Manufacturing & Warehouse Distribution equipment, service, rentals & support from Abel Womack, Raymond forklift NE Distributor

Skip to content
  • Online Catalogs
  • Contact
  • Locations
  • Customer Login
  • Cleanrooms & Controlled Environments
  • FANUC Industrial Robots
  • Automated Storage and Retrieval Warehouse Systems
  • Manufacturing Solutions
  • Modular Building Systems
  • Raymond Forklifts
  • Mobile Storage Systems
  • About Us
    • Careers
    • Customer Service Policy
    • Customer Testimonials
    • Discover the Difference
    • Our Locations
    • Management Staff
    • Raymond Solutions & Support Center
  • Forklifts
    • Used Forklifts and Equipment
    • Forklift Rentals and Leases
    • J1-TSV Task Support Vehicle
    • Raymond Basics
    • Power Solutions
  • Parts & Service
    • Equipment Maintenance & Repair
    • Forklift & Conveyor Parts
    • Forklift Safety Training
    • Shop Warehouse Products
    • Tennant Sweepers and Tennant Scrubbers
  • Optimization
    • Fleet and Warehouse Management Solutions
    • Lean Management
    • Labor Management
    • Asset & Maintenance Management
    • Operator Assist Technologies
    • Real Time Location System
  • Robotics
    • Industrial Robots
    • ROBOXX
    • FANUC Robot M-20iA
    • FANUC Robot M-710iC
    • FANUC Robot M-410iB
  • Integrated Systems Solutions
    • Automated Guided Vehicles (AGV)
    • Automated Storage & Retrieval Systems
    • Conveyor Systems and Sortation
    • Deep Lane High Density Pallet Storage
    • Pallet Racking and Shelving
    • Mobile Storage Systems
    • Warehouse Automation and Software
    • Indoor Vertical Growing
    • Modular Building Systems
    • Cleanrooms and Controlled Environments
  • Engineering
    • Automated and Robotic Simulation
    • Facility Design and Layout
    • Project Management
  • Information
    • Blog
    • Case Studies
    • Industry Solutions
    • Videos
    • Media Kit
You are here: Home / Blog / Automation – What’s Holding You Back?

Blog: Automation – What’s Holding You Back?

October 16, 2017 – 

The future is changing, the economy is getting better, everyone wants their merchandise tomorrow, and there isn’t enough labor to meet this growing demand. Thankfully, even though the current labor market is quickly becoming saturated, new technologies are emerging at an even faster pace to mitigate this long-term problem.

For years you have hired additional people to meet increased demand and paid overtime to address seasonal peaks, sometimes even utilizing third party companies to assist with workload equalization. Now, just for a moment, picture in your mind what I’m about to describe and start thinking about your own application. Although potentially different, the concept may be similar.

Technology Comes into Focus

FANUC-palletizer-conveyorYou enter a dimly lit distribution center and hear noise but see very few people. It’s kind of eerie but as you get closer you see a pallet of various sized cases. A robotic arm with a special tool at the end is picking these cases off the pallet, rotating the cases until a barcode is read, and then placing them on the conveyor. The conveyor then transports them to an area that has multiple high-speed cranes (mini-loads). These cranes take each case and randomly store them somewhere within this 30-foot tall x 100-foot-long enclosed storage system. You wonder, where are these cases going and how will I ever find them? Daifuku-AS-RS-systemThen you notice cases coming out of this same unit being inducted onto a take away conveyor and transported to an area that now has a robotic arm palletizing these cases. But this time, the cases are being meticulously and accurately palletized to go to a specific customer or location.

Wouldn’t that be cool? Well, all this technology is already here and available for your application.

Equipment that Handles these Activities

  • Warehouse Management System (WMS) – absolutely the heartbeat of automation. Keeps track of your cases from start to finish.
  • FANUC Robotics – the world’s leader in robotic applications coupled with a state-of-the-art vision system that allows for mixed case palletization and de-palletization.
  • Conveyor – allows the transport of product from one area to another.
  • Mini-load Systems – stores product automatically within an enclosed system. A bar code or RFID tag tracks the location and quantity of everything stored.

This approach is quickly becoming mainstream, as it is proven technology and often with a compelling ROI. Not only are you addressing this growing problem of a shortage in qualified labor but you are eliminating the drudgery and injury possibilities associated with people doing repetitive lifting.

The Path to Innovation

Remember, this equipment can be used in many ways, not just for what I’ve outlined. A robot can FANUC-robot-palletizing-pelletsbe used for in-process applications such as picking specific products off a conveyor and placing items into a tote or onto a product sorter. They also can be used for simple end-of-line palletization. An example would be to palletize bags of pellets, ice, grain or maybe even fill empty boxes with product.

If you pick eaches out of cases, the mini-load is perfect. Simply download a pick list and the mini-load crane will go get that case for you, and return it once completed. It does all of this in the most efficient way, by bringing goods to the picker.

Maybe you deal with pallet loads. It’s the same general concept of storage but the system deals with pallets instead of cases.

Don’t Run Out of Time

Delorian-out-of-timeNow you see how automation can help your organization, has the flexibility to run 24/7, if needed, and should allow for a much more controlled and satisfied labor pool. This will allow you to meet the ever-growing demand while saving you money. And that eerie feeling you initially had will soon turn into a sound that you’ll look forward to everyday.

You still have time!

About the Author

For more than 20 years as a systems integrator and material handling professional, Rick Dionne has been working with Abel Womack to design and implement storage solutions, turnkey applications, and warehouse automation systems which have resulted in increased productivity and operational efficiencies for our customers.

Comments

  1. Pat Mastrola says

    October 16, 2017 at 1:09 pm

    Well Done Mr. Rick. Compelling read and very thought-provoking.
    Thx for sharing!

    Log in to Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Search Everything
Subscribe to our Blog
Get a weekly email each time a new blog post is published.


 

Archive
Featured Post

Robots – Staying Ahead of the Game

February 13, 2023

Universal robot

We have been extremely busy for the last few months at Abel Womack working on enhancing our robotic … Read More

More Posts
  • Little Leaf Farms Raises Efficiency & Space with Radioshuttle
  • The Importance of Picking Accuracy and Operational Improvement in your Warehouse

All Blog Posts

Raymond_ASASC_2020

Abel Womack - Discover the Difference - logo
1 International Way
Lawrence, MA 01843
800-554-2887

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • Linkedin
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Forklifts
  • Careers
  • Fleet Management Solutions
  • Professional Design & Engineering Services
  • Parts
  • Service
  • Forklift Training
  • Pre-Owned Forklifts
  • Forklift Rentals
  • Products
  • Contact Us
  • Sitemap
  • Privacy Policy
Offices In
Massachusetts
Connecticut
New York
Maine
New Hampshire
Rhode Island
Vermont

Copyright © 2023 · Abel Womack 2.0 on WordPress