Warehouse lifts replace entire warehouse

As a subsidiary of the Finnish Wärtsila Group - one of the leading manufacturers of marine engines and power plants - Quantiparts, which was founded in 2014, supplies customers worldwide with original manufacturer components for the marine, locomotive and power plant sectors. The company has an inventory of around 5.5 million parts for over 40 different four-stroke engines.

But when warehouse capacity is almost completely exhausted and storage is no longer optimally matched to the goods, even the most dedicated employees reach their limits. Especially when one of the goals is to further reduce delivery times. This was also the problem at Quantiparts. The company decided to change its warehouse strategy and looked for a project partner. When SSI Schaefer applied for the project at Quantiparts, the specifications were clearly defined: "A space-optimizing solution for spare parts for ship engines from a complete warehouse was required. A new, ergonomic system was required that would reduce the picking error rate to a minimum and increase process efficiency," explains project manager Erwin Hekkelman. It was clear to him which system would meet the requirements and optimize the picking and storage of the parts. An automated solution with Logimat storage lifts.

The warehouse solution enables the order picker to operate four Logimats simultaneously during normal operation and two during peak times.

The reason: if the storage space for small parts is to be optimally utilized and this can be achieved via the storage height, as is the case with Quantiparts, storage lifts are an exciting solution. Compared to conventional static storage solutions, the Logimat from SSI Schaefer requires on average only around 1/10 of the storage space, while travel times are reduced by more than 70% thanks to the goods-to-person principle. At the same time, the system increases picking speed by a factor of six to ten thanks to process automation. In addition, the removal of items is ergonomic and system-controlled.

"With just four additional Logimat storage lifts, Quantiparts has the option of storing the small parts from an entire hall in a very compressed manner, so that the resulting free space in the existing racks is also available for larger parts. This not only improves the capacity of Quantiparts' approximately five million OEM components, but also increases the efficiency of the internal material flow," says Hekkelman.

Good relationship leads to new orders

"We already had a warehouse lift from SSI Schaefer, the Pickomat, basically a kind of earlier version of the LogimatEN. So we knew what to expect," explains Rick Minderhoud, Warehouse Administrator at Quantiparts. Accordingly, the solution was implemented in close coordination. "We also had to adapt the LogimatEN control software specifically to QuantiParts' requirements so that the system could communicate with the company's ERP system via an interface we developed," says Erwin Hekkelman. This ensures fast, automatic and error-free storage and retrieval of items. By fulfilling this task, SSI Schaefer delivered a tailor-made solution.

"With just four additional Logimat storage lifts, Quantiparts is able to store the small parts from an entire hall in a very compact way."

Erwin Hekkelmann Project Manager at SSI Schäfer

System solution for efficient processes

In order to make optimum use of the picking time of the storage lifts, the LogimatEN were set up opposite each other in a double pack. SSI Schaefer installed the four storage lifts in such a way that they utilize the existing hall height with their 14 m. To fully utilize the capacity of the systems, two storage lifts were equipped with 159 trays and two with 94 trays. These were equipped by SSI Schaefer with 500 ELB and 1,000 EF containers. These now hold around 7,000 different items.

The process sequence: Each storage lift has two rows of shelves, a front and a rear row, between which the elevator is located. This moves over the entire height of the LogimatEN. To ensure fast and error-free storage and retrieval processes, the intralogistics specialist has adapted the software of the four systems to the customer's requirements. The storage lifts now communicate with the Quantiparts ERP system via an interface developed by SSI Schaefer.

The picking process is particularly ergonomic thanks to the infinitely height-adjustable operating opening with tilting device for the trays.

When the parts are put away, the system now automatically measures the items and then assigns them to a suitable, available storage location. When the components are removed from storage, the warehouse management system transfers the order items to the storage lift, whereupon the relevant item trays are accessed directly. These are pulled out of their respective positions and moved to the corresponding service opening. There, the parts to be picked are displayed to the employee via an adjustable touchscreen at each picking opening. To further minimize picking errors, a laser pointer marks the items to be picked on the tray.

The result

The project was implemented on time and without any problems. "The new solution takes all the small parts from one hall so that the space in the pallet racks is now available for larger parts. The overall capacity of the warehouse will be increased by around 1,500 Euro pallet spaces with the installation and commissioning of the new systems," explains Hekkelman. The warehouse manager at Quantiparts is also satisfied: "The LogimatENs offer us significantly more space for our components. We have also significantly increased the process speed in the warehouse. That's perfect for us," summarizes Minderhoud. With the implementation of the solution, SSI Schaefer has successfully realized the first Logimat project in the Netherlands.

www.quantiparts.comwww.ssi-schaefer.com