One of the fundamental parts of production processes in the metalworking industry is storing manufactured products correctly. This is achieved when workshops have a well-organised warehouse to manage their products. Among the great challenges of Industry 4.0 is achieving automated storage. But what does it involve?
Automating warehouses: a challenge for Industry 4.0
Industry 4.0 refers to a fourth machine revolution expected to be fully established in the third decade of the twenty-first century. The main players in this revolution are robots (of all kinds), designed specifically to bring about a major transformation in factory production processes. It is a way of reorganising and redistributing the production chain, from obtaining raw materials to machining them and storing them, using artificial intelligence.
This would not only make resources more efficient, but also reduce production times and costs, as well as human intervention. Operators could thus increase their productivity and the risk of workplace accidents would be reduced.
Today, a growing number of industrial robotics projects can be found, such as robotic arms fitted to CNC machine tools (lathes, milling machines and machining centres) that even load and unload the machine. But there is one step in the production process that has yet to be fully consolidated in this new industrial revolution: automated storage.
What is automated storage?
Automated storage is gradually gaining ground in the metalworking industry and other sectors such as manufacturing and automotive, with the introduction of machines capable of storing manufactured parts with minimal human intervention.
What are the advantages of automated storage? To begin with, the time needed to put away and retrieve products is reduced, since the machines do all the work, programmed in advance or operated by an operator using sophisticated software. In addition, it allows better warehouse layout and space optimisation. Thanks to complex IT systems, there is better control of stock and it is possible to know when a part leaves the warehouse or when a new part is added.
In metalworking, many companies still use very basic software in which employees have to set up the warehouse and manually add all incoming and outgoing products. Without proper control, this usually leads to a disorganised warehouse. For example, some parts are registered but are not physically in the workshop because, through human error, their removal was not recorded.
Fortunately, automated storage would help manage resources better. Today there are different degrees of warehouse automation, which distinguish three types of warehouse: conventional, automated and fully automatic.
Conventional, slightly automated warehouses
These are the most common warehouses in factories, with very simple storage means, where operators load and unload goods using mechanical equipment such as forklift trucks.
Operators may also use a hoist to store products on the highest shelves. Hoists are machines made up of pulleys, ropes, cables or chains that are used to lift very heavy loads. Electric hoists with remote control are also available, making it possible to lift very heavy loads with minimal effort.
Automated warehouse
In this type of warehouse, storage is carried out using mechanical means. The space between goods is much smaller than in conventional warehouses, in order to optimise space.
The machines that can be used in these warehouses include:
- Conveyors, which connect the ends of the racking with the inbound and outbound areas.
- Stacker cranes, which locate the product and remove it from the racking
- Warehouse control and management software. The first runs the goods retrieval processes, while the second locates the products and decides where to place them.
Fully automatic warehouse
Somewhat similar to the automated warehouse, but this is fully automated storage, and it represents the ultimate goal of Industry 4.0. Fully automatic warehouses are designed to operate without an operator. Robots handle the loads, which makes retrieving and placing goods more efficient, faster and easier. Essentially, in this type of warehouse workers do not even have to walk the aisles, which increases safety.
Depending on the type of industry in which they operate, the following machines and systems, among others, can be found:
- Racking served by stacker cranes: for high-bay palletised loads. They are operated by fully robotic equipment.
- Racking served by a shuttle carrier: operated by a transfer car