The initial situation: Lots of staff. Lots of risks.
DEXION is a market leader in Europe and operates worldwide as part of the Gonvarri Material Handling Group. Every week, some twenty containers leave its Laubach factory in Hesse, typically carrying materials for high-rack warehouses.
The loading process would usually take two hours and was both arduous and dangerous. Profiles up to 12 metres long would have to be picked up by two forklifts, which would then laboriously tow them into the containers. The forklifts also had to be directed and there were of course staff inside the very cramped containers – invisible to the forklift drivers. This method was obviously unable to maximise the containers’ full capacity either. Open-top containers, meanwhile, were similarly not viable due to the infrastructure needed for loading and the high rental costs. But DEXION soon found the solution to its logistics problem in early 2019 at the LogiMAT trade fair, where the SIMPLY presentation quickly convinced DEXION of its product benefits.
The solution: Push the button. Load and go.
Because SIMPLY slides loads into the container. Within the space of ten minutes – at the push of a button. All it needs for operation is a high-voltage power connection and compressed-air supply. And as soon as the container doors are shut and the truck leaves the factory grounds, SIMPLY is once again ready to use.
And so it was that SIMPLY was given the go-ahead very soon after the trade fair. The significantly enhanced safety for staff was pivotal to the decision. Hazardous work inside containers is now a thing of the past, as are heavy loads that suddenly slide off the forks and get out of control.
Thirty staff from logistics, warehousing and administration attended the start-up – because a purchase offering such great prospects had naturally sparked a lot of interest.
It very soon became clear that the SIMPLY would be able to deliver on all its promises for DEXION.
The increased safety goes hand in hand with tangible financial benefits. For a start, fewer staff are required. Previously, around five workers would have to be tied up with loading for at least two hours every day. Now, it’s just one! And this staff member can get the whole job done in half an hour. Including pre-packing! As a conservative estimate, that’s four man-hours per container. With 20 containers a week, this ends up being 80 man-hours or 10 man-days! The company is also able to save on one forklift, as well as the costs for container-truck downtimes.
The staff member just drives the forklift into the hall and loads the cargo onto the pallet of the SIMPLY, which sits ready and waiting outside the hall. The load is then secured. In ideal spatial and visibility conditions, so even costly damage can be avoided. When the truck arrives, it is connected to the SIMPLY, and then it’s just a matter of:
Push the button. Load and go.
