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WSP Engineering partners with a global logistics company, automating an FSDU packing line to increase efficiency and improve safety.
Location
United Kingdom
Industry
Logisitcs
In recent years FSDUs (free-standing display units) have seen a substantial increase in popularity among retailers and brands alike. This is because FSDUs provide a cost-effective and space-efficient solution for promoting new products, promotions and impulse sales.
With the increase in production and distribution of FSDUs has come a need to fill, wrap and pack them efficiently.
A leading global logistics company approached WSP Engineering with the task of innovating and implementing a system that would reduce the amount of manual handling involved, thus increasing efficiency and safety.
Karl Brown, Lead Consultant at WSP Engineering, said, “This project allowed us to engage the creative and problem-solving part of our brains! The end result ticked all the boxes, saving the client time and money and improving the safety and working environment for their employees.“
The main challenge in this project was to innovate an autonomous solution that could move FSDUs down a line, packing and wrapping them in the process.
The solution needed to be safe, easy to learn and able to navigate various parameters and sequences.
The current process in place was carried out entirely by hand and involved lots of manual handling, which was not only inefficient but posed potential health and safety risks as well.
WSP Engineering were responsible for:
Dave Pickup, Director of WSP Engineering, said, “Automation is increasingly becoming the key to success in many industries, including logistics. I am immensely proud of the solution the WSP Engineering team have innovated. This autonomous FSDU packing line provides a more efficient solution for the client and reduces the safety risk to their workforce by removing many manual handling processes.“
This project has seen a significant return on investment for the client, with WSP designing and implementing an automated FSDU packing line that only requires loading and unloading.
The automated packing line can accurately assess the shape and size of the FSDU, taking them down the line and packing and wrapping them accordingly.
Our solution has not only improved safety by reducing the amount of manual handling required but has also improved the efficiency of distributing FSDU units.
The success of the first installation at our client’s packaging facility has seen them request a more extensive rollout across more of their distribution sites.
Our team were able to innovate an industry-leading automated solution, design the software, and project manage a successful implementation, which was backed up by post-review onsite support.
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