasters have shown the importance of logistics know-how in
providing humanitarian relief. But there are many differences between
humanitarian logistics and the version practiced in commercial settings.
The Georgia Tech Supply Chain & Logistics Institute’s Health and
Humanitarian Logistics Certificate program examines those differences
and prepares graduates to effectively manage in the humanitarian
response environment. The three courses in the program cover pre-plan-ning strategy (May 6–7), tactical decision making (May 8–10), and systems
operations in health and humanitarian response logistics (Sept. 11–13).
All three courses will be taught on the Georgia Tech campus in
Atlanta. For more information, visit www.pe.gatech.edu/scl/2013. ;
inbound
You heard it here first …
Trade shows aren’t just about the
exhibits. They also offer a chance to talk
with experts about industry trends.
While we were at the biennial ProMat
material handling show, we took advantage of the opportunity to ask some lift
truck makers what’s new. Here’s a summary of what we learned.
▪ The need to meet new Tier 4 Environmental Protection Agency regulations for
diesel lift trucks will present a challenge
for manufacturers. Jeff Rufener, president
of Toyota Material Handling USA, said
that Toyota would announce a new product in the category later in the year that
will offer better fuel efficiency than what
is currently available. This new product
will help offset the higher acquisition cost
for the new lower-emission engines.
▪ Industrial truck sales took a beating
during the recession but are nearly back
to normal now, said Tim Quellhorst, senior vice president at Crown Equipment
Corp. Internal combustion (IC) vehicles
took the biggest hit, with sales dropping
by as much as 50 percent during the lowest point. That’s because they’re used
mostly in manufacturing, which was
severely affected by the economic slowdown. IC sales are bouncing back now as
U.S. manufacturing revives.
▪ When it comes to what customers
want in a lift truck, a few trends have
emerged, said Bill Pfleger, president of Yale
Distribution. Users want models that can
adapt to changes in their operations—for
instance, when a company jumps into e-commerce fulfillment. They’re also looking for ergonomic features that help operators keep productivity high throughout
the day. Features that promote safety and
reduce equipment and product damage
are also in high demand—for example,
telematics that alert managers when drivers cause impacts and make drivers more
accountable for their actions. But buyers
still want to hold down costs. That’s one
reason why both Yale and sister company
Hyster have introduced a remanufactured
truck option. ;
