Anyone who wants to see logistics in action can sign up for a tour of one of the three ranges. The Scala Material Handling & Internal Transport shows a wide range of solutions that not only improve efficiency, but also ergonomics. Which is nice for employees on the warehouse floor.
"In e-commerce warehouses, for one order picker, two packing workers are at work". This fact by Eric Hereijgers, guide to the scala on casepicking, opens the eyes of visitors. It proves that in many warehouses, packing work is an underachiever. "By setting up the packing process efficiently, efficiency can be improved a lot," Hereijgers, a consultant at St Onge in daily life, told Reuters.
30 to 40 per cent gain
A key source of efficiency is the workbench. EVC helps companies analyse the packing process and design the packing table accordingly. Think stuffing material that rises at the touch of a foot pedal through a hole in the worktop. A scale that can be built into the worktop. A roller conveyor for easy loading and unloading of boxes. The right size shipping box at your fingertips. "With a proper layout of the work table, 30 to 40 per cent efficiency can be gained," says an EVC employee.
A good work table contributes not only to efficiency, but also to economy and ergonomics. The table is height-adjustable and on the floor are anti-fatigue mats. "Those mats make the body constantly make small movements, which keeps the blood circulation in the legs going. With these kinds of adjustments, work becomes not only more efficient and ergonomic, but also more pleasant. This, in turn, is reflected in productivity."
Focus on ergonomics
The scala has a greater focus on ergonomics. The tour starts at the Cartonmover, an aid for unloading shipping containers. People still have to lift the boxes from the container onto a conveyor, but now stand on a platform that is adjustable in height. As a result, they no longer have to reach. When it comes to the boxes on the ground, they can let the conveyor business so they don't have to lift the boxes up.
The boxes discharged by the Cartonmover end up at a pallet truck with scissor forks that can move up and down. This is useful when palletising the boxes. A sensor continuously measures the height of the pallet on the pallet truck's forks. Is the pallet getting too high? Then the sensor signals it, after which the forks lower until the most ergonomic working height is reached again. "That really is a godsend. Many employees don't take the trouble themselves to constantly lower the pallet slightly," Hereijgers says.
Practical questions
The large number of questions asked by participants is striking. Practical questions about the possibilities of the pallet shuttles, the pick-to-belt system, the order picker with remote control, the spiral conveyors and the other solutions on display. Hereijgers knows how to answer many questions, and if not, the expert present at each solution. One example is the electric pallet truck equipped with a gantry construction with lifting aid. This allows loads of up to 80 kilograms to be placed on a pallet without difficulty.
An employee of a logistics provider who tested such a solution sees a limitation: picking up heavy loads standing in a rack. "Indeed," confirms the expert from supplier TAWI. "Because with this lifting aid we pick up loads from above, loads in racks pose a problem. The height is often insufficient. Therefore, we are now working on a solution that allows us to pick up these loads from the side. But that is something for the next Logistica."
