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Modernisation of existing plant enhances the efficiency and sustainability of internal logistics

Productivity and resource efficiency are the marks of modern warehousing. Yet constant changes to business processes, altered product ranges and growing order numbers with ever-diminishing lot sizes, together with ongoing technological advances often mean existing structures can no longer keep pace with current demands. Retrofitting solutions allow internal logistics to be brought up to speed quickly while work continues as usual, and with minimal overall costs. Simply by choosing Interroll’s efficiency-enhanced, energy-saving drives, consistently lightweight components and material combinations with reduced rolling resistance, companies can make double-digit reductions in the energy consumption of their logistics systems.

Interroll RollerDrive EC310After seven to ten years – depending on the industry – most warehouses are considered obsolete: technically outdated, suffering from wear and tear, functionally insufficient. This leads to high operating and process costs, a lack of flexibility and diminishing competitiveness. “Quality problems, performance deficits through wear-and-tear-related disruption, growing maintenance costs and new legal requirements all mean that the companies concerned have to start thinking about investing in new equipment,” explains Dr. Ralf Garlichs, Executive Vice President, Interroll Products & Technology. “Yet the big bullet of completely replacing old systems is not always necessary. In many cases, modernisation or expansion of existing plant, i.e. retrofitting, is the more cost-effective alternative.

Energy-hungry internal logistics
“Within the internal logistics domain, around 50 per cent of the energy cost of systems with a high degree of automation is attributable to conveyor technology, warehousing and commissioning,” explains Garlichs. “More than two thirds of the remaining 50 per cent of the energy cost of internal logistics is devoted to heating and venting logistics buildings, and a further 15 per cent to lighting. This means there is huge potential for energy savings in internal logistics, much of which can be effectively addressed through retrofitting measures.”

Modernising existing plant is often the better alternative to a replacement
ConveyorControl unitsThe installation of modern components in internal logistics systems is all geared to resource efficiency. “The use of efficiency-enhanced, energy-saving drives, plus consistently lightweight components and material combinations with reduced rolling resistance, can generate double-digit reductions in energy consumption,” says Garlichs. The focus is on the hardware controls and drives and sensors of conveyor system components. For, while the mechanics of older systems are usually still quite sound, the hardware controls, drives and sensors tend to be far from state-of-the-art technology. For this reason, modernisation measures frequently focus solely on the controls and drive components. In parallel with this trend, the use of modern technologies not only increases the work safety and user-friendly features of any logistics system. For instance, by converting automatic warehouses to Interroll low-consumption 24 volt drives or incorporating intelligent energy recovery technology into the brakes of conveyor systems, RollerDrives and stacker cranes, Interroll can bring state-of-the-art advances to logistics at the critical interfaces. After all, logistics systems are increasingly defined by sequences of complete sub-assembly groups, the key products of which can be conveniently replaced or modernised irrespective of the original manufacturer.

RollerDrive technology replaces expensive mechanical solutions and saves energy
Retrofitted systems offer other crucial benefits besides energy efficiency. Older systems like accumulating conveyors driven by vertical shafts or flat belts can be converted without great expense into state-of-the-art systems with the addition of 24 Volt RollerDrives. Mechanical accumulation for retaining lines is typically achieved through pneumatic systems and clutch brake units. But pneumatic systems are expensive to install and operate, while clutch brake units are prone to wear and tear and tend to be noisy. RollerDrives on the other hand, allow a conveyor system to be broken down into zones that typically consume up to 50 per cent less energy than their mechanical counterparts when handling average throughputs (of 600 -1000 containers/hour). While the drive motor of a conventional conveyor system tends to run continually, i.e. irrespective of throughput, only three zones need to be operated to handle one parcel when a RollerDrive system is in place. In addition, the RollerDrive variant will run without the need for any pneumatics, which makes it quieter to operate and also longer lasting.

“The basis for deciding whether to retrofit or rebuild is all about striking a balance between the suitability of the old system and the cost and time involved,” adds Garlichs. “If the core system is substantially sound or the machinery is basically in good condition, planning can build on what is already there. The use of modern technologies in retrofitting measures can then achieve many cost-saving benefits besides enhanced efficiency.”

Future-proof retrofits at minimal overall cost
Retrofit projects provide a host of options for achieving resource efficiency while maximising time, space, personnel, energy and materials in the all-important effort to strike a balance between the conflicting priorities of economic efficiency and ecology. “Interroll offers a full-service package from a single source for these key products for internal logistics. We can provide everything from project planning, assistance with strategic questions and technical support through to complete design and rapid assembly of entire logistics systems,” says Garlichs. “With our solutions, retrofit projects can thus achieve sustainable, future-proof modernisation of systems at minimal overall cost.”

As the result of modernising their logistics systems, companies also find that lower and more controlled energy costs also have the positive side effect of favourably influencing bank lending policies. There is an increasing trend for energy efficiency to have a positive effect on corporate credit ratings with financial institutions. Rising or highly fluctuating energy costs affect the ROI and thus increase the risk of companies incurring downgraded credit ratings, with an inherent increase in their loan interest rates. This aspect underlines the importance of prioritising an environmentally-sensitive approach to modernisation projects. “Green strategies” have long since moved from being lip-service options to compulsory and cost-effective decisions.