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Day: 3 December 2020

New Reach Stacker Model Introduced to Range

Posted on by David Priestman

Since 2017, Konecranes has provided dependable, robust and cost-efficient reach stackers under the Konecranes Liftace label. These have now been updated with a fresh design, the latest technology and a new name: Konecranes Liftace 4532 TCE5.

Maintaining similar features and the same high-level performance, the new machine will replace the well-known Konecranes Liftace reach stackers, the reliable workhorses of the second product family, and the old SMV TCE5 model. The new Konecranes Liftace 4532 TCE5 will combine the technology and option list from its predecessors, providing a one-go solution for both markets.

“This is a change that we think will serve our customers very well. Moving to the well-proven Konecranes platform, customers will get the same quality, standard and benefits they are used to, with some extra perks added. It’s a standardized offer with full performance and a fast lead time,” says Johan Bjerstedt, as Global Sales Manager for Konecranes Liftace products.

The new Konecranes Liftace 4532 TCE5 is equipped with an OPTIMA cabin for outstanding comfort and visibility, giving a premium driving experience. High-quality core components, such as a strong box-type chassis and a wide drive axle with a long wheelbase, provide high stability, safe handling and long-lasting performance. Smart systems integrate with Konecranes TRUCONNECT Remote Monitoring, allowing a near real-time view of truck usage and the progress of KPIs as well as easier planning of preventive maintenance.

“Every enhancement that we make to a Konecranes lift truck is based on customer feedback,” says Patrik Lundbäck, Director and Head of Sales and Distribution at Konecranes Lift Trucks. “Our customers love the Konecranes Liftace reach stackers, and with these upgrades we are improving their safety, productivity and cost effectiveness. This strong, compact and reliable machine is there to meet all our customers’ needs.”

New Reach Stacker Model Introduced to Range

Posted on by David Priestman

Since 2017, Konecranes has provided dependable, robust and cost-efficient reach stackers under the Konecranes Liftace label. These have now been updated with a fresh design, the latest technology and a new name: Konecranes Liftace 4532 TCE5.

Maintaining similar features and the same high-level performance, the new machine will replace the well-known Konecranes Liftace reach stackers, the reliable workhorses of the second product family, and the old SMV TCE5 model. The new Konecranes Liftace 4532 TCE5 will combine the technology and option list from its predecessors, providing a one-go solution for both markets.

“This is a change that we think will serve our customers very well. Moving to the well-proven Konecranes platform, customers will get the same quality, standard and benefits they are used to, with some extra perks added. It’s a standardized offer with full performance and a fast lead time,” says Johan Bjerstedt, as Global Sales Manager for Konecranes Liftace products.

The new Konecranes Liftace 4532 TCE5 is equipped with an OPTIMA cabin for outstanding comfort and visibility, giving a premium driving experience. High-quality core components, such as a strong box-type chassis and a wide drive axle with a long wheelbase, provide high stability, safe handling and long-lasting performance. Smart systems integrate with Konecranes TRUCONNECT Remote Monitoring, allowing a near real-time view of truck usage and the progress of KPIs as well as easier planning of preventive maintenance.

“Every enhancement that we make to a Konecranes lift truck is based on customer feedback,” says Patrik Lundbäck, Director and Head of Sales and Distribution at Konecranes Lift Trucks. “Our customers love the Konecranes Liftace reach stackers, and with these upgrades we are improving their safety, productivity and cost effectiveness. This strong, compact and reliable machine is there to meet all our customers’ needs.”

High Service Standards Seal Contract Extension

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Bibby Distribution’s flexible approach, cost-effective transport solutions and excellent service support have secured a three-year contract extension with Cambridgeshire-based cardboard manufacturer Jardin Corrugated.

The two companies began working together in 2018, with Bibby Distribution transporting goods from Jardin Corrugated’s production sites in Ely and St Ives across the UK in its fleet of high-cube trailers – each providing a 15 per cent increase in volume versus a standard trailer. After an extremely successful two years, led by Bibby Distribution’s Site Supervisor Anastasia Paul, which have seen standards raised and costs reduced, the contract has now been renewed until early 2024.

Bob Koczulab, Managing Director at Jardin Corrugated, says: “We have been extremely happy with the level of service we have received from our partners at Bibby Distribution and we’re looking forward to another successful three years. During our current relationship with Bibby Distribution they have effectively integrated the transport model to ensure that we continue servicing the needs of our customers in a market that demands speed, agility and responsiveness. The specialist trailers used for moving our products has resulted in a reduction of vehicle movements providing efficiency gains, a reduction in our carbon footprint and helped to reduce operating costs.”

Bibby Distribution oversees more than 160 deliveries each week for Jardin Corrugated, transporting packaging to a wide range of market sectors along with collecting paper reels from suppliers on return trips to maximise fleet utilisation and keep costs as low as possible. Craig Gill, General Manager at Bibby Distribution, says: “Anastasia has done a fantastic job and helped to build an excellent working relationship with her counterparts at Jardin. At Bibby Distribution we have vast experience in the packaging sector and can handle any situation or issue that may arise professionally and efficiently. We pride ourselves on good communication, excellent service and a flexible approach.”

Jardin Corrugated, part of the Logson Group, manufactures a wide range of boxes from retail ready packaging and regular transit packaging, to complex die cuts and printed cartons for a wide variety of markets.

High Service Standards Seal Contract Extension

Posted on by David Priestman

Bibby Distribution’s flexible approach, cost-effective transport solutions and excellent service support have secured a three-year contract extension with Cambridgeshire-based cardboard manufacturer Jardin Corrugated.

The two companies began working together in 2018, with Bibby Distribution transporting goods from Jardin Corrugated’s production sites in Ely and St Ives across the UK in its fleet of high-cube trailers – each providing a 15 per cent increase in volume versus a standard trailer. After an extremely successful two years, led by Bibby Distribution’s Site Supervisor Anastasia Paul, which have seen standards raised and costs reduced, the contract has now been renewed until early 2024.

Bob Koczulab, Managing Director at Jardin Corrugated, says: “We have been extremely happy with the level of service we have received from our partners at Bibby Distribution and we’re looking forward to another successful three years. During our current relationship with Bibby Distribution they have effectively integrated the transport model to ensure that we continue servicing the needs of our customers in a market that demands speed, agility and responsiveness. The specialist trailers used for moving our products has resulted in a reduction of vehicle movements providing efficiency gains, a reduction in our carbon footprint and helped to reduce operating costs.”

Bibby Distribution oversees more than 160 deliveries each week for Jardin Corrugated, transporting packaging to a wide range of market sectors along with collecting paper reels from suppliers on return trips to maximise fleet utilisation and keep costs as low as possible. Craig Gill, General Manager at Bibby Distribution, says: “Anastasia has done a fantastic job and helped to build an excellent working relationship with her counterparts at Jardin. At Bibby Distribution we have vast experience in the packaging sector and can handle any situation or issue that may arise professionally and efficiently. We pride ourselves on good communication, excellent service and a flexible approach.”

Jardin Corrugated, part of the Logson Group, manufactures a wide range of boxes from retail ready packaging and regular transit packaging, to complex die cuts and printed cartons for a wide variety of markets.

During a Boom in e-commerce, Logistics Counts

Posted on by David Priestman

The logistics domain has become increasingly strategic in recent years. In 2020, global markets dramatically accelerated their shift towards e-commerce in order to adapt to the changes caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. This has meant that the quality of a company’s logistics infrastructure has become a determining factor in its survival in the international marketplace, which requires firms to manage higher volumes of product, with greater accuracy, in less time and at lower cost.

Leonardo, a multinational technology company, is one of the leading global players in the aerospace, defence and security sector. Less well known however is that the company has also provided logistics systems and services for more than 40 years, predominantly as the designer and manufacturer of postal and airport automation systems which manage and sort post and baggage.

The Multisort 500, expressly designed for e-commerce market, is a flexible cross-belt parcel sorting system which can handle a wide range of small-to-medium-sized items, including those which are fragile or very thin. Driven by Linear Asynchronous Motors (LASM), the sorting machine’s propulsion system does not require physical contact, reducing wear and the need for maintenance. The continuous propulsion also reduces vibration and mechanical stress.

The Multisort 500’s control system continuously monitors the position and operational status of each individual sorting unit, allowing it to send accurate commands to each cell’s belts at every stage of operation. With this high level of control, parcels of many different shapes and sizes can be carefully handled as they are loaded, transported and unloaded.

The innovative and modular engineering solutions of the Multisort 500 also delivers significant energy savings, with the speed of the system able to be adjusted to accommodate lower levels of throughput. Meanwhile, the high reliability of the system, due in part to its no-friction propulsion system, means that fewer maintenance interventions are required, also cutting costs.

As a systems integrator, Leonardo can tailor its solutions to the specific operational requirements of customers. The Company can supply a range of products and services from automated parcel handling and sorting systems to integrated logistics management IT platforms, including customised after-sales services.

During a Boom in e-commerce, Logistics Counts

Posted on by David Priestman

The logistics domain has become increasingly strategic in recent years. In 2020, global markets dramatically accelerated their shift towards e-commerce in order to adapt to the changes caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. This has meant that the quality of a company’s logistics infrastructure has become a determining factor in its survival in the international marketplace, which requires firms to manage higher volumes of product, with greater accuracy, in less time and at lower cost.

Leonardo, a multinational technology company, is one of the leading global players in the aerospace, defence and security sector. Less well known however is that the company has also provided logistics systems and services for more than 40 years, predominantly as the designer and manufacturer of postal and airport automation systems which manage and sort post and baggage.

The Multisort 500, expressly designed for e-commerce market, is a flexible cross-belt parcel sorting system which can handle a wide range of small-to-medium-sized items, including those which are fragile or very thin. Driven by Linear Asynchronous Motors (LASM), the sorting machine’s propulsion system does not require physical contact, reducing wear and the need for maintenance. The continuous propulsion also reduces vibration and mechanical stress.

The Multisort 500’s control system continuously monitors the position and operational status of each individual sorting unit, allowing it to send accurate commands to each cell’s belts at every stage of operation. With this high level of control, parcels of many different shapes and sizes can be carefully handled as they are loaded, transported and unloaded.

The innovative and modular engineering solutions of the Multisort 500 also delivers significant energy savings, with the speed of the system able to be adjusted to accommodate lower levels of throughput. Meanwhile, the high reliability of the system, due in part to its no-friction propulsion system, means that fewer maintenance interventions are required, also cutting costs.

As a systems integrator, Leonardo can tailor its solutions to the specific operational requirements of customers. The Company can supply a range of products and services from automated parcel handling and sorting systems to integrated logistics management IT platforms, including customised after-sales services.

Up to 20% of Ex-Forklifts Potentially Unsafe

Posted on by David Priestman

Up to 20% of explosion protected lift trucks (ex-forklifts) in operation may not pass an Annual Safety Audit, reveals Pyroban.

“When a lift truck leaves our facility, we can be confident that its safety systems are working as they should to help prevent ignition in a potentially explosive atmosphere,” explains Darren Boiling, Materials Handling Sales Manager for Pyroban. “However, it’s important to check that it stays that way, particularly after a few years’ of heavy use.”

“The Annual Safety Audit, known as an Ex-ASA, is recommended to thoroughly inspect all safety critical components and systems of Ex-forklifts,” Darren continues. “During these inspections, we see around 20% of trucks present issues that could pose real and immediate dangers.”

Among the most common reasons for failing a Pyroban Ex-ASA are issues with fork cladding and earth straps, worn tyres, DC motor insulation resistance, poorly maintained batteries and even seat cushion wear. Badly maintained or worn “D” shut-off valves are also a common reason for Ex-ASA failure on diesel forklifts.

On occasion, Pyroban’s audits have found serious problems where the motors have been repaired or altered by unqualified engineers with no experience of explosion protection. This compromises the integrity of the whole safety system and could render elements of it completely useless.

“An unqualified person making any change to an explosion protected truck could prove disastrous, so it’s important that only correctly trained CompEx engineers work on Pyroban converted lift trucks,” says Darren. “That said, any of the issues highlighted – from worn seats to battery issues – could potentially result in a horror story. Keeping up with preventative maintenance is an ideal way to avoid danger and make sure systems function correctly,” he continues. “But ensuring that equipment is regularly audited for safety provides extra reassurance and should be a priority for any operation with trucks operating in ATEX Zone 1, 2, 21 or 22 areas.”

Up to 20% of Ex-Forklifts Potentially Unsafe

Posted on by David Priestman

Up to 20% of explosion protected lift trucks (ex-forklifts) in operation may not pass an Annual Safety Audit, reveals Pyroban.

“When a lift truck leaves our facility, we can be confident that its safety systems are working as they should to help prevent ignition in a potentially explosive atmosphere,” explains Darren Boiling, Materials Handling Sales Manager for Pyroban. “However, it’s important to check that it stays that way, particularly after a few years’ of heavy use.”

“The Annual Safety Audit, known as an Ex-ASA, is recommended to thoroughly inspect all safety critical components and systems of Ex-forklifts,” Darren continues. “During these inspections, we see around 20% of trucks present issues that could pose real and immediate dangers.”

Among the most common reasons for failing a Pyroban Ex-ASA are issues with fork cladding and earth straps, worn tyres, DC motor insulation resistance, poorly maintained batteries and even seat cushion wear. Badly maintained or worn “D” shut-off valves are also a common reason for Ex-ASA failure on diesel forklifts.

On occasion, Pyroban’s audits have found serious problems where the motors have been repaired or altered by unqualified engineers with no experience of explosion protection. This compromises the integrity of the whole safety system and could render elements of it completely useless.

“An unqualified person making any change to an explosion protected truck could prove disastrous, so it’s important that only correctly trained CompEx engineers work on Pyroban converted lift trucks,” says Darren. “That said, any of the issues highlighted – from worn seats to battery issues – could potentially result in a horror story. Keeping up with preventative maintenance is an ideal way to avoid danger and make sure systems function correctly,” he continues. “But ensuring that equipment is regularly audited for safety provides extra reassurance and should be a priority for any operation with trucks operating in ATEX Zone 1, 2, 21 or 22 areas.”

Who is speaking? Warehouse Voice Software Knows

Posted on by David Priestman

Wherever you have lots of order pickers working side by side in the warehouse, voice software can incorrectly recognizes commands. EPG (Ehrhardt + Partner Group) has incorporated machine learning into its latest release. The system reacts to the volume of the input signal coming from the speaker and automatically ignores it if there’s a significant deviation. This ensures that the system only listens to the actual user, avoiding incorrect commands from other people speaking. In addition, Lydia® Voice now also features a voice-activated client event reporting function for simplified error analysis during voice application. The new release is available on the latest operating systems, including Android 10.

And even when used with headsets featuring microphones that don’t offer optimum noise-cancelling capabilities, the new Lydia® Voice release is able to leverage its strengths, with Lydia® now even better at differentiating between the actual user and other people who are talking nearby. The integrated machine learning technology reacts to the volume of the input signal. When there is a significant deviation in input volume, the system can tell whether it’s the actual user talking or somebody else. And if it is somebody else, the system automatically disregards what they’ve said. This helps to avoid incorrect commands and ensure the actual worker can go about his or her duties without
interruption.

Improved error analysis

In the event of something unexpected happening in warehouse operations, such as network problems or challenges with voice input and output, the new release allows the user to actively generate log files by voice command via the client event reporting feature. This puts a marker in the system that is easy to find, enabling each
documented incident to be analysed and evaluated swiftly. Incidents can therefore be rectified as soon as they occur, saving a great deal of time, and can also be assigned to error categories as part of the process.

The new Lydia® release is available on the latest versions of major operating  systems, including Android 10. This also means maximum flexibility when it comes to choosing hardware.

Logistics Business reported recently on Lydia® VoiceWear®, which offers increased mobility while picking. Click here for more.

Who is speaking? Warehouse Voice Software Knows

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Wherever you have lots of order pickers working side by side in the warehouse, voice software can incorrectly recognizes commands. EPG (Ehrhardt + Partner Group) has incorporated machine learning into its latest release. The system reacts to the volume of the input signal coming from the speaker and automatically ignores it if there’s a significant deviation. This ensures that the system only listens to the actual user, avoiding incorrect commands from other people speaking. In addition, Lydia® Voice now also features a voice-activated client event reporting function for simplified error analysis during voice application. The new release is available on the latest operating systems, including Android 10.

And even when used with headsets featuring microphones that don’t offer optimum noise-cancelling capabilities, the new Lydia® Voice release is able to leverage its strengths, with Lydia® now even better at differentiating between the actual user and other people who are talking nearby. The integrated machine learning technology reacts to the volume of the input signal. When there is a significant deviation in input volume, the system can tell whether it’s the actual user talking or somebody else. And if it is somebody else, the system automatically disregards what they’ve said. This helps to avoid incorrect commands and ensure the actual worker can go about his or her duties without
interruption.

Improved error analysis

In the event of something unexpected happening in warehouse operations, such as network problems or challenges with voice input and output, the new release allows the user to actively generate log files by voice command via the client event reporting feature. This puts a marker in the system that is easy to find, enabling each
documented incident to be analysed and evaluated swiftly. Incidents can therefore be rectified as soon as they occur, saving a great deal of time, and can also be assigned to error categories as part of the process.

The new Lydia® release is available on the latest versions of major operating  systems, including Android 10. This also means maximum flexibility when it comes to choosing hardware.

Logistics Business reported recently on Lydia® VoiceWear®, which offers increased mobility while picking. Click here for more.

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