"Lean, fast and reliable - that's the feedback from trade visitors about the RCD S+," says Henrik Hubschneider, Head of Sales Production, Logistics & Digital Solutions, delighted with the outstanding success of LogiMAT. "We are returning home with the first concrete inquiries, especially from the food and beverage industry!"

Reusable containers: sustainable solution for a wide range of transportation requirements

Reusable packaging containers (RPCs) are an integral part of sustainable supply chains. For example, they are used to gently transport foodstuffs such as fruit, vegetables, bread or meat, as well as components for the automotive supply industry or medicines for pharmacies.

Particularly space-saving counting gate

How it works: On arrival, the returnable containers stacked on pallets are fed to the RCD S⁺, identified, recorded, counted and the results made available to the logistics depot for billing its customer. The solution records pallets with stackable containers of different designs, such as collapsible crates or reusable boxes. What is done automatically in less than 10 seconds takes up to 30 minutes when counted manually. In addition to this enormous time saving, the trade visitors were particularly impressed by the slim design: according to the supplier, the RCD S⁺ is the most space-saving counting gate on the market. The number of metering units installed across Europe is now in the multiple double-digit range.

Specialist for image recognition and visualization

Eckelmann supplies pairs of columns with camera technology and image recognition for automated mass detection and counting of RPCs, KLTs and other stackable container or packaging units. This also works without barcodes.

The gate itself is designed for use in logistics depots. The limited size has been adapted to standard truck basket widths and can therefore be installed in both incoming and outgoing goods. The image recognition system communicates with higher-level systems such as ERP or document management systems; container data and interfaces are customized.

In addition, the FactoryWare RCI (Reusable Crate Inspection) tunnel vision system, which was also used live at LogiMAT, uses AI to detect anomalies in containers and goods and enables automated processing, such as sorting processes. RCT (Reusable Container Tracking) handles tracking and tracing plus documentation for digital traceability.

Eckelmann is a development partner for intralogistics systems and customer-internal processes: with solutions and control systems for controlling individual systems or lines via Eckelmann FactoryWare Solutions. As a full-service provider for industrial automation and digitalization in intralogistics, the Eckelmann Group offers system integration from a single source.