HEUSENSTAMM/KARBEN – Dematic has designed and automated a new high-bay warehouse together with König + Neurath AG, manufacturer of office furniture and room solutions. The facility features an Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV) system consisting of two automated narrow-aisle trucks and two high-lift trucks from KION Group sister company, STILL. The AGVs interface with a Dematic conveyor system to provide a fully automated and precise handling of pallets. The new warehouse at König + Neurath AG's production site in Karben, Hesse offers space for around 5,000 pallets at a height of 12 meters. The new automation technology is providing König + Neurath with more efficient warehouse processes and reduced error rate.

“Furniture production is becoming increasingly individualized. To be able to produce flexible solutions for its customers, efficient warehouse and distribution management are key. Our AGVs handle the high rates and optimize the material flow at König + Neurath," says Dr Jens Hardenacke, SVP and Managing Director at Dematic DACH. The automated high-bay warehouse has nine levels offering space for almost 5,000 pallets. The new building is allowing König + Neurath to increase its storage capacity for the various components it uses for the production of office furniture and room solutions.

Dematic was able to provide König + Neurath, a long-standing STILL customer, with a customized solution under the umbrella of KION Group AG. Two MX-X narrow-aisle trucks and two EXV high-lift trucks from STILL have been automated and are controlled by Dematic's state-of-the-art real-time AGV management software. The software handles traffic control, and it ensures smooth storage and retrieval. The software is linked to König + Neurath's warehouse management software, eWM on S4/HANA.

The pallets to be stored are first placed manually on the Dematic conveyor system and transported to transfer points at the central access of the high bay. The load ID is recorded and transmitted to the warehouse management software via automated barcode scanner. The storage and retrieval orders are then generated and transferred to the AGV management software, which then sends a transport order. Next, the pallet AGVs take over the transport between the conveyor system and the racking. The hybrid narrow-aisle AGVs store and retrieve the pallets in the narrow-aisle warehouse. After execution, the AGVs report the transport as completed and become available for follow-up orders. During the day, the AGVs sort primarily goods that reach the loading gate in wire mesh boxes or on Euro pallets and enter the hall via conveyor belt into the high racks on precisely calculated routes. At night, the system removes the items needed for the following production process from storage. In this way, the system is ideally used to capacity and achieves up to 35 storage and retrieval operations per hour, or 280 per shift.

Screens display the status of all AGVs in real time and guarantee a transparent overview of the processing of the transport orders. Thanks to automation, significantly more pallets can now be handled. David Schuch, Project Manager of Intralogistics at König + Neurath AG, draws a positive conclusion, “The AGVs transport and store the goods safely and precisely up to a height of 12 meters. The high accuracy and the reproducible process results in a lower damage rate than with manual handling.” The system provides a high level of occupational safety and plant availability.