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Meet the
newest members
of our pride
Designed to meet the high power demands
of material handling applications, new
LegaC2 TM modular chargers offer many
of the latest features in battery charging
performance, efficiency and intelligence.
These high frequency charging
solutions save space with a compact
design and have the flexibility to
meet the needs of any application.
Plus, modules are automatically
switched off and on to achieve
optimum charging performance
and maintain peak efficiency at
all times.
©2016 EnerSys Delaware Inc. d/b/a Douglas Battery. All rights reserved.
Trademarks and logos are the property of EnerSys and its affiliates unless otherwise noted.
Subject to revision without prior notice. E.&O. E.
Douglas Battery
1255 Creekshire Way, Suite 221 • Winston-Salem, NC 27103
1-800-211-3684 • www.douglasbattery.com
Introducing LegaC2 ™modular chargers from Douglas Battery™
processes in the building to five,
compared with 12 manual opera-
tions in the company’s other logis-
tics centers. At the same time, the
design of the new facility enables the
accuracy and speed of processing
required for medications. The typi-
cal order leadtime is half a day, and
any orders received by 8 p.m. ship
out the next morning.
The main goal of TBC Saitama
was to reduce errors to less than
one per 10 million items processed.
“The reason for so much automa-
tion is accuracy,” explains Mitsuo
Morikubo, executive managing
director. “Errors here may directly link to
incorrect medicines given to patients at
customer sites. We need to assure accura-
cy as much as possible.”
Another reason Toho chose to imple-
ment such an extensive automated sys-
tem is the difficulty of obtaining enough
workers. Japan’s available work force is
declining; moreover, it’s not easy to find
suitable employees to perform tedious
tasks like filling small, complex orders.
The automation allows Toho to swift-
ly and accurately process orders while
greatly reducing the distributor’s reli-
ance on labor. It also helps the compa-
ny trim costs and improve profitability,
Morikubo adds.
It wasn’t easy to find a supplier that
could meet all of Toho’s requirements.
The pharmaceutical distributor chose
Japan’s Daifuku Co. Ltd. to provide the
design and most of the material handling systems in TBC Saitama. “When
we looked at the automation we wanted
for this center, we felt that Daifuku was
the only company that could handle it,”
Morikubo says.
SMALL SPACE, HIGH THROUGHPUT
Software is crucial for operating a highly
automated facility. Along with robots and
AS/RSs, Daifuku supplied the customized
warehouse control system that integrates
optimally with the facility’s NEC warehouse management system (WMS).
The software systems accurately manage a large number of orders each day.
Because many of Toho’s customers have
limited storage space, they order products
only when they need them. As a result,
most of the 23,000 customers served from
TBC Saitama receive shipments daily,
with many receiving more than one each
day.
The software also ensures that most
products are processed on a first-in/first-out basis, meaning that the first medicines
received into the building are the first to
ship, so customers receive fresh product
well before expiration dates. Product lots
are also tracked by the WMS. Together,
the software systems provide full track-and-trace capability for every product as
it passes through the building. That information is then sent along with the prod-
