SUMMER 2021 SUMMER Vol MMXX
The Irish Magazine for the Materials Handling, Warehousing & Logistics Sectors
Jungheinrich ERD 220i Electric pallet truck wins Red Dot Award Jungheinrich’s new electric pallet truck ERD 220i has been distinguished as ‘Best of the Best’ with the prestigious Red Dot Design Award. The truck, which is about 25 percent shorter than its predecessor thanks to its new lithium-ion battery concept, won over the Red Dot Design Award jury with its innovativeness and ground-breaking style. Its compact design paired with advanced technology and the highest functionality makes it an exemplary pioneer in the pallet truck segment according to the jury. Commenting on achieving the award, Andreas Knie, industrial designer at Jungheinrich said: “Good product design reacts to concrete customer needs and shapes suitable solutions. In the ERD 220i, the
most compact dimensions, intuitive operability, tangible agility and reliable safety are consistently combined without displacing each other. The operator gets an ergonomically designed, versatile and safe driver’s seat, and the radically reduced dimensions also create more space and freedom of movement in the warehouse.” Instead of installing a large battery between the platform and forks as has been the case in the past, Jungheinrich has accommodated the battery modules in the ERD 220i within the truck chassis. The removal of the heavy battery tray offers significant benefits in the truck performance. The space saved now allows the truck to be offered in two spacious platform varieties without losing any significant compactness or
agility. Both platforms have fixed lateral protection panels on three sides and guarantee safe driving and comfortable standing. At the same time, the ERD 220i is the most compact truck of its class with an L2 dimension of only 1,065 mm. Thanks to these small dimensions, the turning radius shrinks to less than two metres. This allows for precise manoeuvring even in narrow environments and frees up space to be better utilised in existing warehouses. Every year since 1955, the Red Dot Award for Product Design chooses the best and most innovative products from around the world in over 50 categories. An international jury of independent designers, design professors and journalists chooses products from thousands of entries every year that stand out for their design quality.
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SCAN ME
contents SUMMER 2021
The Irish Magazine for the Materials Handling, Warehousing & Logistics Sectors
52 Awards
54 Viewpoint
56 Interview
58 e-Commerce
59 Supply Chain
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Safety Storage Efficiency Manage your logistics more safely and more productively using less space with Combilift’s materials handling solutions Safer product handling Optimised production space Improved storage capacity Increased productivity & output Enhanced profits
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combilift.com WLN Liz Logistic heavy A5 rev 1.3.indd 1
Published by:
Fleet Publications, D’Alton Street,
Claremorris, Co. Mayo, Ireland F12 E7P2
Editor:
Jarlath Sweeney – jarlath@fleet.ie
Contributors:
Howard Knott, Rob van Dieten
Advertising:
Mary Morrissey
Administration:
Orla Sweeney
Design & Layout: Crackerjack Design House Contact Details: Telephone: 00353 94 9372826
Email: handlingnetwork@fleet.ie
07/01/2021 12:53:24
WHO GETS HANDLING NETWORK? Handling Network - the magazine of the Irish Handling & Distribution Industry - is produced bi-monthly by specialists in the materials handling sector, with contributions by experts on topics of special interest to its readership. Handling Network is distributed on controlled circulation; addressed to key personnel in Ireland’s top companies and organisations. Recipients include Company Directors, Purchasing Managers, Warehouse & Logistics Managers, Plant & Production Engineers, Transport Managers, Safety Officers and other relevant personnel. Areas covered include forklift trucks, warehouse logistics, racking, storage & distribution, commercial vehicles, plant & equipment finance, lifting gear, loading bay and conveyor systems...together with information on health and safety issues.
Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information contained in Handling Network, the publishers cannot accept responsibility for the veracity of claims made by advertisers, manufacturers or contributors or for opinions expressed. Copyright for all material contained in this magazine remains with the publishers.
www.handling-network.com
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SUMMER 2021
news I
IFOY AWARDs 2021 scores at the German Football Museum German Football Museum in Dortmund
The German Football Museum in Dortmund, Germany is the chosen venue for the announcement of the winners of the International Intralogistics & Forklift Truck of the Year Awards 2021 (IFOY). Despite the ongoing Covid-19 infection control restrictions, the organisers have managed to organise an attended formal event with a limited number of invited guests present. “The best intralogistics products and solutions of the year, independently evaluated, tested and awarded by leading international branch journalists.” “Due to the special circumstances caused by the Coronavirus crisis and in order to avoid unnecessary infection risks and to minimise the planning effort for the participants, we will have on this occasion informed the IFOY finalists in advance of the public announcement. We will also be recording the awards ceremony and providing several video versions (long and short version, social media clips, etc.) as soon as possible after the awards ceremony,” explained Anita Würmser, IFOY Chairperson. The International Intralogistics & Forklift Truck of the Year awards recognise the year’s best intralogistics products and system solutions. The aim of the organisation is to document the performance capability and innovative drive of the intralogistics industry, helping to boost competitiveness and
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“The best intralogistics products and solutions of the year, independently evaluated, tested and awarded by leading international branch journalists.” raise the profile of the entire sector in the public arena. The winners of the IFOY AWARD are selected once a year by an independent jury of international trade journalists. The overall sponsor of the IFOY AWARD is the VDMA Materials Handling & Intralogistics Sector Association. The main IFOY partners are Messe Dortmund and
the world’s leading forklift attachment manufacturer Cascade. The IFOY pallet partner is CHEP, the global market leader in pallet pooling, while the logistics real estate partner is GARBE. Kögel is the partner Trailer and the logistics partner is LTG. The headquarters of the IFOY organisation is at Ismaning near Munich. The IFOY AWARD is under the patronage of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy. The German Football Museum in Dortmund provides a cultural look into the past, present, and future of German football, featuring the Bundesliga, club football, and, of course, the triumphs of the German National Team. The Dundalk designed and built Cargotec Engineering Ireland Moffett E4-25.3NX electric forklift is among the finalists vying for a prize at the IFOY 2021 Awards.
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summer 2 0 2 1
viewpoint
Has the Pandemic finally changed B2B attitudes to eCommerce? By Paul Montwill, CEO & Chief Technology Architect of Magico and AB Commerce
According to global e-commerce news and research organisation, Digital Commerce 360, findings from its recent B2B survey indicate that more than one-third of B2B buyers will buy more online in 2021. Not only that, but survey respondents shared that approximately one-third of them will make fewer international purchases in the future.
Good news then, for Irish retailers who service a B2B customer, as their customers are more likely to support indigenous businesses, and provided they are able to service their customers’ needs with an eCommerce offering, the future is bright. My own personal view is that this new dawn has been on the way for B2B retail for a while, and that the pandemic has merely expedited the shift. The days of the Sales Rep on the road with a printed catalogue (and a hefty expense account!) seemed like they were numbered, as eCommerce technology evolved, and customer behaviour moved increasingly online. Think about it, if I am a buyer for a large corporation, and I use the likes of Amazon extensively in my personal life, then surely I will begin to expect similar technology in my working life.
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So what has been the barrier to date? I believe that a mixture of old-school processes and a resistance to change, coupled with a gap in the technology available has left B2B retailers slower to embrace eCommerce than their D2C counterparts. Some of the ‘household name’ Content Management Systems struggle to deliver the functionalities needed for B2B to coexist alongside D2C in the same website. Multiple price-books, authenticated Customer Groups and VAT calculations have long proved a challenge. What can AB Commerce do for B2B Retailers? At Magico we have tackled this side of our business with gusto over a period of 2 years on our proprietary technology platform, AB Commerce. We’ve worked with our retailers to develop an extremely powerful propo sition that responds to their common challenges and real-world needs. The result is the AB Commerce B2B module, which we have recently optimised and relaunched. Key functionalities include: n Dual B2C/B2B functionality within one website – your web team can manage both offerings from the same platform n Systems Integration to a range of ERPs so orders can flow through seamlessly n Dedicated, Authenticated Customer Groups for your B2B customers, with easy Reorder screens, Previous Order History and Back in Stock alerts and more. n Private Product Catalogue function ality where you can tailor your offering n Customisable Price Books and VAT calculations per region
n Multiple Order Grouping – individual buyers can work simulta neously and the system will group and process the orders in bulk Benefits for B2B Retailers Besides the cost reduction of a reduced headcount out on the road, there is also a massive operational efficiency benefit to be had, from the reduction of paperwork, the minimised opportunity for human error as well as quick and easy reordering processes for bestsellers and previous orders. These time and cost savings across the board should free retailers and buying teams up, to refocus their energies on growing their businesses and better serving the customer. Is it working? One of our long term clients on AB Commerce is the Galway success story - and Ireland’s Largest Broadline Industrial Supplier - Caulfield Industrial. Caulfield’s actively embraced eCommerce and the opportunities AB Commerce could deliver in the eCommerce space from an early stage. CEO, Alan Fallon shared that “In order to develop our capabilities fully and offer the highest level of service to our vast array of customers, Caulfield Industrial partnered with Magico / AB Commerce for our eCommerce website. We hugely value the open, honest and trustworthy relationship that has been cultivated with this dedicated team. They provide us with unparalleled expertise and support, which is truly one of a kind. They are the experts in delivering B2B eCommerce solutions, and we are glad to work with the best in the industry.” Based in Ennis, County Clare, Magico has been delivering best in class eCommerce solutions for Irish retailers since 1999.
Spring 2021
supply deal
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www.handling-network.com Text: Rob Van Dieten – rob@fleet.ie
summer 2 0 2 1
interview
‘Speed is part of innovation’ Gordon Riske, Chairman of the Board of the VDMA Material Handling & Intralogistics Association, explains what intralogistics manufacturers have to improve, what role start-ups play in the industry and how the IFOY AWARD has developed.
You started at the VDMA in February 2020, shortly before the lockdown. What is your conclusion after one year? The Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit were, of course, the all-dominant topics last year, also at VDMA. But there were also other important topics – such as the extension of the transition engine and the VDA 5050 interface, a real milestone in the intralogistics sector. All in all, it was a very active year. And as VDMA, we can be very satisfied with the results. What were the major challenges for the intralogistics providers since the start of the pandemic? On the one hand there were a lot of uncertainties: material shortages, the instability of the production systems, getting service people out to the customers – only to name a few. Installing a new warehouse was sometimes impossible. But on the other hand, the demand for new often digital solutions started to grow in the second half of 2020. There was much more pressure on the companies being competitive. In the spring of 2020, the pandemic hit us hard. But already in the fourth quarter of 2020, we started to deal with it. What will change for intralogistics after the crisis? It probably gives us a boost in topics like digitalisation, automation and sustainability. There are customers who ask us now: How many human touch points do you have in your system on an average per day? And how can you reduce them? This topic will stay with us. Electrification also plays an important role. At the KION Group, for example, last year more than 87 percent of the delivered products were electrically driven. Ten years ago that was very different. Industry and retail face three major problems: uncertain demand situations, insecure supply chains and labour shortages. How can intralogistics providers help them? Indeed, the labour shortage is a challenge. Look at the IFOY Awards programme: Less forklifts driven by humans than some years before. And a lot more AGVs or warehouse devices without a driver. The autonomous, digitally driven product base will be more important in the future. That helps in terms of efficiency and labour shortage.
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In which areas do intralogistics providers still need to improve? Everyone understands that digitisation is important. But there are other areas where understanding and readiness are not as embedded as they should be. One example is the topic of sustainability. This is not just a task facing society as a whole. Every company can and must do something. We really need to develop long term strategies. Another example is the topic of speed... What do you mean exactly? German companies in particular want to plan everything and tend to over-engineer things. And sometimes they are afraid of just getting started. If you look at Asian competitors, the willingness to accept mistakes is much greater. But the speed of getting things done is also much greater. Speed is part of innovation. Digitalisation has made things more transparent. What role do Start-up firms play in intralogistics? They play an extremely important, positive role. Most of the time, it’s young people who are willing to take a certain risk. Well, sometimes there’s an investor behind it to make it financially possible. But that’s not always the case. However, we see innovative ideas in start-ups that perhaps wouldn’t be done in the same way in larger companies. That helps both sides. Because larger companies have access to the market and customers, and of course the necessary production experience. Established industry is important for these young entrepreneurs to turn their ideas into reality.
Gordon Riske, Chairman of the Executive Board of the VDMA Materials Handling & Intralogistics Association and CEO of the KION Group
Will start-ups take business away from some old corporates? Yes, some might. I still believe in the philosophy: “Innovation over a long time makes the cake bigger.” If there is too much discussion about how to get a bigger piece of the small cake, I would rather be on the side of making the cake bigger for everyone. Do you see any disruptive start-ups in the market, that could position themselves with a platform between the costumer and the traditional companies? We see that all the time. Look at topics like software, data monitoring or fleet management. Where the entry barriers are not so high, a start-up can make a big difference with a relatively small input. But scale does matter! A service network that helps the costumer in the EU, the USA or globally is an important advantage in the business. How significant is the IFOY Awards programme? The IFOY Awards have continued to evolve – even in the pandemic. Every industry need showcases and platforms, where companies can present the best of the industry, show the development of innovations and take that message out into a greater public. One of the most important things the VDMA can do is to look for a platform for innovation, where companies and individuals are honoured for developing outstanding products or solutions. And the IFOY AWARD is such a platform. What do you think about the development of the IFOY AWARD? It has developed very nicely over the years. In 2013, you could see a lot of forklifts. Now we see a lot of intralogistics devices, software and AGVs. The IFOY Awards have been very much in line with the technical development of our industry and its markets. It has an international professional jury and the worldwide online reach is more than 800 million plus 3,000 articles per year. It is a broad message that is sent out globally. Which technical trends in intralogistics do you think will become important in the coming years in the IFOY Awards? We will certainly see a bigger component of software, of high-speed sensors and automation. Much more of our future products will run autonomously. All the preparation work to enable that technology will certainly be the ongoing trend in the coming years.
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summer 2 0 2 1
last mile
EAV to launch ‘2Charge’ electric ultra-lightweight commercial vehicle in conjunction with Spin for optimising public hire e-scooter operations Electric Assisted Vehicles (EAV) Limited, the Oxfordshire-based micro-mobility manufacturer, has launched the EAV2Charge, a new ultra-lightweight commercial vehicle based on EAV’s successful EAV2Cubed model. EAV is already supplying multiple international logistics companies such as DPD and Zedify as well as supporting supermarket deliveries by Asda and Ocado. Now EAV’s latest design is aimed at the fast-growing arena of e-scooter share companies that operate public hire schemes as part of the UK Department for Transport’s managed-trials. Co-designed with Ford’s micromobility unit, this new vehicle will enable operators to achieve a more sustainable approach to their operations including deploying e-scooters when they need to be moved to meet local consumer demand or replacing batteries. The EAV 2Charge will bring additional benefit to towns and cities as they are expected to help ease traffic flow in the town areas and support cleaner air by placing diesel or petrol vans. “I’ve always been a huge fan of the TV animation series, ‘Thunderbirds’.” said Adam Barmby, CEO and Founder of EAV. “In the series, Thunderbird 2 was able to detach its rear container pod and replace it with another which was dedicated to the mission it was going to be sent on. It could deploy a submarine, trucks of all kinds and even a tunnelling vehicle called ‘The
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Mole’. We set about this challenge by considering what International Rescue would do and how we could develop a rear pod, based on the 2Cubed, which would provide Spin with the vehicle capability they needed. The approach may sound a bit far-fetched but consider what a traditional van has been used for over the years and we’re equally as versatile if not more so.” EAV’s engineering challenge from Spin was the development of a support, repair, rescue and possible mobile charging vehicle for the trial of e-scooters which are now being deployed in Clacton-on Sea in Essex in partnership with Spin. “We need vehicles for our operations that moves us towards becoming a carbon negative company by 2025.” commented Steve Pyer, UK Country Manager at Spin. “But we also need them to be able to carry spare batteries, tools, replacement parts and have space to move e-scooters around to meet changing demand. It had to be zero emissions, lightweight and easy to operate. We couldn’t find exactly what we were looking for, so we decided to create one and collaborate with the EAV team to co-design this new model. We worked with the team and converted the rear pod for our specific purpose.” EAV has developed the 2Charge as a generic unit which can be supplied to support any scooter rental agency worldwide although the rear compartment can be modified for
specific purposes at a customer’s request. “At the heart of EAV, we’re a product design, development and production company and this challenge from Spin fitted our capabilities perfectly.” continued Barmby. “The whole EAV2Cubed concept is designed down from a van, not up from a bike and that also applies to the rear box. We’re essentially an ultra-lightweight van so we were able to adapt the load space to Spin’s exact requirements. We see this project as supporting e-scooters and other forms of micromobility as it’s a future we all need and really believe in.” The first vehicles are currently in production and are due to be delivered to Clacton-on-Sea in the coming weeks to support the trial managed by Spin starting this summer. “EAV is busy developing a completely new range of future vehicles to further enhance the enormous change for the better we’re already all experiencing in our towns and cities.” said Barmby. “Quieter, lighter, completely emissions free and aesthetically pleasing – we’re all discovering a new range of vehicles which are far less threatening and intrusive than we’re used to. The effect of that will be a huge reduction in road casualties as well as cleaner air and a much less stressful experience within the urban environment with absolutely no reduction in commercial efficiency. It’s simply a better future.”
summer 2 0 2 1
supply chain
Deep-Sea Shipping capacity problems persist for users Exporters and Importers are still suffering major problems in trying to secure timely delivery of products being shipped on almost all container shipping services. The expected ‘catch-up’ on schedules as COVID-19 vaccination rolls out has not happened. In fact, ‘rollover rates’ whereby containers are either not shipped on the ocean vessel on which they have been booked or cannot be accommodated on the feeder vessels needed to take them to their final destination, have deteriorated sharply. In April, Rotterdam recorded a ‘rollover rate’ of 54%, while the rate a year earlier was 31%. Among the Shipping Lines, the rate of containers being missed has also increased significantly, with Maersk showing April 2021 figures of 34%, up from 27% a year ago. Customers have very little choice but to book cargo with their Carrier as early as possible, and if it is possible, to build up a buffer stock of material at, or close to, destination. Carbon Targets become the new reality A recent statement from Maersk Lines said: “Half of Maersk Lines’ 200 largest customers have set, or are setting, ambitious science based or zero carbon targets for their supply chains and the figure is on the rise”. The speed at which this mindset shift is happening can be shown by a number of recent developments and announcements elsewhere. Irish Rail has announced the re-opening of a Ballina/Waterford container service. The trains, chartered by forwarder XPO, will operate twice weekly linking with the Samskip service sailing from Waterford to Rotterdam each Tuesday and Friday. Announcing the service, Irish Rail spoke of its
commitment to the development of a comprehensive network of rail freight services and hubs throughout Ireland. These developments follow the signing by Transport Minister Eamon Ryan, along with fifteen other European Union (EU) Ministers, of a call for the EU Commission to launch an initiative in favour of rail freight operators to promote modal shift towards clean transports. The paper said that much needs to be done to modernise the rail freight sector, including digitalisation, automation, interoperability, a shift to more sustainable rolling stock and much more. Samskip is now fuelling its Samskip Endeavour with biofuel. That vessel operates on the Rotterdam, Dublin. Cork, Waterford, Rotterdam service – this ensures that containers shipped from Ballina and destined for Rotterdam will now have a very low carbon footprint. Samskip also plans to move much of its vessel re-fuelling to use of biofuel, and has also introduced a similar product in some of its trucking fleet operating on behalf of Unilever. Lufthansa Cargo and DB Schenker have, since April, been offering weekly CO2 -neutral cargo rotations between Frankfurt and Shanghai. The fuel requirement on this route will now be covered by aircraft using SAF (Sustainable Aircraft Fuel), saving 175 tonnes of conventional kerosene each week. The SAF is produced primarily from biomass waste. A number of other airlines are trialling the use of similar fuels as their production is ramped up and are planning to offer passengers and cargo
customers the option of low carbon flight to meet their corporate sustainability objectives. Global production and delivery of ZERO-emission Trucks is accelerating. The number of BEV battery powered electric heavy duty trucks announced or available in China, North America and Europe is expected to grow from 40 to 71 between 2020 and 2023. Currently the normal truck range is about 300 kms on a single charge, while several 600 km range vehicles will become available within the next year. By 2023, vehicles with a range of
1,000 km will be on the road. Current research would indicate that electric trucks will become less expensive to own and operate than diesel vehicles by between 2025 and 2030, depending on vehicle spec. Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling is adopting real-time transport visibility solutions, enabling it to streamline its logistics operations, while further improving on-time deliveries to customers throughout its network of operations which are located from Russia in the east, through Ireland in the west and as far south as Nigeria. The company transports over 400,000 full truckloads a year requiring a large administrative effort to coordinate with carriers. Text: Howard Knott – howard@fleet.ie www.handling-network.com
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