AutoStore: Smart Logistics for Small Parts
Company Size
1,000+
Region
- Europe
Country
- Switzerland
Product
- AutoStore
- Swisslog Stacker Cranes
- Automated Guided Vehicles
Tech Stack
- Wireless LAN
- SAP Integration
Implementation Scale
- Enterprise-wide Deployment
Impact Metrics
- Cost Savings
- Customer Satisfaction
- Productivity Improvements
Technology Category
- Automation & Control - Automation & Process Control Systems
- Functional Applications - Remote Monitoring & Control Systems
- Functional Applications - Warehouse Management Systems (WMS)
Applicable Industries
- Retail
Applicable Functions
- Logistics & Transportation
- Warehouse & Inventory Management
Use Cases
- Inventory Management
- Predictive Maintenance
- Warehouse Automation
Services
- Hardware Design & Engineering Services
- Software Design & Engineering Services
- System Integration
About The Customer
Antalis is Europe’s leading distributor of modern communications media and consumables, including paper, packaging materials, office supplies, and hygiene products. The company is known for its high-quality products and comprehensive, customer-oriented services. As a member of an international distribution network, Antalis provides reliable resources and eco-friendly products, assuming social responsibility in all its endeavors. The company aims to expand its logistics services to adapt to market changes and maintain its leading position.
The Challenge
Antalis Switzerland wanted to permanently expand its logistics services in light of structural changes occurring in the paper market. The company needed a solution that could optimize existing space, be flexible, scalable, low-cost, and energy-efficient. The challenge was to integrate a new small parts storage system into their existing warehouse without disrupting ongoing operations. Additionally, the system needed to be adaptable to structural constraints and offer various expansion options to meet future needs.
The Solution
Swisslog partnered with Antalis to implement the AutoStore small parts storage system. AutoStore's modular concept allows for the optimization of existing space by eliminating rack aisles and storing bins directly on top of one another. The system's grid layout is flexible and can adapt to structural constraints, making it easy to integrate into the existing warehouse. The number of robots traveling along the grid can be adjusted based on the required speed, and more vehicles can be added at any time. The robots communicate via a wireless LAN and offer backup capacity to maintain system performance. The system was integrated into a 40,000 m² building with space for 55,000 euro pallet locations and 20,000 shelving locations. AutoStore accommodates 18,000 plastic bins, each with a capacity of 75 liters and a maximum storage weight of 30 kg. Full SAP integration allows internal and external customers to trigger order picking, ensuring timely deliveries.
Operational Impact
Quantitative Benefit
Case Study missing?
Start adding your own!
Register with your work email and create a new case study profile for your business.
Related Case Studies.
Case Study
Improving Production Line Efficiency with Ethernet Micro RTU Controller
Moxa was asked to provide a connectivity solution for one of the world's leading cosmetics companies. This multinational corporation, with retail presence in 130 countries, 23 global braches, and over 66,000 employees, sought to improve the efficiency of their production process by migrating from manual monitoring to an automatic productivity monitoring system. The production line was being monitored by ABB Real-TPI, a factory information system that offers data collection and analysis to improve plant efficiency. Due to software limitations, the customer needed an OPC server and a corresponding I/O solution to collect data from additional sensor devices for the Real-TPI system. The goal is to enable the factory information system to more thoroughly collect data from every corner of the production line. This will improve its ability to measure Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) and translate into increased production efficiencies. System Requirements • Instant status updates while still consuming minimal bandwidth to relieve strain on limited factory networks • Interoperable with ABB Real-TPI • Small form factor appropriate for deployment where space is scarce • Remote software management and configuration to simplify operations
Case Study
How Sirqul’s IoT Platform is Crafting Carrefour’s New In-Store Experiences
Carrefour Taiwan’s goal is to be completely digital by end of 2018. Out-dated manual methods for analysis and assumptions limited Carrefour’s ability to change the customer experience and were void of real-time decision-making capabilities. Rather than relying solely on sales data, assumptions, and disparate systems, Carrefour Taiwan’s CEO led an initiative to find a connected IoT solution that could give the team the ability to make real-time changes and more informed decisions. Prior to implementing, Carrefour struggled to address their conversion rates and did not have the proper insights into the customer decision-making process nor how to make an immediate impact without losing customer confidence.
Case Study
Digital Retail Security Solutions
Sennco wanted to help its retail customers increase sales and profits by developing an innovative alarm system as opposed to conventional connected alarms that are permanently tethered to display products. These traditional security systems were cumbersome and intrusive to the customer shopping experience. Additionally, they provided no useful data or analytics.
Case Study
Ensures Cold Milk in Your Supermarket
As of 2014, AK-Centralen has over 1,500 Danish supermarkets equipped, and utilizes 16 operators, and is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. AK-Centralen needed the ability to monitor the cooling alarms from around the country, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Each and every time the door to a milk cooler or a freezer does not close properly, an alarm goes off on a computer screen in a control building in southwestern Odense. This type of alarm will go off approximately 140,000 times per year, equating to roughly 400 alarms in a 24-hour period. Should an alarm go off, then there is only a limited amount of time to act before dairy products or frozen pizza must be disposed of, and this type of waste can quickly start to cost a supermarket a great deal of money.
Case Study
Supermarket Energy Savings
The client had previously deployed a one-meter-per-store monitoring program. Given the manner in which energy consumption changes with external temperature, hour of the day, day of week and month of year, a single meter solution lacked the ability to detect the difference between a true problem and a changing store environment. Most importantly, a single meter solution could never identify root cause of energy consumption changes. This approach never reduced the number of truck-rolls or man-hours required to find and resolve issues.
