Vetter, based in Ravensburg, Baden-Württemberg, is one of the world's leading pharmaceutical service providers for the aseptic filling and packaging of pre-filled injection systems such as syringes, cartridges and vials in clean rooms. The globally active, family-owned company fills and packages pharmaceutical manufacturers' liquid medicines on a contract manufacturing basis and stores them in the refrigerated Ravensburg West warehouse, RVW 1 for short, until delivery. In 2022, more than 5,900 employees generated a turnover of almost 900 million euros. The family-owned company is growing steadily. The RVW 1 distribution warehouse soon reached its limits. Vetter reacted and commissioned the planning for a new warehouse building, which was subsequently realized. The new warehouse provides space for the pharmaceutical packaging materials for Vetter's various products.

Dr. Michael Schmitz, Vice President Logistics at Vetter: "With our Log 29 logistics strategy, we invested in automation in good time. The commissioning of Still's automated warehouse is a milestone in this respect. The key to the successful commissioning was provided by the competent discussion partners on both sides. This enabled us to quickly work out solutions together when unexpected challenges arose. Hand in hand, we developed the best logistics solution for our new warehouse and put RVW 2 into operation on time."

Thorough analysis, optimization and planning of logistics processes

From the detailed definition of requirements and the comparison of several rough concepts through to detailed planning, Still's logistics processes were analyzed, optimized and worked out in detail together with Vetter. Bernd Geiger, Intralogistics Consultant at Still, explains: "In the first phase, we evaluated and compared the key figures for the required throughput and the available storage space of automated storage systems in relation to the capacity of the materials to be stored. The thorough analysis showed that the transportation in the raw materials warehouse and in the picking area of the pre-zone hall is best carried out using automated industrial trucks. Compared to a stationary solution with conveyor lines, we can make the processes much more flexible." Subsequently, in the second phase, the automated raw materials warehouse with all systemic requirements was worked out in detail together with Vetter.

With 16,200 pallet spaces, the racking system was planned, delivered and installed by Still in line with requirements. Four MX-X iGo Systems narrow-aisle forklift trucks master the vertical storage and retrieval processes quickly and safely. Four EXV iGo Systems high lift trucks are used for horizontal pallet transportation. Jan Urbarz, Warehouse and Operations Team Leader at Vetter, emphasizes: "Thanks to the close planning and coordination with Still, the automated warehouse was put into operation on time from the initial idea after just 18 months. The automation is tailored to our requirements. The solution is also economical and can be scaled easily and flexibly with additional vehicles as demand increases."

Customized and fast commissioning of RVW 2

Tobias Trunk, Operations Manager Intralogistics Solutions at Still, adds: "When it comes to process automation, the basis for successful commissioning is our enormous wealth of experience and the proven capabilities of our industrial trucks. In automated goods flows, we use our vehicles precisely for the tasks for which they have been optimized." The project manager is responsible for coordinating the various trades such as factory planning, trades and suppliers for the hall equipment and implementation of the entire intralogistics system. Schedules for the different trades and the integration of the various IT systems were coordinated in store floor management and in fixed meetings.

The interfaces for warehouse and fleet management were programmed jointly by the two companies. The vehicle terminals and AGV software were effortlessly integrated into the IT and logistics systems at Vetter. Anna Lisa Sauter, Team Leader Processes and Systems at Vetter, emphasizes: "In the test phase for interface programming, i.e. before the go-live phase, data and processes in the warehouse were made available for the Vetter host system under real conditions, i.e. the code was moved from a test environment to the production environment. During this phase, Still supported us with simulation software that allowed us to thoroughly and extensively test the warehouse management data transfer."

Intelligent data analysis

The iGo Systems vehicles are controlled and monitored by the fleet control system. It generates a huge amount of valuable data around the clock, which can be used to carry out a thorough analysis of the processes from a higher-level perspective. With the iGo Insights software, Still offers a cloud-based tool for analysis. It can filter out correlations from the wealth of process information collected and derive specific recommendations for action. Christian Boos, Head of Logistics at Vetter, looks to the future: "With constantly growing requirements, we can operate additional work shifts. With the intelligent iGo Insights tool, we can further optimize the availability and performance of our automated fleet."

The pharmaceutical service provider Vetter has achieved its goals with the RVW 2 warehouse. Dr. Michael Schmitz: "The RVW 2 material warehouse creates more security in our entire internal logistics - on the one hand to ensure the smooth supply of our production facilities and on the other hand in view of the shortage of skilled workers and growing cost pressure."

For the automation of intralogistics, Still offers various vehicle-based expansion stages that can be individually adapted to requirements. Patrick Litz, Head of Intralogistics Solutions at Still, summarizes: "More than half of our customers would like to automate processes in the near future that are currently still handled manually. We are responding to this growing demand with automation solutions that can be implemented quickly and are scalable. The intelligent assistance systems and automation of our industrial trucks are extremely efficient, user-friendly and future-proof. Specialized by our customer proximity, our partnership is always reliable."