Vision of the future

If you ever needed evidence that the development and uptake of warehouse automation technology continues apace, you only need to look at Amazon’s headline grabbing use (and ownership) of Kiva robots. The fact that the online behemoth paid $775 million for Kiva Systems in 2012, when the robot developers achieving around $100 million in revenue, underlines just how important automation is for those wishing to remain competitive in the cutthroat business of warehousing and distribution.

One company at the forefront of automated intralogistics, Swisslog is particularly attuned to how changes in demand influence the sector.

"The justification of automation was traditionally done on labour-saving costs, and whilst seasonal peaks in overtime and the associated costs of staff, illness, management etc. are self-evident, there are increasingly a host of other ways in which the technology can bring cost-savings to warehousing and distribution operations,” says James Sharples, managing director of Swisslog UK.

"The precise figures vary from installation to installation, and are often hard to distinguish from additional changes in operations, product adjustments and other efficiencies. That said, we have customers that tell us they have planned for a three-year return on investment, only to see the benefits returned to them within 18 months. We’ve also approached other household names to look at individual projects, finding out a year later that the whole experience has transformed their outlook on future DC development.”

When apetito in German invested 22.5m Euro in a new automated logistics centre, it was the largest single investment in the company’s history. Fifty percent of this amount was invested in construction and technology. It took two years in the planning and the resulting cold storage distribution centre is able to handle up to 730 load carriers per day in two shifts - roughly the equivalent of 1000 customer deliveries.

"With a medium-term investment like this, a company could reasonably expect the whole development to be paid for within three to five years. In different parts of the world there is a similar story. Lower labour costs in some countries in Asia may result in longer ROI periods to make the business case for automation, but that itself is not quite as simple as it may seem. Increasing labour costs in the Far East have made these markets more open to automation. China’s wage costs have increased by around 10 percent in both 2013 and 2014,”  says Sharples.

In contrast, wages in the UK are not expected to increase by 10 percent until 2019, but are relatively much higher to start with. Here, start-ups are just as interested in the benefits an automated system has in pushing a brand forward. A more polished service offering, thanks to automation, gives additional caché and the capabilities to grow rapidly in a way that attracts additional investment from outside parties.

Smart glasses

Like many industrial sectors, warehousing and distribution is experiencing an influx of operating systems and practices from consumer technology. In one example DHL has carried out a pilot project testing smart glasses and augmented reality picking in a warehouse in the Netherlands.

In cooperation with DHL customer Ricoh and wearable computing solutions provider Ubimax, the technology was used to implement ‘vision picking’ in warehousing operations. Staff were guided through the warehouse by graphics displayed on the smart glass to speed up the picking process and reduce errors. The pilot resulted in a 25% efficiency increase during the picking process.

The objective of the pilot project was to gain insights on the technology’s benefits and limitations. For three weeks, warehouse staff in Bergen op Zoom were equipped with head mounted displays such as Google Glass and VuzixM100. The displays showed task information during the picking process, including aisle, product location and quantity.

Overall, 10 order pickers used the equipment and picked more than 20,000 items, fulfilling 9,000 orders within the given time frame. As a result, staff was able to operate much faster and error free. Currently DHL and Ricoh are jointly evaluating the roll-out of the solution.

The pilot ties in with DHL’s Trend Report Augmented Reality in Logistics, which sees a number of applications for AR in logistics.

DHL singled out picking process improvements as having greatest potential for cost savings. The courier estimates warehousing accounts for about 20% of all logistics costs, with picking making up 55-65% of the total cost in the warehouse.

DHL says most warehouses in the developed world use the pick-by paper method, which is relatively slow and error prone.

It also points out that picking work is often undertaken by temporary workers who usually require cost-intensive training to ensure they pick efficiently and without making errors. It believes AR can simplify the picking process and make the task more self-evident.

The vision picking software offers real-time object recognition, barcode reading, indoor navigation, and integration of information with the WMS. A key benefit of vision picking is its provision of hands-free intuitive digital support to workers during manual picking operations.

By using a system like this, each worker can see the digital picking list in their field of vision and – thanks to indoor navigation capabilities – see the best route, reducing their travel time by efficient path planning. Using automated barcode scanning capabilities, the system’s image recognition software can check whether the worker has arrived at the right location, and guide the worker to quickly locate the right item on the shelf. The worker can then scan the item and register this process simultaneously in the WMS, enabling real-time stock updates.

In its report, DHL explains: ‘Field tests of these AR systems have proved they offer significant productivity improvements in warehousing operations. For example, constant picking validation can decrease errors by as much as 40%. Although today’s picking error rate is very low, even using a pick-by-paper approach – experts estimate a rate of 0.35 % – every error prevented saves money because errors typically result in high follow-up costs.’

Further along the warehouse, in the despatch area, AR could again come into its own. DHL believes the technology could help warehouse operatives more quickly verify if loads are correct.

In the future, a wearable AR device could use a combination of scanners and 3D depth sensors to determine the number of pallets or single parcels (by scanning specific markers on each parcel) or their volume (using measurement devices). This measurement is compared to predefined values and the result – hopefully a match – will be displayed to the collector. This AR system could also scan items to detect any damage or faults.

Driving energy savings

For those operations that have been realising the benefits of automation for some time, it is important to routinely review installed equipment and ensure optimum performance – a big part of which is energy efficiency. In 2009 Hermes Fulfilment, an Otto Group company that manages all services along the supply chain for European distance dealers at its four own logistics centres, introduced a master plan on climate protection. As part of this energy ­saving program, the company is replacing its conventional 400 volt technology with energy­ saving 24V drive technology from Interroll.

Initial measurements have shown energy savings of about 25 percent thanks to the Interroll drive technology. Michael Schekatz, Head of the Technical Services Department at Hermes Fulfilment and responsible for sustainability, is therefore extremely impressed: "We installed this technology in order to save energy. At the same time, however, we noticed in trials how quiet it is. This is a success we never really expected and are quite pleased about. Furthermore, we have found that maintenance has become much easier now.”

The technical service department of Hermes Fulfilment in Haldensleben is upgrading the logistics centre step by step during operation. But only four hours per day are available to do this. Thanks to how easy it is to configure and wire the Interroll ConveyorControl system, it can be installed and put into operation very quickly. The control family allows for it to be used completely without an SPS or be completely controlled by an SPS by using the GatewayControl.

A system driven by RollerDrive always has a decentralised structure. The drives are installed in all of the individual conveyor zones. This means they can be switched on or off separately. Movement throughout the entire conveyor takes place only when goods are actually transported with zero­pressure. Only those RollerDrive that are needed to transport the goods to be conveyed are actually driven. This offers enormous potential for energy savings and noise and wear reduction.

The logistics centre in Haldensleben with its approximately 54 hectares of surface area is the biggest and most modern site that Hermes Fulfilment operates. 170 million articles are moved here per year and up to 300,000 shipments leave the centre each day. Approximately 1.2 million cartons are stored in two high­bay warehouses. The length of the conveyor line that all products here are transported on is 30 km from goods receipt to goods issue.

The drives clearly play an important role because they affect the energy consumption in conveying the products. In the field of modern logistics, the areas of materials handling, storage and order picking are often responsible for approximately 50 percent of the energy costs of plants with a high degree of automation. Heating, ventilation and lighting account for more than two thirds of the other 50 percent, and lighting for around 15 percent. This means internal logistics offers significant energetic optimisation potential.

Shuttle storage technology extension

The YLOG shuttles move between levels via specially designed lifts, so a single shuttle can automate an entire rack system.

 Modular design allows more shuttles, racks or lifts to be added to suit higher throughputs. Existing customers include the automotive supplier, MSG Mechatronic Systems, located in Wies, Austria – which recently ordered an extension to its YLOG-Shuttle system – and NOCH, the model railway accessories specialist, based in Wangen, Germany.



Craig Rollason, managing director of KNAPP UK says: "With swivelling wheels and an innovative power supply system, YLOG shuttles can move in either direction within the racking by rotating. This allows them to reach every location in the store and also - through the addition of spurs - to serve workstations directly. This capability makes the YLOG solution especially suitable for production or assembly applications.”



With the racking easily fitted to the structure of an existing building, the system is easy to install and expand. The free-moving YLOG shuttles are available in three standard sizes and the system's cost/performance ratio and excellent energy efficiency give a clear advantage over conventional stacker cranes or vertical carousels, says the company.



With its first year under its belt and new premises open, YLOG Industry Solutions, a wholly owned subsidiary of KNAPP AG, is looking to the UK for potential customers for its revolutionary extension of shuttle storage technology.