Innovations that count

A peek at Promat innovation award contestants

At Promat 2023, organizer MHI will present the 2023 Innovation Awards. The MHI Innovation Award serves to educate and provide valuable insights on the latest manufacturing and supply chain products and services. The winners will be decided from among the following contestants, based on presentations at the show. Entries are judged in three categories: Best new product, best innovation of an existing product and best IT innovation. Here are our picks.

Hydrogen Fuel Cell

Plug Power has come up with a new high-voltage 80VDC hydrogen fuel cell for lift trucks, designed to increase warehouse productivity. With its continuous 19.1Kw high power output and refuelling time of less than three minutes, it promises to increase fleet uptime. When combined with Plug’s Green Hydrogen the company claims it reduces C02 emissions up to 85 percent compared to any lithium or lead-acid battery.

NARROW AISLE FORKLIFT AND SLIP-SHEET

Irish forklift specialist Combilift comes in with two products this year. The Aisle-Master OP (AME-OP) is a stand-on articulated forklift that the company says is the first of its kind. It allows narrow-aisle operation, delivery from truck to rack, bulk picking and item order picking. The step-through operator compartment has design copyright protection. Its patented chain steering system allows the truck to articulate more than 205 degrees. The AME-OP is available in a number of variants, with lift capacities from 4,400 to 5,500lb, lift heights up to 39ft and can operate in aisles as narrow as 76 inches with a 48-in. deep pallet.

Combilift’s second entry is a slip-sheet designed for loading containers. The Combilift Container Slip-Sheet (Combi-CSS) is a free-standing, electric-powered, semi-automated machine for loading and unloading containers from 20 to 53 feet long. It has a container-chassis docking system and a bi-direction, horizontally moving Hardox Steel Slip-Sheet with a capacity of 65,000lb. A full load of product can be prepared on the plate and loaded into the container. It can load 20-foot containers in three minutes and allows for reduced product handling and lift-truck utilization, increasing safety, and reducing product damage.

Autonomous Forklift

Ontario-based Otto Motors has entered its “Lifter” autonomous forklift. Its core skill is autonomously picking up and dropping off pallets from the floor to other equipment, such as a conveyor up to 30 inches off the ground. Lifter recognizes and moves pallets to and from stands without operator intervention, for one-touch autonomous lane clearing. Using AI capabilities, it can pick up and drop off pallets that are off-centre by up to 15 degrees, and safely pierce stretchwrapped pallets with up to four wraps of clear ply, the company says. With a maximum payload capacity of 2,650lb, Lifter works alongside people, other vehicles, and existing infrastructure for as little as $9/hour, according to Otto Motors.

Ground Mounted Trailer Support (GMTS) that automatically prevents trailer collapse. The company says the design was inspired by a customer that wanted a ‘No Boots on the Ground’ approach to keep workers safe. Collapsed into a low profile, speedbump-like unit, the incoming trailer can be backed over the GMTS into its dock position. When the truck departs, a push of a button from safely inside the dock makes the GMTS rise from the ground, to support trailer and forklift working within.

Smart Labelling

Pineberry Manufacturing, from Oakville, Ontario, has entered its InstaPrint solution. It allows customization and printing directly onto a wide range of materials with ink-receptive surfaces such as cardboard, postcards, envelopes, boxes, paper bags, wooden planks, or thicker objects like blister envelopes or folded boxes ready for shipment.

LITHIUM-ION BATTERY MANAGEMENT

Quebec-based UgoWork’s Fleet Management Portal is a lithium-ion battery management system that translates kWh, amp hours, pedal time and unit temperature data into information fleet managers can use to increase uptime and reduce costs.

Retrofit Dock Leveller

pany says its TLH Retrofit leveller is the only retrofit horizontally storing dock leveller in North America with telescoping lip design for precise control of lip placement on the trailer, resulting in safer and more efficient loading. It is designed to retrofit into a standard existing six- by eight-foot, or seven- by eight-foot dock pit. The telescoping lip design provides the safety of horizontal storage without sacrificing the four-corner seal at the dock.

Rewritable Tote Label

The Ricoh Laser Rewritable Labeling System uses a dedicated label that can be rewritten, erased, and then rewritten at high speed while permanently attached to a reusable tote. This eliminates the need for label replacement and label disposal work, plus the procurement of label stock. This improves efficiency, reduces waste and cuts costs. The durable label can be used for a long period of time even under harsh outdoor conditions. The new Laser Rewritable Labeling System, allows both human- and machine-readable real-time information to be rewritten and erased without removing the label.

Light Duty Autonomous Vehicle

Battery Management For Warehouse Devices

Mississauga, Ontario-based SOTI’s XSight offers diagnostic intelligence and support for battery powered warehouse devices. In an environment where 35 percent of IT leaders reported up to 25 percent of annual budgets being allocated for battery replacement, XSight, with features like a Smart Battery Dashboard, can predict when batteries will fail. This allows businesses to proactively replace them, reducing chances of downtime and contributing to less e-waste. SOTI XSight allows IT teams to track the health of device accessories, identify specific issues and address them to reduce the need to replace entire device fleets based on estimated warranty or for the latest model.

Trailer Support

Ideal Warehouse Innovations, based in Woodbridge, Ontario, has developed a

Nordock is promoting its telescoping-lip dock leveller for an award in the innovation of an existing product category. The com-

Bastian Solutions’s ML2 mini-load autonomous vehicle is designed to automate a variety of light- and intermediate-weight applications. The ML2 can tow, convey and lift carts, cases, bins and other small to medium payloads. An independent drive suspension system, true ZTR (zero turn radius) and bi-directional travel makes the ML2 unlike any other mini load vehicle on the market, Bastian says. Equipped with modular payload deck configuration options, the ML2 can accommodate a wide array of tasks and payload needs.