Ultra-reliable ecommerce sorter technology at IMHX

Ferag, a global leader in advanced conveying and sortation solutions, will be showcasing its advanced Swiss engineered overhead pouch and sorter systems at the UK’s IMHX 2022 show – 6th to 8th September 2022, NEC Birmingham (Stand: 5D15).

Visitors to the stand will have the opportunity to discover the many innovative features of Ferag’s latest high-speed sortation systems, Skyfall and Denisort, along with the full range of energy-efficient conveyors and sorters in Ferag’s extensive product portfolio.

The speed and reliability of Skyfall, Ferag’s ultra-fast automated pouch sorter solution, enables retailers to gain greater operational efficiencies by accumulating orders in advance of a final pick-wave at 10pm. With processing speeds of up to 25,000 units per hour orders can be picked, sorted, packed and dispatched within the shortest time window, giving fashion brands the keen competitive edge of a late cut-off with an early next day delivery.

The same high-speed Skyfall pouch sorter system used for fulfilling ecommerce orders can also be deployed to create store friendly sequenced consignments for high-street shops – pulling from the same, pooled inventory used for ecommerce customers. Sequencing product to each store’s individual layout speeds shelf replenishment, freeing shop assistants to spend more time with customers. Developed for some of the most testing of handling applications in the international print industry, Ferag’s high-speed overhead conveyors are designed to be ultra-reliable, offering unfailing performance on daily newspaper production runs in the millions. The same technology has been successfully applied by Ferag within the intralogistics sector, bringing reliable, high-performance conveying to retail, ecommerce, automotive and general merchandise businesses.

Also featured on the stand will be Ferag’s innovative tilt-tray sorter. The Denisort combines conveying, order picking and sorting in one seamless and scalable system, with universal applications across a wide range of intra-logistics processes. The highly versatile design uses low-friction rollers within a steel profile, offering quiet and reliable, energy-efficient operation across single or multi-level applications.

Principle products in Ferag’s extensive range of innovative sorters and conveyors include: Skyfall, an overhead pouch system that combines conveying, buffering, sorting and consolidating, suited to a wide variety of goods weighing up to 20kg. The solution makes efficient use of available overhead space; Denisort, a tilt-tray sorter that provides order picking, conveying and sorting in one seamless and scalable solution; Denisort Compact, a modular vertical sorter designed for items weighing up to 12Kg; Deniway, a plate chain conveyor with low-friction rollers for long conveying distances, offering smooth transfers with the minimum number of drive units; and Easychain, a largely maintenance-free continuous and seamless conveying system with an ultra-narrow curve radii, making it well suited to complex, 3D layouts.

Also on the stand at IMHX will be a working scale-model of Skyfall, built by Ferag apprentices as an expression of the skills acquired by young people under Ferag’s long-standing apprenticeship programme, established in 1968. Each year 10-15 apprentices are enrolled on four-year in-house courses, ensuring the next generation of qualified professionals.

A number of leading fashion brands are taking advantage of pouch sorter technology to increase capacity and boost performance of their fulfilment operations. Ferag has recently installed a flexible high-speed Skyfall system at a new distribution centre for children’s fashion company, Mayoral Group, in Malaga, Spain. The extensive overhead pouch solution is one of the largest to date, with a mix of hanging pouches and garment hangers totalling more than 58,000 Skyfall hangers, and a throughput of up to 12,000 units per hour. The system features fully automatic unloading of pouches, including flat goods.

Ferag has installed intelligent conveyor and sortation systems for some of the world’s largest brands, such as: DHL, Auchan, Nestle, Zeiss, Cewe, Zalando, Mayoral, Viapost, Peerless Clothing International, Dumoulin, AstraZeneca, Stage, VW, Shoebox, along with many more.