Ergonomic Tray Picking solution released
March 29th 2010 Warehouse automation specialist Witron has released its Ergonomic Tray Picking solution called ETP, which is designed to make sliding rather than bending, lifting and carrying the norm for warehouse pickers.
The Ergonomic Tray Picking solution comprises a picking cab guided by WMS which navigates at the touch of a button taking the operator to picking locations in the most efficient order.
The cab lines up with the storage tray and the display shows the operator the item to be picked and the quantity. The operator then slides the items across the bench of the cab on to the pallet. A pre-processed volume calculation ensures not only family grouping in the picking process but also very dense stacked and stable pallets.
A beamer indicates the outlines of a case clearly showing where on to the pallet surface items are to be placed The picking process involves no manual lifting.
A layer picker combined with miniload cranes handle the automated replenishment of the picking trays, ensuring availability of all products in the pickfront.
The customer pallet is fully picked as the complete assortment is available in one aisle. This is designed to eliminate inefficient sequencing of customer pallets from one aisle to another. Products are also picked to fit with the store planogram.
The ETP concept is specially designed for the regional warehouses of the retail sector which build and supply mixed pallets and ROCOs to their stores. Up to 4000 SKU’s can be picked with a picking performance of 500 SKU’s man/hour, taking up an absolute minimum footprint according to the company.
The solution is a result of Witron recognising the importance of ergonomics in the warehouse, which it believes will be further backed up by regulation in the near future.
The company says end users are keen to lessen the strain heavy lifting can have on employees and believes people are often less inclined to do heavy lifting than previous generations. It expects this will lead the EU to put maximum limits for weight manually lifted per shift into regulations.
Founder and owner Walter Winkler said: “We see ergonomics as key in the warehouse. Workers in traditional picking environments deal with 10kg average lifts, that can add up to 15 tonnes over a shift, which can have an impact on health.”
In a further development, Witron will trial a Shelf Replenishment System at two stores in Germany this year. This will extend automation from the warehouse on to the shop floor and will be achieved without manual handling.
The company also stressed that long term commitment and careful planning and implementation were key to its business.
“We’re building the heart of a company, so it needs to be structured, careful and completed in stages,” said Witron CEO Mr Prieschenk. With a focus on retail and distribution business the company’s turnover is €200 million (2008).
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