Prodrive Technologies is the first company worldwide to use autonomous Mobile Robots for the sub-floor transport of Jungheinrich in conjunction with automated narrow aisle trucks. The warehouse concept guarantees high productivity and a high degree of flexibility. In addition, the solution is scalable and can grow with the customer. The implementation of the intralogistics overall concept with largely automated processes for the newly built logistics warehouse was carried out by Jungheinrich AG.
The heart of the innovative intralogistics solution is a combination of 15 autonomous Mobile Robots "arculee S" (AMR) and eight Mobile
Robots EKX 516ka (AGV) for automatic narrow aisle storage (VNA, Very Narrow Aisle). This combination ensures easy handling of goods. At the same time, the investment in the 12-meter high high-bay warehouses with shelving remains affordable.
Incoming pallets are placed on a conveyor belt, where the form and quality of the pallet are checked. Subsequently, an "arculee S" picks up the pallet and transports it to the high-bay warehouse. There, an automatic VNA truck EKX 516ka stores the goods. Outgoing pallets are transported by the AMR to one of the six picking stations,
each equipped with six pick-up and drop-off points.
The system is coordinated and controlled by the "Jungheinrich Logistics Interface" and the warehouse control system "Jungheinrich WCS."
Separation of humans and machines
To maximize productivity, the high-bay warehouse is separated from the employees. Although the autonomous Mobile Robots arculee S work safely and smoothly in an environment with other trucks and people, it was decided to minimize human-robot interactions to maximize productivity. The system has a theoretical picking performance of 80 pallets per hour. The theoretical capacity for the high-bay warehouse is also 80
pallets per hour.
The new intralogistics concept offers the required flexibility, scalability, and productivity. The Mobile Robots are available around the clock. In addition, the quality of the processes has significantly improved. Damage to goods and equipment has been significantly reduced. As a result, Prodrive Technologies saves a considerable ten percent in repair costs each year. Furthermore, the new concept offers transparency and control, and no products are lost anymore.
The project at a glance
- Client: Prodrive Technologies B.V
- Industry: High-tech manufacturing
- Company size: 2,500 employees
- Location: Son, Netherlands
- Warehouse size: 20,000 m2
