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Month: May 2022

Wise shortlisted for UK business award

Posted on by David Priestman

Wise, a technology business which helps logistics firms to engage their self-employed workforce, is celebrating after being shortlisted for a 2022 National Business Award.

Wise, founded in December 2019, has been listed in the ‘Best New Business’ category following tremendous growth which has seen the scale-up business go from 12 employees to over 60 in two and a half years.

Based in Birmingham, Wise has developed a platform which is now used by over 250 UK delivery firms and 50,000 self-employed subcontractors to save time, money and stress on everything from onboarding to tax compliance.

The finalists for this year’s UK Business Awards were announced live online on Friday 29th April, with internationally renowned businesses such as DHL, Tata Communications and CitySprint up for different awards at the ceremony on Thursday 7th July.

Dan Richards, Chief Commercial Officer at Wise, said: “We’re incredibly proud to have been shortlisted for this prestigious award after what has been a tremendously exciting few years for the business. To be recognised and put forward for this kind of national accolade is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the entire Wise team and all of our fantastic clients across the UK.”

Wise shortlisted for UK business award

Posted on by David Priestman

Wise, a technology business which helps logistics firms to engage their self-employed workforce, is celebrating after being shortlisted for a 2022 National Business Award.

Wise, founded in December 2019, has been listed in the ‘Best New Business’ category following tremendous growth which has seen the scale-up business go from 12 employees to over 60 in two and a half years.

Based in Birmingham, Wise has developed a platform which is now used by over 250 UK delivery firms and 50,000 self-employed subcontractors to save time, money and stress on everything from onboarding to tax compliance.

The finalists for this year’s UK Business Awards were announced live online on Friday 29th April, with internationally renowned businesses such as DHL, Tata Communications and CitySprint up for different awards at the ceremony on Thursday 7th July.

Dan Richards, Chief Commercial Officer at Wise, said: “We’re incredibly proud to have been shortlisted for this prestigious award after what has been a tremendously exciting few years for the business. To be recognised and put forward for this kind of national accolade is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the entire Wise team and all of our fantastic clients across the UK.”

Essential needs driving the pace of automation in warehousing  

Posted on by David Priestman

Phil Swinn, Special Projects Manager at Thermal Printer Support Ltd (TPS), a leading UK specialist supplier of thermal transfer printers, associated hardware and support, explains how a combination of staff shortages and the need to improve fulfilment speed and accuracy are driving the pace of automation in warehouses.

Are you looking to work smarter and faster in the post pandemic world? Are staff shortages putting a spanner in the works? Is it time to move away from too much reliance on human assistance for tasks that can easily be automated?

While many in logistics have already embraced automation or are poised to do so, others are daunted by the prospect of some processes being taken out of human hands. However, based on a Forbes survey, 60% of respondents indicated automated warehouse investment was ‘Very Likely’ this year, while a further 19% said ‘Likely’.

Automation is a cost-effective way to tackle labour shortages which are a common problem in many sectors. Take labelling. This is a mundane, repetitive but crucial function. When dealing with high volumes of labels per day it only takes one oversight to slip through the net and you have a potential risk for the consumer. Automated labelling systems can prevent sleepless nights.

Don’t get in a pickle over changes

To ensure consumers’ trust in what they are purchasing, detailed information must be clearly visible on labels. They also have to carry a descriptive name, for example, cheese and pickle sandwich, while all label and ingredient information should be clearly legible, using regulation font size. This legal requirement was enforced following the introduction last year of Natasha’s Law, and software exists that automatically highlights any allergens for compliance with that law.

For example, if a supplier adds spices for a ready meal, labels will need checking and amending accordingly, to remove risk. Using an automated system helps with substitutions. Also, consideration has to be given to how the labels are being used. Is the product being aged for the oven or is the food frozen, with the risk of the adhesive failing? One solution doesn’t fit all.

We have seen demand for automated labelling solutions shoot up with manufacturers looking to boost productivity. The covid pandemic accelerated the shift to e-commerce to keep up with this growth and to compete effectively across multiple market sectors. Automation is no longer just a competitive advantage – more so a necessity for many businesses.

For example inline verification when printing barcode labels. This automatically picks out and discards defective labels that won’t scan, reprinting a replacement. The end result is the elimination of rejected deliveries, perhaps even the disposal of food as well as costly charge backs and fines for non-conforming labels. As a solution, it’s faster, less expensive and less prone to human error.

Getting more from less

Improving fulfilment speed and accuracy are driving the pace of automation and robot adoption throughout the supply chain. Finding, hiring and keeping employees is proving problematic as there are now not as many people going into manufacturing and distribution as in the past because of the historical requirement for shift work versus people’s desire for a better work/life balance.

Automation is the buzz word for integrated warehousing solutions, materials handling, packaging and transportation. Automatic guided vehicles (AGVs) in large distribution centres are transforming the industry but you still may still have a similar amount of human input due to both the software and mechanical equipment service/maintenance involved.

Meanwhile, robotisation is ideal for highly-regularised environments operating repeat processes, but in many circumstances the irregularity of sizes, weights and often unreliable or variable quality of supplier products will fox the current levels of AI. As soon as you get a non-standard item you will probably need a human to sort it. Rather than labour saving it’s more like an exchange of labour.

The workplace landscape is changing. Many businesses are looking to implement advanced warehouse management systems to meet customer demand with fewer employees, such as cloud accessibility of equipment. The latest labelling systems support this with a PC and mobile app to control label applicators from anywhere, anytime.

Real time calculation of labelling autonomy, in pieces and residual time will let you know before production stops so you can replenish media more quickly, thus increasing efficiency. Human interventions are few and far between so an automated applicator or print & apply system will likely pay for itself very quickly – making it a great investment.

Automation is a safer solution

The latest printing innovations make light work of creating complex labels. They are suitable as a single standalone application or as a network package. A range of comprehensive features reduces the risk of input errors and time-wasting duplication of data. There is no requirement to manually interact with the data, taking away the risk of missing key information when there is a whole list of things to display – saving time as well as potentially saving lives.

The print industry has been supporting businesses with the equipment, labelling guidance and sector-specific advice they need to implement the changes. For example, there are around two million people living with food allergies in the UK. If improving the clarity of information and efficiency on labelling can prevent tragic deaths, that can only be a positive thing.

 

Essential needs driving the pace of automation in warehousing  

Posted on by David Priestman

Phil Swinn, Special Projects Manager at Thermal Printer Support Ltd (TPS), a leading UK specialist supplier of thermal transfer printers, associated hardware and support, explains how a combination of staff shortages and the need to improve fulfilment speed and accuracy are driving the pace of automation in warehouses.

Are you looking to work smarter and faster in the post pandemic world? Are staff shortages putting a spanner in the works? Is it time to move away from too much reliance on human assistance for tasks that can easily be automated?

While many in logistics have already embraced automation or are poised to do so, others are daunted by the prospect of some processes being taken out of human hands. However, based on a Forbes survey, 60% of respondents indicated automated warehouse investment was ‘Very Likely’ this year, while a further 19% said ‘Likely’.

Automation is a cost-effective way to tackle labour shortages which are a common problem in many sectors. Take labelling. This is a mundane, repetitive but crucial function. When dealing with high volumes of labels per day it only takes one oversight to slip through the net and you have a potential risk for the consumer. Automated labelling systems can prevent sleepless nights.

Don’t get in a pickle over changes

To ensure consumers’ trust in what they are purchasing, detailed information must be clearly visible on labels. They also have to carry a descriptive name, for example, cheese and pickle sandwich, while all label and ingredient information should be clearly legible, using regulation font size. This legal requirement was enforced following the introduction last year of Natasha’s Law, and software exists that automatically highlights any allergens for compliance with that law.

For example, if a supplier adds spices for a ready meal, labels will need checking and amending accordingly, to remove risk. Using an automated system helps with substitutions. Also, consideration has to be given to how the labels are being used. Is the product being aged for the oven or is the food frozen, with the risk of the adhesive failing? One solution doesn’t fit all.

We have seen demand for automated labelling solutions shoot up with manufacturers looking to boost productivity. The covid pandemic accelerated the shift to e-commerce to keep up with this growth and to compete effectively across multiple market sectors. Automation is no longer just a competitive advantage – more so a necessity for many businesses.

For example inline verification when printing barcode labels. This automatically picks out and discards defective labels that won’t scan, reprinting a replacement. The end result is the elimination of rejected deliveries, perhaps even the disposal of food as well as costly charge backs and fines for non-conforming labels. As a solution, it’s faster, less expensive and less prone to human error.

Getting more from less

Improving fulfilment speed and accuracy are driving the pace of automation and robot adoption throughout the supply chain. Finding, hiring and keeping employees is proving problematic as there are now not as many people going into manufacturing and distribution as in the past because of the historical requirement for shift work versus people’s desire for a better work/life balance.

Automation is the buzz word for integrated warehousing solutions, materials handling, packaging and transportation. Automatic guided vehicles (AGVs) in large distribution centres are transforming the industry but you still may still have a similar amount of human input due to both the software and mechanical equipment service/maintenance involved.

Meanwhile, robotisation is ideal for highly-regularised environments operating repeat processes, but in many circumstances the irregularity of sizes, weights and often unreliable or variable quality of supplier products will fox the current levels of AI. As soon as you get a non-standard item you will probably need a human to sort it. Rather than labour saving it’s more like an exchange of labour.

The workplace landscape is changing. Many businesses are looking to implement advanced warehouse management systems to meet customer demand with fewer employees, such as cloud accessibility of equipment. The latest labelling systems support this with a PC and mobile app to control label applicators from anywhere, anytime.

Real time calculation of labelling autonomy, in pieces and residual time will let you know before production stops so you can replenish media more quickly, thus increasing efficiency. Human interventions are few and far between so an automated applicator or print & apply system will likely pay for itself very quickly – making it a great investment.

Automation is a safer solution

The latest printing innovations make light work of creating complex labels. They are suitable as a single standalone application or as a network package. A range of comprehensive features reduces the risk of input errors and time-wasting duplication of data. There is no requirement to manually interact with the data, taking away the risk of missing key information when there is a whole list of things to display – saving time as well as potentially saving lives.

The print industry has been supporting businesses with the equipment, labelling guidance and sector-specific advice they need to implement the changes. For example, there are around two million people living with food allergies in the UK. If improving the clarity of information and efficiency on labelling can prevent tragic deaths, that can only be a positive thing.

 

STILL enters into partnership with SYNAOS

Posted on by David Priestman

Hamburg-based intralogistics provider STILL has entered into partnership with the innovative software manufacturer SYNAOS to help explore opportunities around the VDA 5050 communication interface.

Automated guided vehicles (AGVs) and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) have become indispensable in the modern logistics world. “Automation is increasingly finding its way into our warehouses and production halls – in all sectors and in all processes,” says Florian Kratzer, International Key Account Manager Automated Solutions. AGVs impress above all with their individuality and speed with which they automatically transport materials. But to make these AGVs suitable for the mass market, a uniform interface is needed, such as the VDA 5050.

A uniform interface is the only way to control and coordinate trucks across manufacturers. “At STILL, we believe that a standardised interface will be essential in the future in order to continue to serve the needs of our customers,” adds Kratzer.

The solution is provided by the standardised VDA 5050 communication interface. With its support, order management or traffic management of heterogeneous fleets, for example, can be standardised within a single user interface. The performance of the interface was demonstrated, among other things, during the AGV Mesh-Up events under the auspices of the VDMA Materials Handling and Intralogistics Association.

STILL had already participated in this event last year, which took place as part of the IFOY Test Camp, and together with various manufacturers demonstrated how a wide range of driverless transport vehicles can communicate with each other via the VDA 5050 interface, navigate safely and efficiently in a common area and complete transport tasks in a network. “During this test event last year, we very successfully integrated vehicles from different manufacturers with very different navigation technologies and transport capabilities into a homogeneous unit under the control system of the KION Group, to which STILL also belongs,” says the STILL expert.

AGVs leaving the niche

Successful demonstrations such as the AGV Mesh-Up show that driverless transport systems will no longer be niche solutions in the future, but suitable for the mass market. Kratzer: “STILL has the vision of bringing automated solutions to the general public. This will enable us to cater for long-term, high-volume customer enquiries that require large automated fleets.”

By adapting the group’s internal control system software for AGVs as well as the vehicle-integrated software to the VDA 5050 interface, STILL also wants to consolidate its competence to be able to integrate other suppliers’ products into its system as well as to offer series-produced AGVs that can be integrated into other suppliers’ control systems via the VDA 5050, such as those of the software manufacturer SYNAOS.

Partnership with SYNAOS

The fact that VDA 5050 is not only used at events and for demonstration purposes is made evident by the partnership that STILL has entered into with the innovative software manufacturer SYNAOS. This cooperation not only serves to implement and roll out state-of-the-art automation projects in practice, but above all to offer customers the opportunity to choose both the software and the hardware themselves and to bring the two together individually – exactly what the VDA 5050 promises.

Dr Wolfgang Hackenberg, CEO & Co-Founder of SYNAOS: “We are very happy to add STILL, another strong brand, to our international partner network. Our Intralogistics Management Platform SYNA.OS LOGISTICS has supported the VDA 5050 interface from the very beginning. Today, we manage numerous customer implementations on this basis. Through the partnership, our customers will benefit several times over, because they can individually select their hardware and software for the realisation of their intralogistics processes and significantly increase their efficiency. We look forward to joint projects with STILL.”

Florian Kratzer: “The standardised VDA 5050 communication interface will make processes even more secure and simple. As a responsible manufacturer, we will therefore continue to actively take part in this process – also in the interest of our customers – and actively support it.”

 

STILL enters into partnership with SYNAOS

Posted on by David Priestman

Hamburg-based intralogistics provider STILL has entered into partnership with the innovative software manufacturer SYNAOS to help explore opportunities around the VDA 5050 communication interface.

Automated guided vehicles (AGVs) and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) have become indispensable in the modern logistics world. “Automation is increasingly finding its way into our warehouses and production halls – in all sectors and in all processes,” says Florian Kratzer, International Key Account Manager Automated Solutions. AGVs impress above all with their individuality and speed with which they automatically transport materials. But to make these AGVs suitable for the mass market, a uniform interface is needed, such as the VDA 5050.

A uniform interface is the only way to control and coordinate trucks across manufacturers. “At STILL, we believe that a standardised interface will be essential in the future in order to continue to serve the needs of our customers,” adds Kratzer.

The solution is provided by the standardised VDA 5050 communication interface. With its support, order management or traffic management of heterogeneous fleets, for example, can be standardised within a single user interface. The performance of the interface was demonstrated, among other things, during the AGV Mesh-Up events under the auspices of the VDMA Materials Handling and Intralogistics Association.

STILL had already participated in this event last year, which took place as part of the IFOY Test Camp, and together with various manufacturers demonstrated how a wide range of driverless transport vehicles can communicate with each other via the VDA 5050 interface, navigate safely and efficiently in a common area and complete transport tasks in a network. “During this test event last year, we very successfully integrated vehicles from different manufacturers with very different navigation technologies and transport capabilities into a homogeneous unit under the control system of the KION Group, to which STILL also belongs,” says the STILL expert.

AGVs leaving the niche

Successful demonstrations such as the AGV Mesh-Up show that driverless transport systems will no longer be niche solutions in the future, but suitable for the mass market. Kratzer: “STILL has the vision of bringing automated solutions to the general public. This will enable us to cater for long-term, high-volume customer enquiries that require large automated fleets.”

By adapting the group’s internal control system software for AGVs as well as the vehicle-integrated software to the VDA 5050 interface, STILL also wants to consolidate its competence to be able to integrate other suppliers’ products into its system as well as to offer series-produced AGVs that can be integrated into other suppliers’ control systems via the VDA 5050, such as those of the software manufacturer SYNAOS.

Partnership with SYNAOS

The fact that VDA 5050 is not only used at events and for demonstration purposes is made evident by the partnership that STILL has entered into with the innovative software manufacturer SYNAOS. This cooperation not only serves to implement and roll out state-of-the-art automation projects in practice, but above all to offer customers the opportunity to choose both the software and the hardware themselves and to bring the two together individually – exactly what the VDA 5050 promises.

Dr Wolfgang Hackenberg, CEO & Co-Founder of SYNAOS: “We are very happy to add STILL, another strong brand, to our international partner network. Our Intralogistics Management Platform SYNA.OS LOGISTICS has supported the VDA 5050 interface from the very beginning. Today, we manage numerous customer implementations on this basis. Through the partnership, our customers will benefit several times over, because they can individually select their hardware and software for the realisation of their intralogistics processes and significantly increase their efficiency. We look forward to joint projects with STILL.”

Florian Kratzer: “The standardised VDA 5050 communication interface will make processes even more secure and simple. As a responsible manufacturer, we will therefore continue to actively take part in this process – also in the interest of our customers – and actively support it.”

 

Flash Battery signs strategic partnership with Q-Tronic

Posted on by David Priestman

A new partnership between Q-tronic BV – a Netherlands-based powertrain system integrator – and Italy’s Flash Battery, a leading producer of custom lithium batteries with over 500 different models and more than 200MWh supplied in 54 countries around the world, has its sights set on one of the most electrification-oriented markets in the world.

The Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg are the focus of the alliance between the two companies. As pointed out by Flash Battery CEO Marco Righi (pictured) and Q-tronic Managing Director Marcel Doppenberg, these areas “have set on an uncompromising journey towards far-reaching sustainability and are pushing hard for electrification, something that’s taking place in every Northern European country”.

Doppenberg explains: “With the Climate Agreement and the Climate Law, the Netherlands introduced restrictive measures in every industrial sector in order to reduce CO2 emissions, going as far as to prohibit the use of carbon.

“This evolution will drive an increasing number of manufacturers to adopt zero emissions technology and the partnership with a lithium battery expert the likes of Flash Battery will definitely accelerate this process in many OEMs.

“Q-Tronic BV, a powertrain system integrator operating in different sectors with over 40 years’ electrification experience, walks customers through the choice of components, such as motors and inverters, transaxles and battery chargers; it works on projects that are very different from one another, ranging from off-road (construction) and agricultural applications all the way to electric vehicle mobility applications, which are widely used in cities, airports and industries,” continued Righi. “Some of the most important applications we are already working on come from the construction and earth-moving sectors, especially compact loaders, which are requiring increasingly more energy in less space.”

“The partnership with Flash Battery is the natural evolution of the demand from markets needing to electrify and looking for a one-stop source for their powertrain systems,” underlined Doppenberg. “This is why integrating all the functions revolving around the electrification process is necessary: consulting, design and prototyping; quality of materials; sustainability; reliability; high performance; and, last but not least, the personalised support service demanded by SMEs and large OEMs alike (including adequate remote control systems and training of the professionals managing the systems and vehicles).

“The partnership with Flash Battery is very important to us,” he continued, “because we can now combine Flash Battery’s innovative and exclusive lithium battery technology with our expertise in the field; together we’ll be able to offer a complete powertrain system made to a very high quality level, giving us the capability to create new electrical systems equipped with lithium batteries and customised solutions built around our customers’ needs.”

Righi went on to underscore that “the partnership with Q-tronic represents a remarkable value for markets that have been oriented towards electrification for some time now and, as a result, are demanding high-quality, reliable products; we can deliver with our technological know-how and that part of the job that is essential to us, the design consulting stage, when we analyse specific requirements so that the application gets exactly the energy it needs.

“Here we are sure that supported by our product R&D activities, one of our greatest strengths, we can make a substantial contribution to the creation of tremendously innovative solutions for the manufacturers who turn to Q-tronic – high-performance and reliable solutions that have earned us a place as one of the technology partners involved in developing EU supported projects.”

 

Flash Battery signs strategic partnership with Q-Tronic

Posted on by David Priestman

A new partnership between Q-tronic BV – a Netherlands-based powertrain system integrator – and Italy’s Flash Battery, a leading producer of custom lithium batteries with over 500 different models and more than 200MWh supplied in 54 countries around the world, has its sights set on one of the most electrification-oriented markets in the world.

The Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg are the focus of the alliance between the two companies. As pointed out by Flash Battery CEO Marco Righi (pictured) and Q-tronic Managing Director Marcel Doppenberg, these areas “have set on an uncompromising journey towards far-reaching sustainability and are pushing hard for electrification, something that’s taking place in every Northern European country”.

Doppenberg explains: “With the Climate Agreement and the Climate Law, the Netherlands introduced restrictive measures in every industrial sector in order to reduce CO2 emissions, going as far as to prohibit the use of carbon.

“This evolution will drive an increasing number of manufacturers to adopt zero emissions technology and the partnership with a lithium battery expert the likes of Flash Battery will definitely accelerate this process in many OEMs.

“Q-Tronic BV, a powertrain system integrator operating in different sectors with over 40 years’ electrification experience, walks customers through the choice of components, such as motors and inverters, transaxles and battery chargers; it works on projects that are very different from one another, ranging from off-road (construction) and agricultural applications all the way to electric vehicle mobility applications, which are widely used in cities, airports and industries,” continued Righi. “Some of the most important applications we are already working on come from the construction and earth-moving sectors, especially compact loaders, which are requiring increasingly more energy in less space.”

“The partnership with Flash Battery is the natural evolution of the demand from markets needing to electrify and looking for a one-stop source for their powertrain systems,” underlined Doppenberg. “This is why integrating all the functions revolving around the electrification process is necessary: consulting, design and prototyping; quality of materials; sustainability; reliability; high performance; and, last but not least, the personalised support service demanded by SMEs and large OEMs alike (including adequate remote control systems and training of the professionals managing the systems and vehicles).

“The partnership with Flash Battery is very important to us,” he continued, “because we can now combine Flash Battery’s innovative and exclusive lithium battery technology with our expertise in the field; together we’ll be able to offer a complete powertrain system made to a very high quality level, giving us the capability to create new electrical systems equipped with lithium batteries and customised solutions built around our customers’ needs.”

Righi went on to underscore that “the partnership with Q-tronic represents a remarkable value for markets that have been oriented towards electrification for some time now and, as a result, are demanding high-quality, reliable products; we can deliver with our technological know-how and that part of the job that is essential to us, the design consulting stage, when we analyse specific requirements so that the application gets exactly the energy it needs.

“Here we are sure that supported by our product R&D activities, one of our greatest strengths, we can make a substantial contribution to the creation of tremendously innovative solutions for the manufacturers who turn to Q-tronic – high-performance and reliable solutions that have earned us a place as one of the technology partners involved in developing EU supported projects.”

 

Diesel crisis: don’t be a fool with fuel

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Ecommerce businesses, 3PLs and carriers have the means to counter rising fuel bills – if they think inside the box, writes Jo Bradley, Business Development Manager, Sparck Technologies.

Diesel prices are soaring and it is easy to feel powerless in the face of global markets, but there is one area where ecommerce businesses, along with their 3PLs and carriers, can easily make real savings on fuel costs while reaping a host of other benefits.

According to the trade body Logistics UK, fuel accounts for around one third of the annual running costs of an HGV. For smaller vehicles engaged in ‘last mile’ delivery the proportion may be even greater: they are more likely to be burning diesel stuck in urban congestion, or idling while doorstep deliveries are made – a surprising proportion of drivers still hold the old-school view that idling is more economic than starting and stopping the engine. With many carriers operating on margins as low as 1%, any rise in fuel prices poses an existential threat.

Crude oil prices have been hurtling upwards, by 41% since the start of the year, with much of this predating and independent of the Ukrainian conflict. Although prices eased a little in April, peaks of around $140 a barrel were reached in March and the average price for that month was over $100. Pump prices were up 24% year on year and still rising.

But for many carriers and their customers the situation is even worse. A lot of vendors entered or increased their dependence on the ecommerce, home delivery, market at the beginning of the pandemic – at a time when oil prices were freakishly low: around $20 a barrel in April 2020. Any business that based its ecommerce business case on those sort of figures, likely including delivery for free or at nominal charge and thus with little scope to recover increased costs, is in serious trouble.

But the irony is that a large proportion of that diesel is being burnt simply to ship air. The use of significantly oversized packaging is Standard Operating Procedure for many in the industry, who see apparent economies in stocking a limited range of preform shapes and sizes, and packing goods in ‘the next size up’.

Now as it is, across Europe 24% of road freight movements run completely empty. Over 50% run part-loaded. But even for trucks and vans that are crammed to the ceiling with packages, an unknown but clearly large proportion of the payload is simply air. That means more HGVs than necessary are running trunk routes and very many more smaller vehicles engaged in ‘last mile’ deliveries are quite possibly having to return to the depot to reload several times per shift – yet more empty running.

It doesn’t have to be like this. Obviously, hand-building every package to size would be ruinously expensive and could never meet the throughput requirements, but it is now possible to ‘tailor-make’ boxes and cartons right-size for individual items or groups of items, on high speed automated lines.

Using sophisticated scanning technology and advanced algorithms, automated fit-to-size packing systems from Sparck Technologies – such as the CVP Everest – can cut, fold, seal, label and check-weigh individualised packages at rates of up to 1,100 per hour with just two staff. And as each box is made to exactly the right size, there is no wasted space and no void-fill is required.

There are plenty more benefits – radically lower material use (and card and plastics are themselves being hit by high energy prices), better use of staff, increased consumer satisfaction, lower impact on waste disposal services, improved environmental performance and so on.

But let’s focus on fuel. Our real-life customers have reduced the volumes they ship by anything up to 50%. Potentially, that could translate into a halving of the fuel cost – the principal variable element – of home delivery. Of course in practice it may not be possible to capture all of that saving, but even a portion realised will reduce both the amount and the variability of delivery costs. In fact, one of our customers is able to save a 40ft trailer a day using the CVP fit-to-size packaging system.

In the current economic climate, installers of Sparck Technologies’ CVP fit-to-size automated packaging systems will see returns on investment almost immediately. And when, or if, oil prices subside, or everything goes electric, the technology will continue to deliver its many other benefits.

 

Diesel crisis: don’t be a fool with fuel

Posted on by David Priestman

Ecommerce businesses, 3PLs and carriers have the means to counter rising fuel bills – if they think inside the box, writes Jo Bradley, Business Development Manager, Sparck Technologies.

Diesel prices are soaring and it is easy to feel powerless in the face of global markets, but there is one area where ecommerce businesses, along with their 3PLs and carriers, can easily make real savings on fuel costs while reaping a host of other benefits.

According to the trade body Logistics UK, fuel accounts for around one third of the annual running costs of an HGV. For smaller vehicles engaged in ‘last mile’ delivery the proportion may be even greater: they are more likely to be burning diesel stuck in urban congestion, or idling while doorstep deliveries are made – a surprising proportion of drivers still hold the old-school view that idling is more economic than starting and stopping the engine. With many carriers operating on margins as low as 1%, any rise in fuel prices poses an existential threat.

Crude oil prices have been hurtling upwards, by 41% since the start of the year, with much of this predating and independent of the Ukrainian conflict. Although prices eased a little in April, peaks of around $140 a barrel were reached in March and the average price for that month was over $100. Pump prices were up 24% year on year and still rising.

But for many carriers and their customers the situation is even worse. A lot of vendors entered or increased their dependence on the ecommerce, home delivery, market at the beginning of the pandemic – at a time when oil prices were freakishly low: around $20 a barrel in April 2020. Any business that based its ecommerce business case on those sort of figures, likely including delivery for free or at nominal charge and thus with little scope to recover increased costs, is in serious trouble.

But the irony is that a large proportion of that diesel is being burnt simply to ship air. The use of significantly oversized packaging is Standard Operating Procedure for many in the industry, who see apparent economies in stocking a limited range of preform shapes and sizes, and packing goods in ‘the next size up’.

Now as it is, across Europe 24% of road freight movements run completely empty. Over 50% run part-loaded. But even for trucks and vans that are crammed to the ceiling with packages, an unknown but clearly large proportion of the payload is simply air. That means more HGVs than necessary are running trunk routes and very many more smaller vehicles engaged in ‘last mile’ deliveries are quite possibly having to return to the depot to reload several times per shift – yet more empty running.

It doesn’t have to be like this. Obviously, hand-building every package to size would be ruinously expensive and could never meet the throughput requirements, but it is now possible to ‘tailor-make’ boxes and cartons right-size for individual items or groups of items, on high speed automated lines.

Using sophisticated scanning technology and advanced algorithms, automated fit-to-size packing systems from Sparck Technologies – such as the CVP Everest – can cut, fold, seal, label and check-weigh individualised packages at rates of up to 1,100 per hour with just two staff. And as each box is made to exactly the right size, there is no wasted space and no void-fill is required.

There are plenty more benefits – radically lower material use (and card and plastics are themselves being hit by high energy prices), better use of staff, increased consumer satisfaction, lower impact on waste disposal services, improved environmental performance and so on.

But let’s focus on fuel. Our real-life customers have reduced the volumes they ship by anything up to 50%. Potentially, that could translate into a halving of the fuel cost – the principal variable element – of home delivery. Of course in practice it may not be possible to capture all of that saving, but even a portion realised will reduce both the amount and the variability of delivery costs. In fact, one of our customers is able to save a 40ft trailer a day using the CVP fit-to-size packaging system.

In the current economic climate, installers of Sparck Technologies’ CVP fit-to-size automated packaging systems will see returns on investment almost immediately. And when, or if, oil prices subside, or everything goes electric, the technology will continue to deliver its many other benefits.

 

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