Buchs/Aarau, – During the next few months Swisslog, in partnership with LOCANIS, will implement a warehouse management solution with integrated goods tracking functionality for Hassia & Luisen Mineralquellen Bad Vilbel GmbH & Co., the largest mineral water supplier in Hesse, Germany. The order includes Swisslog's warehouse management system WarehouseManager, LOCANIS' G-Track solution, and the corresponding IT hardware, for a total of three locations. This new system enables Hassia & Luisen to manage its block storage more efficiently, minimize the short-shipment ratio and track individual lots in line with EU Directive 178/2002.
For the Hessian mineral water supplier Hassia & Luisen in Bad Vilbel, consistent goods tracking has been a major issue in the manufacturing and distribution process. Hassia & Luisen wanted to be able to automatically record the distribution of water and lemonade lots across locations. However, the usage of cost-efficient block storage systems, particularly common in the beverage industry, has proven to be a serious challenge for internal logistics.
The mineral water supplier therefore decided to introduce LOCANIS' G-Track as well as Swisslog's WarehouseManager to achieve comprehensive lot tracking in accordance with EU Directive 178/2002. The BeverageLogistics system will be implemented over the course of the next few months at the Hassia locations in Bad Vilbel, Rosbach and Niederlichtenau.
"BeverageLogistics increases the transparency and efficiency in our block storage systems and thus fulfills our requirements for the highest possible level of security and economy in the production and distribution of beverages," says Michael Schmidt, Chief Technical Officer at Hassia & Luisen Mineralquellen Bad Vilbel GmbH. Francis Meier, Managing Director Central Europe for Swisslog Warehouse & Distribution Solutions, adds: "In recent years, we have established a strong customer base in the beverage sector. This order from Hassia & Luisen offers the opportunity to strengthen our position as a provider of integrated distribution solutions in this industry."
The automatic block storage system is expected to be put into operation in April 2004, following a multi-stage introduction phase. The joint Swisslog/LOCANIS solution will enable Hassia & Luisen to track each pallet separately without having to scan the lot in advance.
Functionality of BeverageLogistics
BeverageLogistics is an advanced version of Swisslog's WarehouseManager, a comprehensive warehouse management system which can be implemented to optimize key business processes – from production or external goods receipt through order picking (including stacking) to dispatch and/or route staging. In addition, the software system has been complemented by the integration of G-Track®, a specialized fully automatic lot tracking technology, developed by Swisslog partner LOCANIS AG. For point-to-point precise navigation and inventory control this technology combines range measurement and angle of rotation definition with the help of sensors mounted on forklifts. Pallet coordinates are data-processed, edited and finally visualized. The radio-frequency communications-based G-Track® solution is ideal for goods tracking within buildings, especially where other tracking systems based on satellite technology fail.
