Franz Binder GmbH & Co. Elektrische Bauelemente KG, one of the market leaders in the field of circular connectors for industrial and automation technology, works with 45 sales partners on 5 continents and employs 1,800 people worldwide. binder products are used in agricultural machinery, construction machinery, signaling systems, mechanical engineering, medical technology, measurement technology and sensor and automation technology.

In order to meet the demands for quality and service in logistics processing, a future-proof warehouse concept with an intelligent control system had to be developed. The available space on the company headquarters site in Neckarsulm had to be taken into account. TKS Unternehmensberatung und Industrieplanung GmbH from Esslingen was entrusted with this planning.

Since the beginning of the year, binder has been supplying its production and customers from a modern logistics facility.
At its heart is a 3-aisle, 27 m high shuttle warehouse with around 45,000 storage spaces for small load carriers. Here, different container sizes and trays can be stored multiple-deep, so that the system offers a high degree of flexibility. The total of 58 storage levels are served by individual autonomous shuttles, which can change levels via a lift. This roaming technology makes it possible to adapt the system's performance precisely to binder's performance requirements. Performance can be increased quickly and easily by purchasing additional shuttles.

The associated logistics processes were adapted to the requirements of binder and its customers. The software implementation of the processes was carried out on the basis of SAP EWM. Körber Supply Chain Software GmbH from Stuttgart was selected as the implementation partner.
The 15 workstations are supplied on several floor levels. Each level has its own conveyor technology pre-zone, which has "highways" for fast storage and retrieval of complete containers. Individually designed workstations with height-adjustable work tables, touch-screen monitors and intelligent weighing technology also optimize the processes for incoming goods and order picking.
The workstations are designed to be multifunctional so that they can be used for incoming goods, production supply or dispatch, depending on the workload. A fast lane has been set up for containers that have already been notified and correctly labeled to enable fully automated storage. Conveyor technology "highways" were integrated into the concept for the retrieval of complete containers or the Kanban supply of production, so that containers can be retrieved on time without having to go via a workstation.

A 1-aisle automated pallet warehouse was also implemented for all larger warehouse items. A total of 1,500 Euro and industrial pallets can be stored here. The connection between the two pre-zones on the ground and upper floors and the high-bay cube is implemented using the latest generation of cross transfer carriages. The technology for this project was supplied and commissioned by Körber Supply Chain Automation GmbH from Leingarten as the general contractor.

The entire project was supervised and managed by TKS from planning to final acceptance. TKS has stood for individual and manufacturer-independent planning of storage and logistics systems since 1989.