DON’T MOVE
DON’T MOVE
COMBILIFT tackles the global warehouse shortage by making the most of what we already have.
COMBILIFT tackles the global warehouse shortage by making the most of what we already have.
COMBILIFT tackles the global warehouse shortage by making the most of what we already have.
COMBILIFT tackles the global warehouse shortage by making the most of what we already have.
For this issue of The Logistics Report we have asked our contributors to look ahead and forecast some of the trends that they believe will be impacting on supply chain and intralogistics processes in 2025.
It is a little unsettling to reflect that in just over two years from now we will be a quarter of a way through the 21st century. Is it really nearly 25 years since we were laying awake at night worrying about the Millennium Bug - a supposed glitch in the coding of computerised systems that was projected to create havoc in networks around the world at the beginning of the year 2000?
Thankfully the Y2K technological apocalypse that was apparently going to bring about the collapse of the global banking system at the same time as nuclear reactors went into melt down, aeroplanes fell out of the sky and egg timers exploded, didn’t materialise.
Which goes to prove that crystal ball gazing is never easy. So, 2025 may be just two years away but, as we have all become only too aware, unforeseen events have a nasty habit of forcing even short term forecasts to be ripped up and thrown out of the window.
However, with the labour shortage likely to be an ongoing source of frustration and wage costs set to only go one way, it is probably safe to say that by 2025 the business case for automating some aspects of the intralogistics process will have become ever more compelling. Indeed, Dave Berridge, Secretary of the Automated Material Handling Systems Association, contends on page 36, that labour scarcity, e-commerce developments, the need for resilience and the ever-present drive for competitive advantage are creating a perfect storm that’s blowing automation in a favourable direction.
And, with an estimated 30 per cent of all jobs automatable by the mid-2030s, the make-up of workforces and career routes into the logististics industry will also have to evolve in the coming years. On page 26 Dr Paul Rivers, CEO of Guidance Automation, explains why businesses must
prepare their workforces for the future automated world. With a recent report by digital training provider, Skill Dynamics, highlighting that over a quarter of junior supply chain professionals plan to leave their role over the next two years (see page 22) – Dr Rivers’ piece is essential reading.
When it comes to competitive advantage, online retailers have always considered the provision of a free returns option as a vital influence on an internet shopper’s decision to press the ‘Buy Now’ button. But as many high street retailers start charging for online returns, James Hyde, Chief Product Officer & Founder of James and James Fulfilment, asks if free returns are set to become history in a fascinating article starting on page 16.
As ever, sincere thanks to all of our sponsors, contributors and, of course, readers. I hope that within the pages of this report you will find something to take away and apply to your business.
A former editor of SHD magazine, Lloyd Arkill is a partner in the leading specialist logistics and supply chain public relations agency, AMA PR Ltd
The ongoing demand for warehouse space coupled with ever rising business costs means that space optimisation is now more important than ever. Combilift’s design engineers work with clients to reconfigure a site in a way that can increase a company’s storage capacity by as much as 100 per cent.
Demand for warehouse space continues to outstrip supply which is driving up rents, according to industrial and logistics property experts Colliers. The situation is particularly acute in certain hotspots such as London, the home counties and locations in the midlands near major motorway networks. The continued high level of online sales – 26 per cent of total UK retail sales in March 2022 - is a key contributing factor to lack of available space.
“Improving not moving” could therefore be the answer to warehouse woes – assuming you know where to start with what can be a daunting task. This is all in a day’s work for materials handling specialist Combilift, which has over two decades of experience in helping companies of all sizes and from varied industries maximise the capacity, safety and efficiency of their warehouse and storage facilities. A team of 10 design engineers work on this very popular, free of charge service, and provide diagrams showing how warehouse space can be configured according to the capabilities of Combilift’s products – reducing aisle widths for example – which can increase a company’s storage capacity by as much as 100 per cent.
Combilift developed the world’s first IC powered 3-wheel, all-wheel drive, multidirectional forklift in 1998 and has since grown to become the largest worldwide supplier of customised and specialist handling solutions, exporting to 85 countries. But as CEO and Co-founder Martin McVicar points out: “We have always seen Combilift as much more than a designer and manufacturer of forklifts and other
handling
benefits. The ongoing demand for warehouse space coupled with ever rising business costs means that space optimisation is now more important than ever. Additional benefits of course also include avoiding the operational headache for management and the workforce of relocating to new premises, the lack of bureaucracy associated with new builds or extensions and leasing extra offsite storage.”
One company that let Combilift do the hard work for them was Farrell Furniture, which designs and manufactures quality contract office and residential furniture from its base in Ardee, Co. Louth, Ireland, and prides itself on its highly customised products built to individual requirements. Just a few years after Combilift was established, Farrell’s Joint CEO Brendan Farrell started to investigate how they could improve storage and access to various products in the 150 x 60ft warehouse. “We were using a 3t conventional counterbalance truck which wasn’t overly efficient and when I got talking to Combilift they took a wholly different approach from other companies that want to sell you something, I’d call it more solution based. We gave them the plans of the warehouse, the dimensions of the sheet materials, the sizes of the crates of veneer and aluminium that we use in production. They came back with detailed plans that showed us how using one of their trucks could make a massive difference to the management of our space. So, before we had even decided
to go with their products, they had proved to us that we could generate over 30 per cent more valuable storage in our warehouse – which was a pretty persuasive argument and a refreshing attitude as to how to get customers on side!”
Reconfiguring Farrell’s warehouse layout also enabled efficient and easy access to stock, which had been a bit of a slow process with the old system. Brendan reckons they now stock over 50 different colours and finishes compared to around just four or five 20 years ago, so as a rule he aims for a quick turnaround. As a major supplier of furniture for student accommodation there is also the need to be very flexible as 75 per cent of annual company turnover is generated in just five or six months. “Ideally a truck comes in, its load is taken to the warehouse and it’s cut next day. The less time we have the product in store the better value it represents. Our premises are around 100,000 sq ft, with as little as possible - just 15,000 sq ft - being given over to storage. The warehouse is the same size as it was when we got our first Combilift, but over the last few years we have quadrupled in growth. This is testimony to how
Combilift’s original layouts future-proofed us. Due to the lift height of 6m of our C4000 model we have been able to go up not out. The truck’s ability to travel sideways as well as block stack, plus its inherent stability means that even our largest loads – 3.6 x 2m for example - can be very safely moved around and easily accommodated in the space available.
“For any company experiencing growth or increased volumes of stock, I’d recommend talking to Combilift first before they even think of moving or building new facilities – they could potentially save themselves a lot of money and hassle,” said Brendan. “Getting help from the experts to improve the performance of our warehouse was an absolute eye opener. There’s a bit of a communality between us and Combilift too. Alongside our ‘making furniture work better’ slogan we have another one - ‘making spaces work better’ – and that’s definitely what Combilift have done for us. And we like to think employees in the offices in Monaghan appreciate the quality of the desks we provided them too!”
www.combilift.com www.farrell-furniture.com
low-Capex and highly flexible automation – the likes of intelligent mobile robots and advanced fit-to-size packaging systems.
A typical 3PL client contract is for around two or three years, and now with so much uncertainty in the economy, clients tend to be looking for shorter rather than longer commitments. That would almost certainly be less than the time required to achieve a positive Return on Investment (RoI) for many traditional forms of automation.
The risk for the 3PL has always been that if the automation is tailored to the needs of a specific client, and that client doesn’t renew – or worse, goes out of business – the 3PL may not achieve as fast an RoI as expected. Even if the client is retained, volumes achieved in existing or renewed contracts
may well be lower than planned – positive RoI is delayed, and the equipment may not easily allow for the needs of an additional customer taking up the now spare capacity.
That at least has been the traditional thinking. Now, however, highly flexible automation is changing the dynamics of the warehouse, particularly around ecommerce operations – and this is reshaping how 3PLs can present their service offerings. Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) are transforming order picking processes and within the packing area, a common pain point for both throughput and labour, advanced automated fit-to-size packaging systems are offering scale at peak and flexibility to cater for a wide variety of order profiles – and that can be across several clients.
Automated fit-to-size packaging systems not only offer the efficiencies of high volume throughput, low labour content, improved material use and better transport efficiency that 3PLs and their clients demand, but critically, they also provide the essential flexibility that will future-proof the investment.
Looking at efficiencies, put simply, advanced right-sized packaging systems, such as Sparck Technologies’ CVP Everest and Impack machines, 3D scan the item or items, work out the optimal shape and size of box, and cut, build, seal and label each package at speeds of up to 1,100 packages per hour. Both solutions can have up to three card mills feeding continuous fanfold card of different widths (60cm, 80cm, 100cm for example), which ensures optimal use of card ‘on the fly’, reducing waste and minimising cost. Or in the case of a 3PL, the three card mills could hold individually branded card feeds allowing multiple brands (clients) to be packed by a single machine.
Over the last couple of years Sparck Technologies has analysed some 10 million packages across sectors from the toy industry to multinational contract logistics and fulfilment companies, so we can reasonably claim that our figures are robust. Of course, achievable improvements depend on how efficient the existing arrangements are, but on average box volumes are reduced by up to 50% or more (83% has been recorded) with benefits in more efficient use of costly transport and greater consumer satisfaction – not least through the elimination of void fill.
Meanwhile, average savings in cardboard used can run at up to 30% or better – for one global logistics company the calculations range from 36% on the widest board, to 60% on the narrowest – a saving that goes straight to the bottom line.
On the labour side, with throughputs of up to 500 boxes/ hour on the Impack line, or 1,100 on the Everest, anywhere up to 20 manual packing stations can be replaced by one or two line operators: labour which, if you are lucky enough to have, can be redeployed to more rewarding and valueadding tasks. The potential for significant cost reduction is obvious.
So we can demonstrate serious cost-saving efficiencies –what about flexibility? These packaging systems are ‘flexible’ in a number of senses. Firstly they can pack orders for several clients in random sequence (identified by bar code). This
can be achieved either with the preprinted branded fanfold card feed, or we can also offer in-line mono or CYMK printing of neutral card on three sides – from a simple ‘This Way Up’ message to QR/AR codes or full colour customer branding.
Therefore, there is no downtime or changeover period as different client’s orders come down the line, and a new customer’s needs can be accommodated literally as soon as the artwork is digitised. Obviously, the ability to construct ‘right size’ boxes from a small number of stock widths obviates the need to carry large numbers of SKUs of preforms (even larger numbers if they are customer-branded) which will in any case be only approximately ‘right size’.
But we can also offer flexibility in a different sense. It may be that even with all the efficiency gains outlined, payback within the life of a contract is not certain. So Sparck Technologies’ packaging systems can be acquired on lease rather than outright purchase. The 3PL can minimise risk from a downturn – or, more happily, lease extra lines if business is booming.
This low-risk approach, which combines verifiable efficiency gains and maximum flexibility, is being adopted by a growing number of leading 3PLs in Germany, The Netherlands and the UK – high profile names, such as CEVA Logistics, Van Eupen and Global Freight Management.
Creative thinking around automation is actively helping 3PLs win new business, and just as importantly, is playing an essential role in delivering enhanced value to existing clients, helping service providers to retain customers, protect margin and extend client contracts.
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The emergence of readily available, lowCapex and highly flexible automation allows 3PLs to invest in automation first and then pitch their solutions to potential clients
Companies that order new forklift trucks and other materials handling equipment (MHE) in the coming months may find that they miss out on the chance to claim significant tax relief allowances on their new machinery due to the ever growing lead times currently being quoted by a number of industrial truck manufacturers.
Since April 1st 2021 businesses have been able to claim back up to 25p for every pound they invest in ‘qualifying’ machinery and equipment under the terms of the super-deduction allowance – a tax incentive designed to encourage British businesses to invest following the pandemic.
However, the super-deduction was only introduced as a temporary measure and the allowance comes to an end on March 31st 2023. Under the terms of the scheme companies only qualify for the tax relief on expenditure incurred between April 1st 2021 and March 31st 2023.
With some lift truck users currently finding that they are having to wait upwards of six months from the time that they place an order to the delivery of their new machinery there is a risk that any new equipment ordered after the beginning of November 2022 will not be ‘on site’ before the end of next March. This means that the truck user’s
expenditure will be outside the super-deduction ‘window’.
Manufacturers who seek to help their customers by issuing invoices prior to any post-March 31st delivery date are likely to be considered to be facilitating ‘contrived arrangements’ that are contrary to HMRC’s anti-avoidance rules.
John Maguire, Narrow Aisle Ltd’s managing director commented: “Due to the impact of on-going supply chain problems and other issues on build times, we understand that several MHE manufacturers face serious production backlogs. Consequently, some users are being forced to operate their existing trucks for far longer than they had planned. It also means that they may miss out on the substantial tax relief that is currently available on capital equipment expenditure under the super-deduction scheme.”
Despite surging demand for the range of Flexi articulated reach truck based intralogistics solutions, recent investment at Narrow Aisle’s UK manufacturing and parts storage facility means that delivery lead times for new Flexi trucks have been maintained at normal levels.
John Maguire said: “Sales of Flexi VNA reach trucks are at an all time high. Yet, in the majority of cases, we have been able to build and deliver new trucks in under eight weeks from the date that an order is placed.
“We benchmark our production performance against similar sized operations in our sector and we know that our lead times compare very favourably.”
John Maguire adds: “With the clock ticking down to the end of the super-deduction tax relief scheme, our ability to respond to the demand for new fully configured Flexi trucks quickly and efficiently gives us – and our customers - a tremendous commercial advantage. We have recently won significant orders not just because of the quality and drivability of our Flexi products, but also thanks to the fact that we are able to build and deliver new very narrow aisle warehouse trucks within the super-deduction ‘window’.”
comes to items sourced in Asia, like clothing or electronics, it would be a good idea to replenish your inventory now to meet demand later.
Empower your team to focus on customer service. Consumers will always want helpful, friendly service from salespeople who are experts in their field. Shoppers need advice, information, and solutions — and retailers have the advantage of being the only place where consumers can touch the product, smell it, taste it, or try it on.
But hiring employees, never mind experienced and knowledgeable ones, continues to be a challenge. To ease labour constraints, retailers can leverage technology and automation to handle trivial tasks, enabling their teams to do what they do best – help customers.
A major benefit to using real-time supply chain visibility is knowing the status of your inventory and when out-of-stocks will be replenished. For example, by working with FourKites to bring greater visibility to its deliveries in transit, PetSmart was able to identify
the cause of disruptions to store operations and minimise their impact on staff productivity. And by empowering employees with information you can increase retention — staff members want to be helpful, better insights empower that.
Offer a hybrid experience. Shoppers want choice and flexibility — stores should strive to provide a seamless inperson and online buying experience. In the ideal scenario, shoppers can drive up, quickly pick up items they ordered online, and then run inside to shop for goods that aren’t best for online shopping: produce, shoes, or fitted clothes. While it may not be realistic for every store to adopt this model, it is possible to get close by beautifying the front of the store or making sure your curbside service doesn’t skip a beat.
Retail spaces can also be repurposed more to focus on the tangible benefits of shopping; when it comes time to purchase, retailers can make it easy to swipe a card and choose a delivery option. Making brick-and-mortar locations showrooms will enhance the shopping experience and potentially stir excitement among those who have strayed since the pandemic.
Know your inventory. As mentioned, traditional seasonal shopping benchmarks like Amazon’s Prime Day and Black Friday have lost their luster. This is changing the patterns of this season. Instead of focusing on those two dates, retailers now have the power to space out their promotions into a wider time window. Discounting should be based on available inventory, which requires greater visibility.
Labour strikes, weather events and more can disrupt the flow of goods at a moment’s notice. Combined with unpredictable consumer demand, stores can quickly find themselves with unexpected inventory shortages or gluts. By having precise estimated times of arrival and end-toend visibility, from manufacturers to distribution centres and beyond, store managers can appropriately manage promotion strategies and customer expectations.
While it’s difficult to predict what’s in store for the holiday shopping season, it’s safe to assume that shoppers will be looking for deals, flexibility and service. And with more uncertainty ahead in 2023, these preferences will likely stick around. Retailers who take steps to exceed expectations will have happy holidays and a prosperous new year.
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Consumers will be driven by discounts, but that may be difficult this year due to retailers tightening their belts in the face of diminishing sales, a labour shortage, and supply chain interruptions to inventory
Despite facing numerous upheavals inflicted by supply chain disruptions in the last decade, most companies still found themselves alarmingly unprepared for COVID-19. When the outbreak began in China, the disruptions were significant and far reaching but 70% of organisations did not have a clear sense of what parts of their supplier network were affected. Instead, they were still in a “data collection and assessment” mode, manually trying to identify which of their suppliers had a site in the specific locked-down regions of China. The effort was exponentially complicated as countries around the world went into various stages of lockdowns and restrictions and supply chain experts spent several months reacting and responding.
In contrast, companies that invested in supply chain risk management tools, particularly mapping their supplier networks, had a different experience. They were able to conduct what-if analyses for different regions as the first few cases emerged and were able to work with suppliers in these regions preemptively to protect supply lines.
As the pandemic ramped up, companies that had mapped their supply networks down to the second-and third-tier
levels could quickly see a complete picture of how the evolving crisis would affect their supply chains in the weeks or months to come. This identification of specific areas of failure helped companies take action before the disruption hit. COVID-19 highlighted that mapping is essential for building resilient supply chains for the future.
Why doesn’t every company map its supply chain? The simple answer is money and time. While historically it’s been costly for companies to develop and maintain an accurate map of their supply chain, today, with the right partners, the process can be much more streamlined and efficient. Rapidly evolving technology, AI, cloud adoption, and enterprise networks have made mapping cost effective, scalable, and achievable. What’s more, the new generation of software companies providing mapping capabilities go far beyond what could be accomplished with emails, phone calls, and spreadsheets.
There are a few types of mapping available; all provide different levels of value depending on a company’s needs. The simplest method involves mapping based on publicly available data including news and other information disclosed by large, direct suppliers about their production
The COVID-19 pandemic served as a wake-up call, forcing companies to realise the risk of not knowing who their suppliers’ suppliers are, says Bindiya Vakil , CEO and founder of supply chain risk management experts Resilinc
and logistics sites.While this method has the advantage of not requiring any input from suppliers, it also doesn’t allow for much transparency beyond the first supplier tier and may generate irrelevant data—noise—that must be filtered out to find the actionable data. This is because larger suppliers operate across many countries and not all sites may be relevant to a specific manufacturer.
To cut through the noise and increase visibility, companies should engage with suppliers to provide increasing levels of data. This data map can be achieved by starting with the locations of the suppliers’ own production and logistics sites and culminating with a comprehensive map detailing the linkages between tier-one, tier-two, and tier-three suppliers. The goal is to be able to trace individual parts to the exact site where they’re manufactured.
This ultimate level of “part-site” mapping adds the most value because it enables manufacturers and companies to know exactly what parts or materials may be delayed by an event affecting a specific site. The map should also include information about which activities a primary site performs, the alternate sites the supplier has that could perform the same activity, and how long it would take the supplier to begin shipping from the alternate site. This is the most effective method to ensure continuity of supply as well as minimising revenue and/or inventory loss.
For example, a biotech company leveraged part-site mapping to avoid supply disruptions after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico in September 2017. Before Maria made landfall, the firm was able to identify two Puerto Rican sites that supplied 25 to 30 items to its North American manufacturing operations. Assuming these sites would be
compromised , the company made several million dollars’ worth of forward purchases from alternative suppliers that averted what would have been costly delays in manufacturing.
Whatever technology platform a company uses to map its supply chain, a core best practice is to prioritise mapping those parts and materials that impact high-revenue products. Take this example: a company with £5 billion in revenue discovers that it has a single second-tier supplier for a low-cost connector that goes into its highest-revenue products. Without a mapping system that prioritises revenue, the company would probably not pay much attention to that vendor because of the relatively low annual spend associated with it. But in reality, this single-source vulnerability could derail production of a product that brings in hundreds of millions of pounds annually. In this case, it pays to spend several hundred thousand pounds to qualify an additional supplier.
Therefore, a change of mindset is what is needed: from focusing the most attention on suppliers with the largest spend, to focusing on those supplying products with the greatest potential to cut into a company’s topline instead. As procurement teams typically pay attention to the top 20% of suppliers which make up 80% of the spend, a significant risk remains within this strategy as you have zero visibility over 80% of your suppliers. Irrespective of spend, every part and raw material is required to produce and ship a given product, so significantly more attention should be directed towards lower tier suppliers which are usually where most disruptions occur. Companies need to map multiple tiers of suppliers in order to gain a greater understanding of potential revenue risk when disruptions occur.
Even amidst a pandemic, the usual types of disruptions continue. Everything from factory fires, weather-related disruptions, to geopolitical risks- no site or region will ever be risk-free. This is why mapping is so important. Whether contending with a labour shortage at one essential producer of high-performance raw materials or a pandemic that affects most of the world, supply chain mapping provides a foundational knowledge base and core asset that can be leveraged to build strong programs such as quality, compliance, sustainability, and supplier corporate social responsibility, to name just a few. This data allows companies to identify and anticipate vulnerabilities in their supply chain. It unlocks predictive analytics capabilities and enables them to act proactively. It allows them to respond to disruptions faster and more economically. It allows them to go from reactive to resilient. The journey to a diversified, supply chain risk management strategy begins with mapping.
As retailers prepare for the golden quarter, the cost of returns is taking centre stage. Last year’s Christmas period saw record levels of returns and, with the cost of living crisis, 2022 could be even worse. Customers are becoming more considered in their purchasing decisions – and that could lead to greater number of returns, especially within fashion.
One likely trend is that customers may not immediately reduce order value, but then opt to keep fewer items. Certainly ‘wardrobing’ – the act of buying a product, using it and then returning it as ‘unused’ to attain a full refund –is on the rise.
Many will also be actively seeking out better deals; while those making impulse purchases will be more likely to have a change of heart – especially if there is any delay in delivery.
The customer is, of course, not always to blame. Sometimes the wrong product is delivered. The item is perhaps not as advertised, damaged on arrival or turned up too late – all of which are valid reasons for return. Occasionally the customer will have had a bad experience with the company after making the order. These problems
are all within the gift of the retailer to change – and should be a priority.
Outsourced fulfilment that leverages a single, integrated order management system (OMS), Warehouse Management System (WMS) and courier management system (CMS) can optimise operations and reduce returns. Picking and packing should be 99.9% accurate. Same day dispatch should be a given, alongside carefully managed and tracked delivery services. Ensuring every aspect of the fulfilment process is optimised and accurate will eradicate any ‘retailer blame’ reasons for returns, allowing the focus to shift towards changing customer behaviour.
Certainly, retailers are toughening up. After decades of free returns, the tide is turning with major retailers (Boohoo, Next, Uniqlo, and Zara to name a few) removing free returns this year. While the headlines focus on the need to reduce the “try-on hauls” seen on YouTube and TikTok, data is also key to both understanding trends and highlighting problem customers. Amazon and John Lewis both banned the same customer in August, after repeated returns and complaints.
Fast, accurate fulfilment data is fundamental to
highlighting problems within the retailer’s products and/ or processes. Repeated returns of the same product due to small sizing, for example, can be addressed by changing the product description and adding advice to size up. Electrical items that repeatedly break are a huge financial and reputational drain and should be quickly withdrawn from sale to minimise loss.
Information is also key to addressing the inventory problems created by returns – many of which arrive weeks later, potentially damaged. It takes time and money to get these products back into stock and ready to sell. Without live, up to the second inventory levels fed directly to the webstore, retailers will be left with unsold items – and potentially miss the key Black Friday and Christmas trading periods. Retailers also need to better understand the true cost of returns to the business to better assess the margin on products and support merchandising decisions. Identifying if products from certain manufacturers or suppliers are more likely to be returned than others, for example, is key to safeguarding margin in the future.
Improving eCommerce processes will have an impact on the number of returns experienced. But retailers can also change their messaging and highlight the importance of sustainable purchasing behaviour. Returns are hugely environmentally damaging. In addition to increased shipping and transport, sorting and refolding are labour
intensive. Plastic poly bags cannot be reused, and damaged items occasionally end up in landfill.
Levying a small return fee, alongside more cost-conscious customers, could have significant environmental benefit, while reinforcing consumers’ perception of the retailer. Furthermore, according to Deloitte, circularity and customer attitudes towards sustainability are becoming ever more important to driving customer engagement before, during and at the end of product life.
Consumer behaviour can change: the introduction of the five pence charge in 2015 for plastic bags reduced usage by 85 per cent in one year, and the number of bags purchased has continued to drop. Retailers can share the sustainability issues with customers. The way returns policies are considered, presented and delivered will increasingly inform customer perception of a retailer. Done well, an effective, efficient and well-communicated returns model will both reduce costs and boost reputation.
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Retailers need to understand the true cost of returns to the business to better assess the margin on products and support merchandising decisions
Following similar announcements by Next, Uniqlo and Zara earlier in the year, fast fashion website Boohoo is the latest internet retailer to impose a financial penalty on customers who return items bought online. Boohoo shoppers will now have to pay £1.99 when they send unwanted goods back, with the cost deducted from the amount they are due to be refunded.
The move by these leading retailers to start charging for online returns is probably long overdue. According to a 2020 study by the consultancy KPMG, up to half of the clothing bought online is sent back at a cost to the sector of £7billion a year. To put this in to perspective, less than 10 per cent of goods bought from bricks-and-mortar stores are returned.
But until now few brands or retailers have been prepared to put a price on returning unwanted items bought from their websites. It’s easy to understand why: countless surveys have highlighted that It is common for shoppers to review an online retailer’s returns policy before making a purchase and, if choosing between different sellers, consumers will usually pick the retailer that appears to offer the quickest and most straightforward returns policy. In fact, according to FedEx, 34 per cent of consumers cite the lack of free returns shipping as a top reason for abandoning their shopping cart.
However, while a free returns policy may encourage shoppers to press the ‘Buy Now’ button, the process of transporting goods back from the consumer to the business is costly and, with the pandemic seeing the introduction of a new set of safety protocols, the price of processing returns has, in many cases, increased - making it even harder for sellers to protect their online profits.
So, all online retailers need to weigh up the competitive advantages that offering consumers a cost-free shopping experience bring against the need to safeguard sales, before they opt to add a returns fee.
Of course, finding the right reverse logistics provider to manage customer returns, can mean that an online seller is able to minimise the cost of the returns process and, therefore, remain in a position to still entice buyers with the promise of free returns.
A specialist fulfillment logistics company should be capable of devising and operating a cost-effective, yet highly efficient returns management model that delivers a win-win scenario for both the digital seller and the consumer.
At Walker we work closely with our clients to understand their reverse-logistics requirements before putting in place the processes that will deliver the optimum solution. Each customer will have different needs depending on the volume of orders that come back to the business and the type of products they sell. For example, a single unopened lipstick that is returned will require far less re-work than an item of clothing that has been removed from its packaging and tried on before being sent back. Likewise electrical items will need to undergo some form of product testing regime to ensure that that they are in suitable condition to be re-sold.
With returns only likely to increase in volume and value more companies will find it difficult to avoid adding charges. But with the support of an efficient and professional logistics partner, costs can be managed and the offer of ‘free returns’ retained.
The move by some high street retailers to start charging for online returns is probably long overdue but does it risk losing sales, asks Charlie Walker , head of marketing at Walker Logistics
More than half (56 per cent) of senior supply chain professionals say that employee retention has decreased over the past three years – and 57 per cent admit this is a problem, according to a report by high-impact digital training provider, Skill Dynamics.
Breaking the skills loss cycle in supply chain and procurement, analyses data from over 200 supply chain professionals across the UK and US, to uncover what’s driving employee churn, the implications for supply chain organisations, and how they can stop the trend.
At a time when supply chain teams are under extreme pressure, keeping skilled people is more important than ever. Yet over a quarter (27 per cent) of junior supply chain professionals plan to leave their role over the next two years – and senior professionals are clearly worried about the
impact. Almost all 99 per cent expressed concern over one or more consequences of high employee turnover, with the highest proportions worried about the loss of critical skills (48 per cent), followed by the increased risk of errors (43 per cent).
When asked about the causes of churn, increased workload came out on top, cited by 62% of professionals, but other factors are also at play. Almost half (47 per cent) named limited progression opportunities as a driver of churn, while over a third (34 per cent) cited a lack of respect for the function. In addition, almost one in five (19 per cent) of junior supply chain professionals do not feel valued within their organisation.
“It’s not altogether surprising to see a lack of respect for the function cited as a driver of churn,” comments Adrian
According to a report by digital training provider, Skill Dynamics , over a quarter of junior supply chain professionals plan to leave their role over the next two years
Preston, Head of Supply Chain Content at Skill Dynamics. “Historically, supply chain has been viewed as an operational function, but as global supply chains grow, strategy and planning are becoming increasingly important skill sets. Our data clearly shows this, with senior and junior supply chain professionals agreeing that supply planning, analytics and strategy are the most important skills for their jobs.”
However, the data places a question mark over professionals’ readiness or comfort in their roles – especially at the junior end of the spectrum. Almost three quarters (73 per cent) of junior supply chain professionals agreed that there is a high need for structured, on the job training in their function, due to a lack of formal qualification options. Almost all (98 per cent) of respondents said that they’d like more training to help them meet job requirements.
“Our data paints a picture of supply chain organisations under stress,” comments Preston. “Professionals are having to grapple with strategic problems early in their careers, and often they don’t have the experience or training to confidently deal with challenges. Added to this, they don’t feel like their contribution to their organisation is being fully recognised, so they leave. Workload then increases for those
left, who then jump ship, and organisations find themselves in a perpetual skills loss cycle.
“However, our research does point towards one clear way of breaking this: training. Comprehensive training will help professionals deal with the rigours of their roles, while demonstrating that the organisation really does care about them and their career progression.”
The data suggests that organisations may already be reaching this conclusion. Well over half (56 per cent) of senior professionals anticipate their training budget increasing in FY23/24. On average professionals anticipate an increase of 31.18 per cent.
“This prioritisation of training is encouraging to see”, comments Sam Pemberton, Skill Dynamics’ CEO. However, organisations must make sure that they’re channelling budget into the right areas. When asked about the type of training they’d like to receive, 53 per cent of professionals said access to personalised eLearning programs. People don’t have time to do unnecessary training. That’s why it’s imperative that organisations offer tailored programs that professionals can tap into when they want.”
The report analyses research findings from 200 supply chain and 200 procurement professionals from across the UK and US in organisations of over 5,000 employees. Supply chain and procurement samples were split into junior and senior professionals (100 respondents in each category), with senior professionals being of middle, senior manager and director level and junior professionals being of junior manager level.
Energy costs are spiralling. In the current climate, businesses that rely on MHE need to
bill and make substantial savings.
Due to legislation, non-agricultural businesses can no longer use red diesel to power
machines.
only one outcome:
MHE energy bills. At the same time, we’re facing unprecedented global increases in
of white
and in turn LPG gas. Plus, there are major supply issues. You might be contemplating switching from an IC engine fleet to electric. There are two big benefits. Firstly, you can capitalise on the supply of opeak low-cost electricity. And you can employ the latest battery technology. The savings you will make are considerable. In fact, you could reduce your bills by up to 50%*.
XPO Logistics has introduced an innovative road-rail freight solution to reduce emissions for Wavin, a leading manufacturer of plastic pipes
XPO Logistics has introduced an innovative road-rail freight solution to reduce emissions for Wavin, one of the world’s top manufacturers of plastic pipe systems for residential and non-residential use. XPO has partnered with Wavin since 2018, managing the transport of products from plants in Wiltshire and South Yorkshire to destinations throughout the UK.
XPO successfully trialled the road-rail combination in June and implemented the full solution in September through a rail service agreement with Malcolm Logistics. XPO transports Wavin products by road from a production site in Chippenham, Wiltshire, to Daventry International Rail Freight Terminal (DIRFT), near Crick, where they are transported by rail to Grangemouth Rail Terminal in Scotland. From there, the XPO fleet and drivers are deployed to complete the final deliveries.
It is envisaged that the service will be used five days per week, with up to six multimodal rail containers transported daily. The road-rail combination will significantly lower annual C02 emissions by an estimated
58 per cent and reduce NOx by18.8 tonnes yearly, with the full benefits realised once all the rail freight containers are in place. The solution is managed by XPO’s technology platform, which integrates all of the company’s transport services for Wavin, including dedicated truckload, lessthan-truckload and a bespoke parcel delivery service.
Andrew Crosby, global director – indirect procurement, Wavin, said, “XPO’s road-rail solution is another example of our partner’s proactive approach to innovation. Our collaboration with XPO is delivering measurable improvements in on-time performance and cost reduction, and now we are further reducing the emissions of our operations on pace with our sustainability goals.”
Dan Myers, managing director – UK and Ireland, XPO Logistics, said, “Both Wavin and XPO understand the importance of taking responsibility to drive innovation and step changes in environmental performance. With our latest initiative, we are achieving these two critical goals together. As partners, we will continue to deliver for Wavin’s customers and the environment.”
It is estimated that by the mid-2030s, up to 30% of all jobs could be automatable. As a result of these transitions, the make-up of workforces and career routes into this industry will also evolve in the coming years.
Dr Paul Rivers, CEO, Guidance Automation, explains why businesses must prepare their workforces for the future automated world
Automation has been advancing at a steady pace for several years, with innovative new concepts and use cases regularly being developed and rolled out. The last 12 months has seen a seismic attitudinal shift in many ways, and it is now clear that automation is essential for businesses to thrive, particularly in socially-distanced settings.
A 2020 global survey of business leaders from a range of industries by McKinsey & Co. found that 66% were piloting solutions to automate at least one business process, up from 57% two years earlier. With a clear shift towards more digitally enabled roles and a growing need for more automation and/ or robotics across all industries, this requires more skilled people within these environments. However, the key to success is to train workforces, and if this can be done from apprentice-grades, students will be able to rapidly enter the advancing world of automation.
There is no better time than now to get involved and begin a career in an in-demand industry, but there remains a lack of education and awareness about where students can start this process. This needs to change and become more accessible in order to prepare workforces – and businesses – for a digital future.
Robotic automation is changing the job market, and it is estimated that companies will need to add another 700,000 skilled employees, yielding a total of 3.4 million workers. However, due to a variety of factors, the manufacturing industry, in particular, is projected to fall two million workers short of its needs. This growing shortfall is because of an education system that produces too few graduates grounded in STEM disciplines, the manufacturing industry’s reputation that it fails to offer progressive workplaces and an
assumption of unfavourable wages.
There remain numerous unmet promises from the government around up-skilling in technology, including confusion around funding and a lack of support available for students. Despite all the shouting that the government is doing about the UK paving the way in the technology industry, such as the Building a Britain Fit for the Future initiative, it seems as if there is a lack of communication between government, business and education establishments.
With UK leaders appearing to prioritise areas such as robotics and automation, the expectations would be that this would ultimately filter through to schools, colleges and universities, but this is not the case. Despite promises for 2,500 places on AI and data conversion courses and 200 places on new AI Masters programmes to be funded by industry, students remain uninformed on how and where to start. Young apprentices or students who are looking to potentially move into this field are unaware of what modules they specifically need for their future, and those they might not, as well as the skills and equipment required.
Additionally, educational institutions are suffering as they can’t access the skilled staff they require to lead the necessary courses – or pay them what they are worth – which has a knock-on effect regarding the quality of teaching and learning. Overall, there remains a lack of information about the available education pathways, as well as how students should start their STEM journey, in the public eye. Complete pathways, including apprenticeships, educational routes and end-outcomes must be available in order to secure the future growth, prosperity and improve
productivity across the UK-tech industry.
As the number of UK redundancies reach a new record, and the unemployment rate increasing by 4.9% as a result of the pandemic, the UK’s prime minister revealed a ‘Lifetime Skills Guarantee’ campaign, where adults without an A level or equivalent qualification will be offered a free, fully-funded FE course to provide them with lifelong technical skills. With the growing number of digitised jobs, it’s critical that such skills programmes must emphasise the need to gain digital and data skills that are essential to the modern workplace.
Additionally, Kickstarter Programmes were also launched last year, which target young people who are at risk of unemployment, and aims to help them get back into the job market by providing government funding for employers to create six-month job placements. However, to take part, organisations that are interested need to take on 30 people at a time – a quota which for many small and medium-sized businesses (SMB) is just not realistic. With a lot of small businesses leading the way in innovation and being an ideal learning environment for new talent, they must not be forgotten about, there needs to be support available for SMBs, as well as larger corporate organisations.
It is encouraging that these incentives are in place, but is it too little too late? This streamline of resources and training needs to continue and grow in order to ensure the right people are trained and have access to the right opportunities so that it remains an attractive pathway.
As an alternative route, some employers understand the importance of growing a digitally enabled workforce, and rather than relying on the government’s educational routes,
they are taking the initiative and moving their training in-house. These training approaches provide workers with alternative pathways to the traditional high-school-to-collegeto-job route, which in turn, helps businesses to guarantee that they are producing what they need by the end of the time period. This process effectively cuts out both the government and the educational facilities to support this career pathway, especially when UK-leaders are failing to meet their promises.
With businesses stepping up and taking matters into their own hands, it provides more available routes into the industry, which can only be seen as a positive. Perhaps if more businesses were to follow this example, it could go a long way in strengthening the UK’s position as a leader in innovative technology.
With the UK lagging behind globally in terms of skills, productivity and innovation, tackling this issue must be a priority for both industry and government. The latest government initiatives and roadmap to attract global talent and better the UK’s reputation in science and technology is a great start, but the only way to continue this progress is more investment and emphasis on automation, robotics and technology as a career path.
The government all but destroyed the engineering industry, particularly manufacturing, many years ago. Since then, the sector has been trying to reinvent itself and grow, with the help of innovative technology and automation advances, despite an evident skills gap. While the automation and robotic industry remains an attractive and lucrative career path, more needs to be done to direct students in the right way to pursue a job role within STEM and to support businesses that are striving to find the skills they need.
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Some employers understand the importance of growing a digitally enabled workforce...
Logistics
‘Pay-as-you-go’ Robots as a Service (RaaS) finance solutions are increasingly seen as a highly cost-efficient means of introducing state-of-the-art robotic automation to parcel handling, e-commerce and traditional third party logistics operations.
RaaS allows companies to lease - rather than purchase - robotic automation to support key operational tasks. In many ways it is a similar concept to the established Software as a Service (SaaS) model that has proved so popular with companies operating in the logistics and supply chain space as a way of rolling out such essential IT tools as transport and warehouse management systems.
The RaaS approach is proving so attractive that, according to New York-based technology analysts, ABI Research, there will be 1.3 million RaaS installations across all industry sectors worldwide by 2026. Even markets that have been slow to embrace robotics are now accessing the benefits of the technology thanks to RaaS.
Because with RaaS schemes users lease their robotic devices, the implementation of robotics becomes an
operational expense rather than a capital investment: upfront costs are minimised and maintenance charges can be incorporated in to the agreed fee – so users do not get a ‘nasty surprise’ in the from of an unexpected invoice if, for example, a service engineer has to be called out.
Some AMR suppliers’ RaaS fees are linked to levels of usage, which allows users to scale up or down according to the demands of the economic climate. For example, during a downturn a parcel handling company may initially only require 100 sortation robots but faced with a spike in throughput, they may need an extra 50 units. RaaS allows the additional AMRs to be brought in as required with the minimum fuss at a pre-agreed rate.
The combination of reduced capital investment and greater agility makes RaaS the ideal way for third party logistics companies who compete in a sector where contracts are won, lost, extended or reduced on a regular basis, to access the most advanced technology and enjoy the benefits robotics with flexibility and minimal CapEx exposure.
companies of every size can enjoy the benefits of autonomous mobile robot technology thanks to ‘ Robots as a Service’ finance schemes
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Ultimately, it’s customer service levels. Customers have ever-higher expectations regarding service levels and this is driving huge change in the warehouse. Along with the rapid growth of ecommerce, there is a strong desire to develop faster fulfilment strategies and importantly, equally efficient returns processes.
A key SLA for any ecommerce business keen on growing and retaining a healthy customer base is the speed with which customers are credited back on returned items – and that requires fast processing of returns. Likewise, multichannel businesses will need to progress to develop slick omni-channel operations capable of offering the diversity of service options that customers now demand. And a key enabler will be automation.
A lack of available labour is another factor influencing thinking within the four walls of the warehouse. But it’s not just a shortage of labour per se, the key thing is there’s far more volume going through piece picking warehouses in the last few years, so the number of people required is not able to keep pace with the increased demand. It’s stretching the labour pool that is there, and this, combined with a growing requirement for increased capacity, is a big driver for automation.
2.
With the cost of labour rising and availability falling,
businesses will have little option but to adopt higher levels of automation, and in many instances that means robotics. Their low-cost, excellent flexibility and great scalability makes them the ‘must have’ warehouse technology of today.
However, with robots gaining critical momentum within the warehouse, protocols supporting them will need to become more standardised, so that various types of robots can be deployed to perform different tasks under one controller. Customers will demand flexibility to use the best robots suited to individual tasks and the industry will need to move in this direction. This will significantly simplify the deployment of robots.
Augmented Reality (AR) is also likely to start appearing in warehouses in the near future. Trials are in progress at the moment for AR glasses that can be used to guide an individual to picking locations. In a way, it’s like a SatNav for the warehouse, but offering a head-up display with information, so no need for a hand-held terminal. The issue at present is cost, but hopefully, prices will come down as the technology takes off.
Cobots too will soon become more commonplace, working alongside pickers and warehouse staff. And once the technology around grippers is improved, they will be seen travelling around doing the picking too. The vision systems and AI are there, it really just needs a breakthrough in gripper design to offer the dexterity
needed for a broad product portfolio.
3. What technologies and applications are currently seeing most interest?
At the moment there is huge interest in flexible tote handling systems using Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs). When combined with pick-to-light technology, phenomenal pick-rates can be achieved with exceptionally high levels of accuracy.
Importantly, SMEs have a great opportunity to steal a march on larger retailers that may have committed to inflexible, fixed automated systems. By adopting intelligent software and advanced mobile robot technology, SMEs can leverage the flexibility, speed and performance of goods-to-person automation as a low-CapEx project.
AMRs offer tremendous flexibility and, importantly, scalability in traditional labour-intensive tasks such as order picking and put-away. AMR systems combined with pick-tolight technology can boost order picking performance from under 100 units per hour using traditional methods, to up to 600 picks per hour, with an ROI that can be as little as 12 months.
4. A new approach to automation from 3PLS. Interestingly, 3pls are beginning to explore a new approach to winning business. They are looking at putting automation in first and then approaching customers with a solution in
place. The driving factor is, end customers want to see sites that offer automation as a ready-to-go solution.
This emerging trend requires service providers to speculatively invest in automation on the assumption that appropriate customers can be found. Their task will be to target industries that have a profile that matches the automation on site.
Robotic systems are becoming easier to deploy and can be simply expanded as required. A low-level, high SKU or high volume storage system may be adopted with a few robots and added to as more customers come on-stream – perfect for a multi-user facility.
Importantly, the modus operandi of logistics service providers will need to change from acquiring a customer and running a manual operation for a few months, before taking in robots, to adopting automation in advance and then finding appropriate customers. At present, a number of 3pls are investigating this approach.
With all the productivity gains that can be achieved through the judicious application of robotics and AI, the future of warehouse automation looks bright.
Further independent advice on the latest technologies transforming operational performance in the warehouse can be found at: www.Invargroup.com
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SMEs have a great opportunity to steal a march on larger retailers that may have committed to inflexible, fixed automated systems
Nick Hughes, Sales Manager, Invar Group
The beverage industry is undergoing a prolonged period of significant change that is making warehouse automation a highly attractive option for companies of all sizes across the sector, says Paul Freeman , Head of Logistics Solutions, Toyota Material Handling.
delivered the same day, but this type of order fulfillment operation requires totally different storage and picking strategies to those deployed for fulfilling replenishment stock orders for supermarkets and other retail outlets.
The space constraints generated by the need to hold more SKUs and the shorter pick times and quicker throughput rates needed to meet the delivery expectations of internet shoppers added to the fact that the labour crisis is leaving companies with little alternative but to hire inexperienced warehouse personnel, have heightened the risk of the kind of accidents and damage to equipment, building infrastructure and stock – not to mention the injuries to workers.
So, both soft and alcoholic drink manufacturers and distributors are under growing pressure to optimise storage solutions to make the most of the people and space they have available. Increasingly, this means deploying some form of automation.
Automating those aspects of the warehousing operation that follow a predictable pattern makes a lot of sense and relatively recent developments in automation technology have seen the emergence of flexible and scalable products that deliver a notably faster return-on-investment compared to the type of often costly fixed assets that, at one time, were considered central to any automated warehouse project.
These days adopting automation no longer requires every aspect of the warehouse or distribution centre to be automated – just the parts of it that will benefit most and, as a result, this sophisticated technology is within financial reach of SMEs as well as the biggest players.
So, introducing warehouse automation has become a multi-phased project and by applying a systematic approach to identify the most common intralogistics functions and aspects of the material flow process, systems can be designed that fit the user’s needs and drive productivity, efficiency and lower overall supply chain costs.
Despite the noteworthy efforts over many years of such
respected organisations as the Fork Lift Truck Association (FLTA), the British Industrial Truck Association (BITA) and the United Kingdom Warehousing Association (UKWA) to shine a spotlight on the often devastating consequences of lift truck accidents, the number of workplace accidents involving forklifts remains obstinately high.
Indeed, according to the Health and Safety Executive, a worker in the transport and distribution sector suffers a serious injury as a result of an incident involving a lift truck every single day of the year.
Forklifts colliding when entering or leaving an aisle, trucks overturning and machines colliding with pedestrians within a warehouse or other industrial site, are among the most common type of accidents recorded.
In the overwhelming majority of cases, responsibility for the mishap is initially deemed to lie with the truck operator. And, in a beverage warehouse where palletised loads of glass bottles are often handled, the risk to forklift operators and pedestrian personnel of serious injury from, for example, a dropped pallet of wine cases, is significant.
Obviously any possibility of driver-error is removed by the introduction of automation, such as driverless forklift technology.
Automated driverless forklift trucks follow the route around the warehouse that they have been programmed to follow, so the likelihood of an automated truck damaging either the warehouse building, the storage system within it or the load being carried is virtually zero. This builtin safety functionality also means that the risk of the equipment causing injury to warehouse personnel working in the same area as an automated forklift is minimal.
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showed that in 2019, 79,000 EU nationals left the UK logistics industry – around 7,000 of whom were lift truck drivers.
The exodus is thought to have gathered pace over the past 18 months and, with the Covid crisis adding high rates of staff absenteeism to the mix, the number of qualified lift truck operators in the UK is estimated to be down by some 25 per cent on the figure needed to run the nation’s forklift fleet.
The widening gap between supply and demand, means that warehouse workers’ wages are rising. In November 2020 the average warehouse worker’s salary advertised on online job-search engine Adzuna was £19,995 per annum. By November 2021 the remuneration for order pickers was up 8 per cent year-on-year. Over the same period, vacancies for warehouse jobs were up 143%.
Given that human labour is already one of the most significant costs associated with running a warehouse the handsome financial packages that are now required to tempt warehouse staff are prompting more and more logistics companies to seek new ways of providing the same service levels with less staff.
For many, this means switching to automation. AGV’s – such as Toyota’s Autopilot series – offer several benefits in addition to delivering lower labour costs, including reductions in product and building infrastructure damage and increased productivity. These notable advantages bring a rapid return on investment. Toyota’s automated forklifts (AGV’s), for example, deliver a typical ROI period of between 12 and 36 months.
With manual handling technology that relies, to a large extent, on the ability of people to perform their tasks safely, efficiently and without mishap, problems with inventory tracking, picking, receiving and put-away can interrupt the flow of goods through a warehouse with alarming – and
costly - regularity. But with automated handling systems goods reach their destination within the store on time every time.
Of course, manual – and often repetitive - tasks use up staff resources and effort and ensuring they are completed properly can waste a lot of valuable management time. As a result, focus can be lost and key tasks may fail to receive the attention that they should. This is when mistakes happen. And, when mistakes creep in at any stage of the intralogistics process there is a real likelihood that the entire process will suffer, to the obvious detriment of the business.
Automating repetitive manual warehouse functions gives management the comfort of knowing that the flow of materials through the store will continue uninterrupted, leaving them free to focus on other matters that require their expertise.
In addition to reliable production flows, automation also reduces the kind of damage to goods that is unavoidable with any process involving human labour; delivers greater order picking accuracy; makes more efficient use of the available storage space; and, cuts the (rising) cost of employing increasingly hard to find workers.
Toyota Material Handling has successfully delivered more than 270 automated projects featuring over 1,000 automated guided vehicles across Europe. We work with our customers to determine the specific challenges they face and tackle them one step at a time. Breaking the process down into small modules gives clients essential scalability and means that, if they wish to, customers can partially automate their processes while retaining the option to introduce more automated technology as future demands change.
For more information about automating your drinks operation, visit: www.toyota-forklifts.co.uk/automation/ beverage
“The future depends on what you do today.” So said Mahatma Gandhi. We could equally say that the future is shaped by today’s challenges. In the supply chain sector, labour scarcity, e-commerce developments, the need for resilience and the ever-present drive for competitive advantage are creating a perfect storm that’s blowing in the direction of automation.
In the 2022 MHI Annual Report – a global materials handling survey produced by the international trade association in partnership with consulting firm, Deloitte – talent shortages came a close second as the biggest problem facing warehouse operators, beaten only by supply chain disruption and shortages. The report found that 28% of those surveyed had adopted robotics and automation already but predicted that this figure would grow to 79% over the next five years. And 66% of survey respondents (who represented a crosssection of both large and small manufacturing, distribution and supply chain operations) stated
they would spend more than $1 million on supply chain technology over the next two years.
Here in the UK, wage pressure from labour migration after Brexit and the pandemic has been fuelled by inflation resulting from world events, with rising pay levels helping to shift the economics of the decision to automate for many firms. And many in the industry globally believe that the challenge of recruiting and retaining talent is here to stay. For example, the 2023 Annual Third-Party Logistics Study reported that 29% of 3PLs see labour scarcity as a long-term
When it comes to e-commerce, online sales as a proportion of all retail have fallen back a little since peaking during the pandemic. However, the figure remains around 25%, which is still higher than before Covid-19 and the long-term upward trend remains, even if at a lower growth rate than previously predicted. With e-com logistics being more labour-intensive due to singles picking and high return rates, staff shortages in the sector are driving retailers to automate at pace.
The need for supply chain resilience in the wake of Brexit, the pandemic and the war in Ukraine is keenly felt by many companies who want to ensure they are better prepared for
one of the trends we can expect to see over the next three years saysDave Berridge , Secretary of the Automated Material Handling Systems Association (AMHSA) Dave Berridge, Secretary of AMHSA
any potential disruption in the future. With its lower reliance on labour, its capacity to handle peak volumes and its focus on avoiding single points of failure, automation – powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced analytics (AA) – is an increasingly attractive option. It is expected that onshoring or near-shoring will increase over the next few years and technology will play a key role in enhancing visibility, managing risk and building resilience.
An important trend over the next three years will be the rise of edge ecosystems. An edge is a physical location where assets, operators and data connect. In edge ecosystems, digitalization and automation enable decision making close to the source of information. The processing and communication of data at the point of capture streamlines operations and allows real-time decision making. Gartner, the tech research and consulting firm, predicts that a quarter of supply chain decisions will be made via intelligent edge ecosystems by 2025. The shift is being driven by advances in data communications such as cloud-based systems, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and 5G. The rollout of 5G – with its faster speeds, lower latency and greater bandwidth – is likely to have a significant impact on supply
18% over the period. Whereas fixed automation solutions (such as conveyors, sorters and ASRS) are expected to have modest double-digit growth up to 2025, mobile robots are tipped to be the driving force behind the burgeoning market for warehouse automation. In fact, mobile automation – which is faster and less expensive to implement – is forecast to grow five times faster than fixed automation. The Interact Analysis team predicts that mobile robots’ share of warehouse automation revenue will rise from 7% in 2020 to more than 30% by 2030. However, it is not so much
that mobile will displace fixed automation, but rather that mobile technology leverages new opportunities through flexible finance mechanisms such as Robotics-as-a-Service, making automation accessible to more firms, including SMEs that might not otherwise have invested in automation. Warehouses in 2025 are therefore likely to feature a blend of fixed and mobile automation technologies. Robots will increasingly be used in fulfilment operations, with piece picking robot revenues forecast to grow from $50 million in 2020 to $1.3 billion by 2025 – a CAGR of 90%. Backing up these forecasts, Gartner predicts that 75% of large enterprises will have adopted some form of smart robotics in their warehouse operations by 2026.
Although the growth trajectory is clear, exactly what shape this intralogistics automation will take is less so. The muchhyped adoption of micro fulfilment centres (MFCs) seems to have slowed considerably in recent months. However, the Interact Analysis team still thinks that MFCs have huge longterm potential, with its research earlier this year predicting that more than 7000 MFCs will be installed worldwide by the end of 2030. The firm predicted that the micro fulfilment market would grow at a CAGR of around 60% in the period 2020 to 2026, with the grocery sector expected to account for 70-80% of the market. The adoption of these in-store, automated fulfilment systems will enable expansion of the popular click & collect model, helping to tackle the last-mile issue.
Of course, it’s difficult to predict the future with any certainty and it’s entirely possible that it holds further ‘black swan’ events like the Covid-19 pandemic. What is clear is that the logistics industry will continue to innovate at pace. The focus of considerable R&D currently is last-mile delivery, where new solutions are likely to emerge and existing ones – such as drones – are likely to become economic and feasible through further innovation. A recent example of blue-sky thinking that shows the potential of intralogistics innovation is the actively cooled thermoelectric tote developed by the US firm, Phononic. By chilling or freezing the tote rather than the whole warehouse or delivery vehicle, this technology slashes energy costs and helps meet sustainability targets. This is the kind of disruptive innovation that can redefine the future. AMHSA members have the creativity, agility and drive required to develop such solutions and get them to market, so watch this space.
www.amhsa.co.uk
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Mobile automation – which is faster and less expensive to implement – is forecast to grow five times faster than fixed automation
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We have entered a new era of intralogistics, one were flexibility is paramount, giving companies the agility they need to deal with whatever the near-future has to throw at us. Given the experience of the last few years, this can be a lot.
When storm winds blow hard, the trees able to bend with it are the ones that survive. Similarly logistics operations that can flex in times of turbulence or rapid trend switches will be better placed to ensure continuity of service, whatever happens. They must also put themselves in a position where they have a competitive edge when upswings occur rather than struggling to meet demand.
Striving for efficiency and productivity in storage and order picking in the past has seen many go down the road of solutions incorporating Automated Storage and Retrieval Systems (ASRS) and conveyors. Such solutions provide dense storage and rapid order picking, giving sufficient productivity to go someway to recouping the considerable investment they demand. However, when business
circumstances change, it soon becomes apparent how rooted to the floor this type of materials handling equipment can be.
There is a broad scale when it comes to adapting a warehouse to meet change – from rearranging SKU locations according to seasonal demand, right up to complete refits. It is certainly true in the later case that modifying a facility amid the mass of steel involved in an ASRS and obstructive runs of conveyors can be tricky at best.
Today, thanks to Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs), warehouses can benefit from the advantages of automation without the need to bolt materials handling equipment to the floor. AMRs adapt easily to any constraints presented by current installations. If the building is new and/or empty,
then a fresh AMR system installation makes life even easier. Providing an automated materials handling solution without the need for dedicated infrastructure allows a building to become operational more quickly than would be the case with a ‘traditional’ automated installation.
Equipped for autonomous navigation, AMRs offer a level of safety far superior to human handling. Their security cameras and LIDARs (Light Detection and Ranging) allow them to travel on complex routes that are much narrower than AGVs and have a perfect perception of the environment. The robot analyses the situation in real time in order to avoid obstacles
or even overtake slower vehicles. This is achieved through wide-angle stereoscopic camera and long distance LIDAR.
AMRs equipped with two 3D-cameras both front and rear, gain from a three-dimensional perception with a wide viewing angle and volumetric detection of objects even at long distances. Perceiving the environment, safety LIDARs complementing each other will play an essential role in the 360° object detection of the vehicle.
Navigation modes take into account the proximity of the user, for example during order preparation. The faster the robot moves in one direction, the more the viewing area stretches. Likewise, the area changes shape depending on the type of object transported. If an obstacle enters the robot area then its emergency stop is instantly triggered. With this technology in place, secure cohabitation between AMR and operators, whatever is being transported, is assured, giving warehouses the flexibility for AMRs to work safely and productively in collaboration with people.
Flexibility is also facilitated by AMRs in terms of the approach a company adopts for automating a warehouse. Mobile robots offer a scaleable solution, allowing operations to start with one unit and build up a fleet as required, or units can be switched with different capacity models. When business levels reduce, units can be removed, thus eliminating redundant operation and allowing the warehouse to operate only the powered equipment it actually needs.
Being able to perform a broad variety of tasks is a further feather in the cap for AMRs. Providing internal transport to support order picking is often a key role, allowing staff to remain in the pick zones where they are most productive rather than simply pushing a roll cage or pallet truck from the picking aisles to the packing or marshalling areas. They can also be used to transport returned items – anything that reduces the time and effort required to process returns will
contribute to regaining maximum value from the return. Mobile robots can handle a variety of load units from cases and pallets to trolleys and roll cages.
iFollow AMRs stand apart by being able to carry two roll cages at once to a total load of 1,500 kg. Potentially, on a single pick walk an operator attended by two AMRs could be assembling orders for four different stores or customers. In practice, improvements in overall operational productivity of between 28% and 42.5% are routinely reported. This ability is particularly useful for grocery logistics. An ability to comfortably perform in temperatures from -25° C to +40°C without degradation of battery life suits coldstores seeking ways to minimise energy use. This will give logistics operations, including those in the grocery sector, much appreciated flexibility in being able to work across ambient and cold areas.
All of the flexibility delivered by AMRs is within reach of SMEs as falling costs for the technology combines with a growing list of good reasons to make that investment, such as: changing workforce demographics, constraints on supply and movement of goods, supply chain disruption, meeting the demands of online retail and the ever continuing drive to improve productivity. Don’t get left behind, it’s time to join the new era of flexible intralogistics now.
www.ifollow.fr.
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There is a broad scale when it comes to adapting a warehouse to meet change –from rearranging SKU locations according to seasonal demand, right up to complete refits.
Robust, agile and resilient IT platforms are key to driving business growth, especially in volatile market conditions. How are your business process systems standing up to the task, asks Harry Watts , Managing Director of SEC Storage
Global economic environments are more volatile than ever and recent unprecedented factors impact on over extended supply chains. Knowing where your product is, when it will become available and, more importantly when your customer will receive it has never been more important. Businesses need to invest in systems agile and robust enough to analyse data to provide the knowledge and insight at the pace required.
We enter a season of peak demand in the run up to Christmas, with warehouse and distribution centre operators keenly aware of the impact the last two years of supply chain disruption have had, on UK logistics and warehousing. Brexit, uncertainty and border delays followed by Covid lockdowns and labour shortages led to serious supply chain issues that impacted supplies of almost every product category, including critical goods and services in healthcare, food and water and gas infrastructure, compounded by the effects of the war in Ukraine.
As a result this disruption and the performance of the UK economy in particular, demand for a return to on-shore or near-shore warehousing and distribution is increasing exponentially in order to service UK supply chain demand. A survey by the Institute of Supply Management in July 2021 showed that 20% of respondents were planning to,
or already had started to, near-shore or on-shore their warehousing facilities.
All of this demand is against a backdrop of limited available warehouse stock and rising costs. Savills July 2022 Big Shed Briefing reflects this with H1 2022 take-up reaching a record 28.6m sq.ft. and exceeding the H1 average by 90%! There is also a focus on built to suit and speculative space with second hand demand at its lowest ever proportion of activity, just 21%. Savills’ report identifies that whilst e-commerce demand has fallen back, manufacturing and automotive sectors have more than taken up the slack.
So how does this affect the need for robust, agile and resilient IT platforms? With increased volume same day/ next day deliveries and more localised stock holding requirements combined with lengthening timescales for inbound supply chains, managing operational processes to drive the best possible efficiency and customer service is paramount.
Increased uptake of new technologies, such as AMRs and other forms of automation, designed to reduce the impact of labour shortages and drive efficiency, require new systems to integrate with traditional ERP, WMS and WES software. Often new processes also require different skills to manage and maintain them, leading to new roles within organisations. As job roles flex towards more technical skills requirements over managerial and elementary roles, according to the BPF Levelling Up – The Logic of Logistics Report, the ability to orchestrate these systems to deliver the desired result is becoming more and more important, a fact borne out by SEC Storage’s own experience and expertise in delivering automated storage solutions.
Our own methodology at SEC Storage is based on one critical aspect of a warehouse or logistics operation, which we can demonstrate has the power to make a substantial
difference in realising operational efficiency and growth, and that, is data. Raw operational SKU data which underpins a warehouse’s activities with the ability to directly impact on business’ success, or failure.
Understanding operational data such as Stock Keeping Unit (SKU) profiles in detail can provide significant insight. However, to really understand SKUs and their impact on operations and thereby, overall efficiency, we need to go beyond viewing the SKU as a single entity. It’s time to think volumetrically; size (HxWxD), weight, packaging method, delivery frequency, pick frequency etc. These vital pockets of information collectively form a far wider operational picture and, combined with a clear set of strategic objectives, can enhance efficiencies through assessment of and potential reconfiguration of storage systems.
Knowing that SKU data can significantly impact operational efficiency, we built an award winning system based on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to provide intelligent solutions. DIDO (as she is known), continually reviews SKU profile alongside warehouse operations and business growth goals, and the resulting storage system design is agile from day 1, designed to offer the necessary flexibility to handle business growth over time. Furthermore, DIDO remains fully optimised to provide continuous visibility of product knowledge in the supply chain, to remain resilient and agile, whether the design is manually operated, fully automated or a changing mix of both.
Having access to such a system is a huge selling point for an SME looking to attract new customers and is particularly useful for operators with mixed order profile, order-fulfilment companies, and 3PLs, providing:
• Improved customer service performance
• Visibility of product through complete supply chain
• Agility to increase/decrease inventory as required
• Fully optimised operations
Businesses continually invest in flexible IT solutions focused on managing workflows through often rigid storage systems, despite the widely recognised term APR meaning Adjustable Pallet Racking. Integrating SEC Storage’s AI driven data analysis and design based process allows operational data to flow from a business’s ERP and WMS systems into DIDO,
our enhanced WES system, and orchestrate warehouse layouts at either a macro level for complete storage system reconfiguration and/or new premises, or at a micro level for reconfiguration of stock locations within an existing structure.
Warehouse and distribution centre operators can now integrate AND orchestrate systems with a real, visible impact on operational efficiency, as frequently as required, to accommodate organic growth, new product lines or business acquisitions.
To illustrate the power of data analysis, at the start of the pandemic we designed and implemented a highly sophisticated, real-time stock forecasting solution at a major high street fashion retailer.
Believing they were at warehouse storage capacity across three locations in UK and Europe and with no additional pick locations available, the customer was looking at ways to solve their short term needs as they continued to take delivery of pre-ordered stock. Without an e-commerce channel in place, the stock remained at the warehouses, so it became imperative to manage the pick faces and growing level of stock.
We carried out an extensive SKU aperture analysis to evaluate their previous ‘one-size-fits-all’ on pick faces and concluded that over 30% of stock would be better stored in smaller pick faces, and some SKUs in even further reduced space.
Our Machine Learning system, ELSA (our dedicated software tool for SKU analysis within the overall DIDO system), took daily throughput & order data and created a virtual twin of the warehouse, providing a clear way to find the optimal solution for both the location of new stock, and tracking SKUs over time for accurate forecasting.
The impact of the solution was considerable and enabled the customer to efficiently manage stock across their warehouse facilities during the peak Christmas period. Even before we began the data analysis, they were 4000 pick faces short on capacity and the situation deteriorated with new stock arriving, yet we managed to keep them operational and make recommendations to ensure they managed their stock storage and deliveries during the peak period. Furthermore ELSA is able to analyse future data, keeping this fashion retailer ahead of the game by maximising warehouse efficiency against changing demand profiles.
Rite-Hite.
What exactly is an HVLS fan? The abbreviation stands for High Volume, Low Speed. Fans of this type are equipped with extra-large blades which rotate at a quiet, gentle rate. You might think that the rotation should be faster to be effective, but nothing could be further from the truth. In combination with the special shape and profile of the blades, a slow speed enables the largest displacement of air over the largest area, at the lowest cost.
Here are the five key benefits for your business:
1.
When it gets warmer, workers become less comfortable. The risk of errors, accidents and associated costs increases. With air velocities up to 3.5 miles per hour, wind chill from the HVLS fans can reduce the effective temperature by several degrees. Employees stay cool, comfortable, clear-headed –and productive.
Prolonged exposure of workers to an excessively hot environment can adversely affect their health and wellbeing. The results may include fatigue, exhaustion and heat stress. By lowering the effective air temperature, HVLS fans can help create healthy workplace conditions.
Using an air conditioning system in a large building can be quite expensive. Factors such as the dimensions, occupancy, loading bays and large doors and windows make constant regulation of the temperature very difficult. An HVLS fan can blow cooled air throughout the whole building and thereby maintain a more even temperature. In practice, this means that the air conditioning system needs to be used much less
intensively to achieve the same desired indoor climate.
4. YOUR HEATING SYSTEM NEEDS SUPPORT TOO
In winter, different temperature layers are formed in your warehouse. Unfortunately, the coolest air stays near the floor while the warmest air is just below the ceiling. To keep the ground level warm, you almost need to overheat the upper air levels – and that takes a lot of energy. An HVLS fan, however, directs warm air from the ceiling to the floor, while the cooler air is drawn upwards from below. This allows you to turn the heating system down by a few settings, and in that way reduce your energy consumption by up to 30%.
For a healthy working atmosphere, air must be able to circulate efficiently throughout the building – removing pollution and maintaining good air quality. HVLS fans provide the necessary airflows for this – ultimately improving air quality, increasing worker comfort and helping to reduce illness and absence costs.
These are just five of the advantages, but we could make the list longer. For instance, with HVLS fans the floors remain drier and therefore safer; there are fewer problems with rust; and growth of mould and mildew is less likely.
The financial aspect should not be forgotten either. After all, the many savings (such as cutting energy costs by up to 30%) ensure a quick payback– typically within a year! Rite-Hite will be happy to calculate the probable ROI for your company.
www.ritehite.com.
There are many good reasons for investing in HVLS fan technology, say
Here are five of the best
cabins for year-round operator comfort.
The Mitsubishi EDiA electric forklift has been selected to replace diesel at a busy bitumen manufacturing site in Gloucestershire.
BituChem was looking to reduce its emissions and improve sustainability, and turned to local Mitsubishi Forklift Trucks dealer HFT for support with future-proofing its MHE fleet.
Paul Paschali, Director at BituChem said: “We wanted to reduce our carbon footprint and swapping to electric trucks was an easy and effective way to do our bit. HFT knows our business and provided trucks that work well with the challenges on our site. We needed forklifts that could work indoors and outdoors, carrying bulky loads, while coping well on uneven ground.”
HFT delivered three 2.5-tonne EDiA EX electric forklifts. The trucks are used for loading/unloading, carrying pallets, barrels and drums of chemicals around a busy site 6 days a week.
“EDiA is a nimble truck but powerful with it,” says Rob Perry, Sales Manager at HFT. “It has great ingress protection against water and dust, with fewer moving parts, so these trucks excel at working in all weathers as the risk of damage is much lower.”
The trucks included several additional features to suit BituChem’s site and requirements, including glass-fronted
“We added a hydraulic accumulator to the EDiA EX trucks to increase suspension and reduce bounce to ensure there are no broken pallets,” says Rob Perry. “It also makes it more comfortable for the operators.”
The trucks were fitted with blue safety spotlights to alert pedestrians of a truck’s presence, which is essential when working indoors near busy intersections like the ends of aisles.
“The electric trucks are really quiet so the blue spotlights help any pedestrians working nearby to be aware of approaching vehicles,” said John Shirley, Site Manager at BituChem. “We have some other great features that we didn’t have with diesel, like the automatic fork adjustment. This allows the operators to pick up different sized pallets without having to get off the truck and manually adjust the forks, which saves them a huge amount of time.”
For enhanced operator safety, the EDiA EX trucks feature an immobiliser where the forklift will not start if the operator has not engaged the seatbelt.
BituChem’s new forklifts use lead acid batteries which can be charged after shifts to ensure high operational availability. “The batteries easily last three days from charging, which is great as we can maintain our productivity levels with the added benefit of no emissions and quieter machines,” says John Shirley.
The EDiA EX trucks are part of a number of initiatives BituChem has implemented in recent months. A new
BituChem has taken a step towards a lower carbon footprint with a new fleet of electric forklifts
energy-efficient generator has been installed to power the asphalt plant, and by upgrading the power supply BituChem can use less fuel and reduce its energy consumption.
“As well as the new generator and the EDiA EX trucks we also use an electric JCB excavator,” added Paul Paschali. “We will be reviewing multiple areas of the site to see where more efficiencies can be made.
“Importantly, the EDiA forklifts really stood up against their diesel counterparts. It gives you peace of mind that you don’t always need diesel equipment on site. The operators are really happy with the trucks. The HFT sales team has been great with making suggestions and helping us find the best solution for our applications and business.”
Parfetts, an employee-owned cash and carry wholesaler, has upgraded the material handling equipment across its seven depots with the introduction of new reach trucks, counterbalance trucks and powered pallet trucks from the Toyota range.
Covering the East and West Midlands, Yorkshire, Derbyshire, the North East and North West, Parfetts offer over 9,000 product lines.
While a significant proportion of the company’s clients still prefer to visit Parfetts’ depots in-person in the traditional ‘cash and carry’ business model way, increasingly customers choose to place their orders online. Parfetts operate an online order-day-one-for-day-two-delivery service and delivery is free of charge.
To help maintain the efficiency of its free delivery service and reduce the risk of delivery personnel suffering strain-related injuries during their daily routine, Parfetts has equipped each wagon in its transport fleet with BT Tyro LHE130 powered pallet trucks.
Prior to the arrival of the powered pallet trucks Parfetts’ delivery personnel had used manual or ‘pump’ trucks. However, the company has seen a clear increase in the number of palletised loads passing through its downstream supply chain while the use of roll cages is in decline.
Stefan Dremza, Parfetts’ store manager, comments: “Back strains and other musculoskeletal disorders brought on by manual handling tasks are among the main causes of staff absenteeism in the UK, so it makes sense to reduce or, ideally, eliminate manual handling wherever possible.
“Powered pallet trucks are considerably less tiring to work with than ‘pump’ trucks and we have been able to cut out a lot of the hard physical work that delivering to our retailer customers involves simply and highly cost-effectively by introducing the Tyro powered pallet trucks.”
The BT Tyro LHE130 from Toyota is an entry-level powered pallet truck that has been designed for use in light applications.
The LHE130 is manoeuvred effortlessly and can lift and transport loads weighing up to 1300 kg, while its compact design and ‘creep speed’ functionality make it ideal for applications where space is confined – as is often the case when delivering to retail stores.
To optimise safety when transporting loads, the new truck automatically reduces its speed when cornering and to ensure that only authorised personnel can operate it, the LHE130 requires PIN code access.
In addition, reach and counterbalance trucks have been supplied for operation within Parfetts’ depots. The reach trucks are Toyota RRE160B models. With a lift height of 8.5 metres, these highly productive trucks feature fingertip control levers for all fork movements and electronic steering for precise driving.
The counterbalance trucks specified are Toyota Traigo 3-wheel electric-powered models. The Traigo’s 1.5 tonne load capacity and tight turning radius make it the ideal truck for operation within Parfetts’ depots.
Parffets has been employee-owned since 2008. With 900 staff the business has a turnover of £650million.
process. Dominic Crimp , COO of TGW Northern Hub, is drawing back the curtain: a global, standardised stage gate process, open communication and lots of testing prove to
Within TGW, we have a defined stage gate process when we’re delivering a project. It’s a standardised process that we have globally, and it all starts with a smooth handover from the sales team. Our project managers are involved in the final two or three stages of the sales process to discuss the agreed costings, the scope and the timeline of the project.
The realisation process has six stages and throughout each stage, there’s a gate process to make sure the necessary quality requirements are met. This way, we can hold the project back if it doesn’t reach the necessary requirements. It is essential to do these checks before starting the next stage because it’s much easier to solve a problem in stage one than it would be to try and solve that problem in a later stage. As the project matures, we also mature our documentation and once we’ve reached stage gate six, we have all the required project information to ensure a seamless transfer to launching the project.
Throughout these stages communication with our customers is key. It is crucial that we know exactly what customers want the system to do and how the interfaces need to work before we go into a detailed design stage. We need to know how the equipment is going to interface with the floor, for example, to make sure the floor loadings are correct. That’s why we make a full review in 3D of the drawings against the building design to make sure we are not going to put a conveyor
through one of their building columns. Doing those checks upfront saves us an awful lot of time when we’re on site. The interfaces with the customer’s software are another point of attention. Since we sell integrated solutions, meaning we also provide a WMS or WCS, which need to interface with a customer’s host system, we need to make sure that we go through a diligent process of talking to our customers about how that information is going to flow. We create an individual functional design specification just for the software.
Customers are always invited to the daily stand-ups of our core team, where we talk about what we’re going to be doing when we’re on site. And we always welcome the customers’ health and safety representatives into our teams, it’s incredibly important that if we’re working on a site with our customer, we’re working within the rules and regulations that they’ve set for themselves. And then we generally have a steering meeting on a monthly or bimonthly basis, where representatives from the C-level would be a part of their steering meeting.
In the testing phase, we work hand in glove with the customer. Here, our Early Life Support team is showing its benefit. We would always recommend that the customer assigns their own test manager, because we want a customer who understands how the system works. They don’t just want us to show them “these are how the boxes go around”, they
need
When talking about automation processes, it is often about the signing of the contract or the successful collaboration afterwards. Little is said about the implementation
be the keys to success for TGW
to understand the system as well. We try and educate the customer through those test periods and before we move into “sea trials”, where we hand over operational responsibility to the customer. We remain available and support the customer throughout that period so that if they do have problems, somebody is on hand.
Imagine when the Navy commissions a new ship. Once it is built, they launch it into the water, but then the Navy spends weeks sailing to make sure the ship does what it should and that the operators on the ship understand how everything works. We take that same methodology into the warehouse environment, we create a dummy order set and get everybody who works in the warehouse doing their job to try and process these orders in the way that they would during a go-live event.
All our software, from the control level all the way up to WMS, is tested in a laboratory environment. We use emulation on both the PLC layers and the WCS layers to ensure that the software works as it should. And we’ve seen massive benefit from emulating the software: we can ramp up systems much more quickly by solving and understanding problems on the bench before we take them to site and we start running totes or cartons around conveyor systems. We’ve also seen significant savings in onsite costs and time on site by taking that route.
Some customers also take a Lifetime Services contract, where a TGW engineering team remain onsite for technical assistance, servicing and maintenance. These companies usually don’t have a large engineering team already in-house and so they decide to leave the automation to the experts. Some of our customers have a campus or multiple automated warehouses already, and may have an on premise engineering team already. In these cases, we don’t change the way that we do our handover. It’s just as complete as we would do to our own LTS team as to a customer team.
The biggest challenge at the moment is the limited supply of chips and electronic components coming out of Taiwan and China
and need to use the port of Beijing to get to Europe. We’re therefore working on a project-by-project basis to mitigate these delays. We have weekly meetings with project teams and our colleagues in our production facility to understand the impact of supply on our projects. And we have an escalation process in place in case of problems.
It was difficult at the start, but we’ve now got a good control of it. We’re certainly still the victims of the rising costs of the supply chain, but we better understand the impact, and we’re able to try and mitigate it on a project-by-project basis. We are for example using local companies instead of always purchasing through TGW to try and alleviate some of the problems that we’re having on our projects. Some of our customers – like the large apparel and sportswear companies that we work with have some significant influence as well with their own supply chain. We’ve been able to work in partnership with them to be able to get parts on time and keep the project on track.
The coming year might be very challenging with the supply issues continuing and with interest rates rising. But TGW has proven to be a trusted and established automation partner, so we would really encourage companies to use our experience and let us guide them through their automation transformation and support them with taking their operation live. We have all the necessary experience and processes to really deliver.
www.tgw-group.com
The Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC is being revised, and converted into a ‘regulation’. The legal implication is that these laws no longer need to be ‘transposed’ into national law by each member state – they will automatically apply across the EU. In itself that is a good thing, in the belief of the Lifting Equipment Engineers Association, because it should plug some rather large regulatory ‘gaps’ and variances.
The existing Directive doesn’t really cover the implications of Artificial Intelligence, human-robot interactions and ‘collaborative technology’. Nor does it address the fact that increasingly, interconnections between machinery, and software updates, can be incorporated sometimes years after the machine has been placed on the market by a simple download. The new regulations address these points and also allow safety, conformance and other information to be maintained and supplied in digital form – although a ‘paper’ option must always be available for those who
includes machinery already on the market, which may have to be reviewed and if necessary revised.
Currently, ‘high risk’ in our field only includes people lifts, and vehicle hoists where people are likely to be working underneath – but other circumstances may be brought into scope, for example machinery incorporating Artificial Intelligence.
LEEA has some issues with this approach. For a start, there is really no data showing that third party certification of machinery actually tends towards safer or better quality equipment. External assessment creates no added value for innovation; and there is little incentive for the industry to work towards new and improved Standards, which may in turn limit technological development. Time to market is likely to be increased, and SMEs in particular will not easily accommodate the additional cost burden. This is against the general trend of recent EU legislation, which has been towards increased manufacturer responsibility.
As is the case currently, it will be mandatory to conduct a Risk Assessment identifying hazards and risks and defining safety requirements.
But for ‘high risk’ machines, it will no longer be permissible for manufacturers or importers to self-certify – the risk assessment will have to be carried out by independent, state-backed bodies. This
At a finer scale there are some important changes. In particular, a ‘machine’ no longer counts as only ‘part complete’ if it is just lacking the software, and safety assessments have to include ‘non-physical’ elements. Importantly, and something that LEEA has long pushed for, a ‘modifier’ of a machine – either physically or through the software – now has the same obligations as the ‘manufacturer’. As supply chains become more complex, the general obligation on such third parties will be of increasing importance. Distributors and others are now required to ensure that safety has not been compromised by storage or transport issues.
Other important and welcome details include:
Headof Technical Services, discusses
how a change to EU rules has implications for the UK’s lifting equipment industryBen Dobbs, LEEA’s Head of Technical Services
Safety systems have to be user-testable;
• Safety systems must be protected against interference from other devices they may be physically or remotely connected to;
• Control systems generally, and logic systems for autonomous operation in particular, must be limited so that they can’t exceed their defined tasks, spaces, or manufacturers’ limits;
• Where machinery has to be entered for maintenance, access must allow for entry of rescue equipment that will ensure a timely rescue;
• Importantly, the risk of contact with overhead power lines is now an essential Health and Safety consideration. This alone will certainly save lives.
It is expected that the new regulations will be put in place sometime in 2023, and there will then be a 30-month grace period to allow manufacturers and others to adapt. Watch Ben Dobbs discuss this topic at www.leeaint.com/open-learning
The Lifting Equipment Engineers Association (LEEA) is established across the globe as the leading representative body for all those involved in the lifting industry worldwide. It is the respected and authoritative representative body for its members who work in every aspect of the industry, from design, manufacture, refurbishment and repair, through to the hire, maintenance and use of lifting equipment.
The Association has played a key role in this specialised field for over 75 years, from training and standards setting through to health and safety, the provision of technical and legal advice, and the development of examination and licensing systems.
LEEA represents its members at the highest levels across a range of both public and private bodies, including various government departments, as well as nationally and internationally recognised professional and technical institutions
“There is really no data showing that third party certification of machinery actually tends towards safer or better quality
We believe logistics buildings should play their part in protecting our planet. That’s why, since 2008, our buildings in the UK have helped safeguard over 16,646 acres of the rainforest and educated over 12,000 schoolchildren about sustainability, helping them lessen their impact on the environment.
Whether it’s sustainable buildings, protecting the rainforest or educating future generations, something special is…
