1 | Challenge:
How can demand peaks be cushioned during the Christmas period?
Europe's leading toy retailer was looking for a new concept for its industrial trucks, as a rapid increase in demand meant that handling capacity had to be significantly increased at short notice.
Little paws on the shop windows, children's noses pressed against them to get the best possible view of the coveted toys - will their parents buy one for them for Christmas? The answer these days is probably mostly yes: Germans spent almost 5 billion euros on toys in 2021.
There is a lot of logistical work behind the sheer endless supply. The demand for toys increases so much, especially in the run-up to Christmas, that there have been increasing supply bottlenecks in recent years. Well-organised distribution centres and a high-performance fleet can help here. A major toy retailer came to the same conclusion. Shortly after the completion of a new logistics centre with a single-shift concept, this was no longer sufficient - the handling capacity had to be increased due to a sharp rise in demand.
This could not be realised with the existing concept. So, he turned to his forklift supplier. He in turn called in his long-standing business partner HOPPECKE. The aim of the collaboration was to develop a new concept to increase the handling capacity over two complete shifts.
2 | Solution:
Changing station for 2-shift-system
In order to generate as much power as possible with the existing vehicles, HOPPEKE proposed the installation of a changing station.
At the customer's request, the industrial truck fleet was not to be expanded. Therefore, the only option was a changing station - adapted to the different vehicle types in use at the centre.
The changing station consists of roller beds for the batteries and shelves above for the chargers. The trak | Xchange PU changing attachment was used to simplify battery changing. This has a hydraulic device that makes it easy to move the battery from the vehicle to the roller beds and back again. A locking device also secures the battery during the process. Due to the different existing vehicles, the customer received this changing attachment as a special design for 48V batteries.
HOPPECKE also supplied two trak | Xchange TU battery changing trolleys for smaller 24V batteries. This manual trolley has a double roller track for easy battery changing. The trolley runs on rails that are mounted on the floor in front of the changing station, making it easier to move the trolley.
HOPPECKE installed the trak | monitor easypick system to optimise the use of the battery pool. This monitoring tool uses a green light to show the user which battery from the charging station is optimally charged and can be replaced when the battery is changed. The cooling times of the batteries are adhered to, thus extending the service life of the individual batteries.
With the implemented solution, the necessary handling capacity of the fleet could be achieved - so many children can still enjoy the richly stocked displays in the department stores in the future.
3 | Products
