Kanban material feed for tight spaces

Task

An assembly line for steering gears requires a partially automated material feed for manual workstations. The challenge – the material feed has to be integrated into an existing hall with very limited space. The workers use an existing pallet circulation system. In order to get new material, the workers have to go to the other side of the pallet circulation system and pick up boxes from the staging area. The required conveyor technology will eliminate this step. To do this, the boxes must be transported from the staging area via the existing pallet circulation system. The boxes must be loaded and unloaded at an ergonomic height and position. The boxes will also be returned below the feed. Occasionally, electronic components are transported, therefore the entire feed must be electrically conductive in order to avoid electrostatic discharge (ESD).

Solution from mk

Partially automated material feed using GUF-P 2000 belt conveyors and roller conveyors. The belt conveyors are arranged in ascending order. This allows the boxes to be conveyed beyond the existing pallet circulation system. The boxes then roll back to the manual workstations at an ergonomic height via roller conveyors. The workers can then carry out the assembly steps. The empty boxes are transported back to the staging area via roller conveyors below the feed. Suitable belts and PE nuts are used to ensure that the entire feed is antistatic, thereby avoiding electrostatic discharge.

Benefits for the customer

• Partially automated solution for a previously manual process
• Easy to integrate into an existing line thanks to the extensive construction kit

Products used

> GUF-P 2000
> Roller conveyors