storage optimisation
SEvEn-poInt CHECkLISt to WarEHouSE SyStEMS-dESIgn
Low-CapEx technology is leading SME’s to look at flexible and scalable, warehouse automation as a means to overcoming capacity issues and labour constraints. But how do you ensure a favourable outcome? Here Craig Whitehouse, managing director of Invar Integration offers a seven-point checklist for design success.
simulation software brings a concept to life.
invar group has invested in leading-edge 3D simulation technology that enables it to select the most suitable materials handling hardware from a virtual catalogue and place appropriate technologies together as a concept system within the software. then, by inputting a customer’s real data set, invar can apply routing logic to allow it to view performance and see in advance, any potential bottlenecks in the system. testing a concept in this way highlights where in the system there is too much capacity and where there is not enough, and hence, where expansion is required. then you can scenario plan for ‘what ifs’, such as twice as many orders, or twice as many products, what if slow movers became fast movers and what happens at peak?
6
dESIgn In fLExIBILIty and SCaLaBILIty
most investments in automation are aimed at increasing capacity to facilitate growth. that is why designing a system for flexibility and scalability is so important. Using the right technology, a point solution can be expanded to grow with the business – that is a benefit of modular technology. in recent years, tremendous advances have been made in areas such as mobile robotics and ai, giving sme’s access to low-Capex solutions with huge benefits. autonomous mobile robots (amrs) offer
tremendous flexibility and, importantly, scalability in traditional labour-intensive tasks such as order picking and put-away. amr systems combined with pick-to-light technology can boost order picking performance from under 100 units per hour using traditional methods, to up to 400 picks per hour, with an roi that can be as little as 12 months. mobile robots may also be used effectively to
transport pallets within a warehouse, offering a more flexible alternative to fixed pallet conveyors. Flexible technology combined with powerful,
intelligent software allows for a new way of thinking. a conventional conveyor system is normally installed to an agreed throughput, usually to a projected peak figure. But this results in the asset running below capacity for the majority of the year. on the quietest day it may only handle a tenth of the volume experienced at peak. However, a solution using
amrs could be designed for 70 per cent of peak, with additional robots brought in during peak periods. it is this level of scalability that offers smes a flexible low-entry point to automation.
7 SELECt an ExpErIEnCEd partnEr
there may be any number of processes within a warehouse that are found to be a constraint on optimum performance and there are many well- proven technologies that can be deployed – from weighing and auto volumetric sizing of goods received, conveyor runs and asrs systems, to automated packaging machines, sortation equipment and pick-to-light technology.. importantly, it is the efficient integration of these processes, technologies and intelligent software that enables fast delivery of a solution and a trouble-free future. an intelligent system, conceived by expert design engineers and implemented by competent controls and software professionals, drives productivity and offers the agility needed to respond to change. as an independent, full-spectrum automated
warehouse solutions provider, invar group is free to select the most appropriate technology for the task, and being a multifaceted organisation that brings together skilled individuals with competencies across warehouse management software, systems integration and controls, it takes responsibility for the complete turnkey system from start to finish.
Invar Systems
www.invarsystems.com
FaCtorY&HanDLingsoLUtions | maY 2021 33
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