Systems Integration

Thinking about a warehouse automation project?  An essential step in planning for a warehouse automation project is doing the upfront analysis and preparation to ensure the project runs smoothly and is as successful as possible. So, before you get into the specifics regarding your project, I wanted to remind you of three important “assignments” that you must complete first (I sound like my 1^st grade teacher – Mrs. Wilcox).... Read more »

There is a common occurrence in the warehouse environment which adds time and money.  Follow me for a moment… In 1768, the British Government noticed that westbound mail ships took weeks longer to reach the colonies than it took eastbound mail ships to reach London.  Their complaint reached the US Deputy Postmaster General at the time, Benjamin Franklin, who began to gather data on wind, current water temperatures, etc., to investigate what the real problem was.  He spoke with whalers, captains, navigators, and scientists and he interpreted the data to develop a map of the Gulf Stream.  In sum, he used a defined process to gather facts and then developed it into solid information.  He published his map in 1770 and he is still given credit today for properly defining the Gulf Stream.

How is this story relevant today? We have seen many organizations struggle to successfully solve their problems because they make the big mistake of... Read more »

I was putting gas in my truck and grumbling about the price of a gallon of gas this past Earth Day and this painfully reminded about the importance of conserving our resources.  We know there are many benefits of warehouse automation with maximizing storage space, increasing throughput and efficiency, but there are many environmental benefits as well.

Here are just a few ways automated systems can help: Read more »

Lately one of the biggest hazards I’ve seen in warehouses is the false sense of security about safety. Some managers have fallen into the trap of thinking that just because they haven’t had an “incident” they are okay. But in reality, if you're not making safety a priority in your operations, you're setting the stage for potential costly disaster.

One of the best ways to ensure that safety is a main concern in your facility is to have a safety team. Our team includes four members and meets monthly to review policies, update training procedures, review issues and gather feedback.

The mission of the team is to encourage employee involvement in the safety program, examine worksites to determine potential hazards, develop procedures that ensure that all current and potential hazards are corrected in a timely manner, safe work practices are understood and followed by all workers, provide training to make sure that all employees understand the hazards to which they may be exposed and how to prevent harm to themselves and others.

I spoke with Jim Schreiner who is the Manufacturing & Field Installation Supervisor here.... Read more »

1) Make sure you list all items that will be moving within the plant. Everything from packaging, raw materials, finished goods, and people must be considered. Define everything that you want to move automatically. Even the smallest of items, as they can cause problems if they don't get to where they need to be when they need to be there.

2) Define the volumes of each item that will be flowing through the factory. This is a critical issue when it comes to designing automated material handling systems. Timing is everything. One needs to consider average and peak flows as you design paths for items to travel along whether it's by conveyor, AGV or forklift.

3) Define the desired the number of inventory positions for each item going into storage / retrieval. This will be used to determine the size of the building required to store all that stuff. Remember, Inventory is the enemy in Lean operations. A high level of inventory will mask a multitude of errors but it is an expensive cover up. Read more »