3 Ways to Use Warehouse Automation to Decrease Product Damage
In response to a variety of factors including sustainability, and of course cost, manufacturers are using substantially less packaging for their products. However, the "green" gain and cost savings is offset in material handling product protection. The result is a delicate balance between packaging savings vs. product damage.
So how can automation decrease costs incurred from less packaging?
Less touches: One of the goals in automation is to have the product "touched" as few times as possible by people or machines. Optimally, in product to person automation, the product is touched only twice. Once when the product is put away and once when it is picked.
Every touch is an opportunity for damage, as well as a cost in time and money. Fewer touches equal less potential damage.
Less independent parts: The most damaging touches occur outside the contained automated system. So what is an "independent part"? I would define it as anything not built into the automated system i.e. individuals and technology guided by an individual, the best example is a forklift.
Because independent parts are, well, independent, they have a wide degree of motions as opposed to automation, which engineers design to be very limited in movements. This wider range was acceptable when the product was protected and stable but now even the tiniest jolt to something delicate like a pallet of bottled waters, for instance, can be cataclysmic. Go on Youtube and search for "forklifts" or for entertainment and edification check out this recent Casual Friday post by Dan Vest at the Material Handling Edge Blog .
Now I don't want to imply that all independent parts can, or even should be removed, but whenever you can decrease one, you subtract a variable and decrease possible damage.
Intelligent automation: There are huge degrees of difference in system intelligence when automating a warehouse. For instance, with teach-in station, some only see the (regular) dimensions of a product and weight, while others go way beyond that to record irregularities, allowable stresses and potential weaknesses. Added intelligence allows the system to know if a product needs to be treated with TLC, so palletizers and even conveyor systems "know" the limitations of products, mitigating damages.
Automation smarts can also decrease incidents made by the previously mentioned "independent parts". We know the system can dictate the most ergonomic way to interact with the product, but system designers can ensure that when product is inducted or removed from the system it is done in the gentlest way. For instance they design the system so it is easiest for the picker to place the product on the conveyor as opposed to throwing it from a few feet away.
So what are your thoughts on less packaging and what the ramifications are for material handling? What pitfalls and hazards can you foresee? Please feel free to comment below.
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Schaefer Systems International, Inc., the North American subsidiary of the SSI SCHAEFER group of companies, established headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1989.
SCHAEFER’s automation integrates to any existing system earning us an international reputation as the global leader in the material-handling industry for returnable packaging, static racking, and highly complex, automated distribution systems. With over 70 years of experience and a 100% commitment to quality behind every SSI Schafer system, we focus on providing our clients with unconventional picking and storage solutions delivering best value