NEW LOGISTICS PRODUCTS & SERVICES
EDITED BY DIANE RAND rollouts
Order picking and storage solutions:
Order picking solutions specialist
Unex Manufacturing Inc.
has added several new
order picking and lineside
storage solutions to its
product line. These solutions
were designed to help manufacturers improve their assembly lines
by better managing materials in these areas, helping to boost
worker productivity, reduce delivery times, and enhance customer satisfaction.
When customization is high in an assembly operation, having
the ability to store additional SKUs (stock-keeping units) in the
assembly area means pickers don’t have to travel to find the
right part, boosting fulfillment rates. Unex’s lineside storage
solutions were designed to improve picking operations within an
assembly operation, while boosting efficiency and productivity,
the company says.
Unex Flow Cell workstations can help with subassembly processes by bringing small parts that are to be incorporated into
larger manufactured products together, providing a workbench
on which to assemble parts. Components are stored in cartons
or totes on the workstations, which can also be equipped with
overhead toolbars and monitors.
Unex Industrial Carts are used to move materials, parts,
boxes, and components from one location to another within
assembly operations. Carts are available with open shelving or
racks to hold cartons or parts. (Unex Manufacturing Inc., www.
unex.com)
Hybrid AGV: Dematic, a supplier of integrated automated
technology, software, and services, has introduced the iGo neo
CX 20, a dual-use automated guided vehicle (AGV) designed
for efficient, ergonomic, and economical automated mixed-case
picking.
As a dual-use or hybrid AGV, the iGo neo can operate as both
a traditional walkie-rider machine and as a fully automatic AGV.
As an AGV, the iGo neo follows the operator at all times during
the picking cycle, eliminating the time-consuming actions of
getting on and off the machine during picking to move to the
next location as well as walking with product over distance to
the machine.
Dematic says the iGo neo represents a significant leap in
ergonomic order fulfillment technology that can improve overall
picking performance by up to 30 percent and potentially even
more when coupled with a pick-to-voice system. (Dematic,
www.dematic.com/agv)
SPOTLIGHT ON ….
PICKING SYSTEMS
Fresh-food picking system: Witron has introduced the
“optimal fresh picking” (OFP) solution that combines case picking and piece picking in the fresh-food area. With the OFP, the
picking of full totes and cartons as well as piece picking from
totes and cartons is done within one automated system. The
manufacturer says the solution features short throughput times
and is designed to be cost-efficient, ergonomic, and flexible.
The customer starts with a basic version that can be expanded
due to the scalability of the system. Additional modules can be
integrated into the overall concept.
Movements within the system are reduced to a minimum.
Storage and replenishment components are product-gentle
using dynamic mini-loads (DML), small energy-efficient stacker
cranes with a double load-handling device. Two DMLs per aisle
guarantee redundancy within the modules and ensure constant
replenishment for order picking. Replenishment is done on individual pick levels. The products on each level are staged in a pick
front. Six-fold deep (or 12-fold deep, in the case of half totes)
single-item flow channels along the tote
aisle allow for intelligent replenishment.
All pick levels work completely independently of one another, which means
that several orders from different stores
can be processed in parallel with a short
throughput time.
One store order is completed on
every pick level. Full totes and cartons
of different sizes are removed directly
from the pick front by means of pick
shuttles and placed onto a discharge
conveyor. The provision of the items in
the modules is done according to the
store layout to allow for the shortest driving distances for the
shuttle. As in the case of the replenishment by means of the
DML, the long driving distances for shuttles—for example, to the
end of the aisle—are no longer required, thus allowing maximum
outbound performance. The outbound lane transports the load
carriers directly to the automated stacker cranes, where they are
stacked onto pallets or roll containers without being buffered.
Piece picking is done in a pick aisle with automated replenishment. Several pickers work in one aisle, directed by a pick guiding
system. All pickers work on the same store order and pick fruits
and vegetables directly into the order totes. Every customer order
is completed in one aisle. The order assignment of the next tote
to be picked is determined by computers, which can take the
pick performance of each individual picker into account. Once
the store totes are filled optimally based on a volume calculation,
they are supplied to the automated stackers via an outbound
lane and stacked for transportation together with the previous
full totes or cartons. (Witron, www.witron.de)
