KNAPP公司成立于50年前，现今业务已经遍布全球28个国家和地区，提供完整的仓储系统和方案，自动化分拣系统、软件管理系统等，在多个行业有典型客户，如工具行业、零配件行业、零售业等。在中国重点不是提供分拣系统，而是着重提高伙伴的仓库管理能力，因为中国客户对仓储的自动化使用还需要逐步提高，随着认识的改变，自动化水平也会增强。

Mr. Robert Engelmayer, Business Area Manager;

Shuttles – now more than ever!

The numbers are impressive, and prove that the KNAPP system solutions with OSR Shuttle technology are successfully established. More than 6,000 shuttles are already in operation worldwide. Due to tremendous demand, KNAPP significantly increased the production capacity last year and placed hundreds of shuttles successfully into operation within a short time.

Image 1: OSR Shuttle™ at Hermes Fulfilment for Otto Versand in Haldensleben, Germany.

The largest shuttle system in the world, located at Hermes Fulfilment in Germany, is also by KNAPP. Hermes operates the automated returns warehouse for Otto Versand with a storage capacity of around one million items. The OSR Shuttle system supplies 30 Pick-it-Easy workstations, where up to 15,000 items per hour are picked.

The trend in shuttle systems – no matter which sector – is clearly moving towards greater storage capacities and performance with less and less energy consumption. The OSR Shuttle, with its multi-deep storage of cartons and containers, is ideal for this and is already successfully employed at the tool supplier WASI, a company of the Würth Group.

Good marks for the environment

For container retrieval, the system only requires 5% of the energy required by a stacker crane system with equivalent performance. Extremely high energy efficiency and low costs are the facts. With the OSR Shuttle, efficiency measures involve a unified concept and not just a single measure. Proven technology for energy recuperation is put in place exactly where the greatest potential for savings exists, namely, at the high performance lifts.

Thanks to power management software, the energy requirements for the entire system are again reduced. With the same high performance, this is achieved by continuously monitoring the power input, pre-calculating and optimizing the movement orders, and automatically adjusting the performance. This translates not only to economy through lower costs, but also to added benefits to the environment because of reduced emissions.

Multi-channel distribution

Modern managers of distribution centres make strong use of the competencies in their warehouse systems in their core business, the supply of other distributors, wholesalers and stores, as well as to gain foothold as direct suppliers for individual end customers. These companies no longer avail themselves of a sole channel of trade but are increasingly directing their focus to several parallel sales channels. In the booming internet business, where 24 hour delivery has become standard, the requirements of intralogistic systems have changed.

KNAPP is oriented towards the needs of the customer: small lot sizes, short life cycles and strong seasonal swings are just some of the challenges faced by an internet trader. Order structure is also changing rapidly, and it will become more and more difficult to remain competitive in the market with an inflexible system. That is why KNAPP offers a flexible solution with the OSR Shuttle, which can be used to tackle the daily challenges with no trouble.

As various as the challenges of the different sectors are for a system solution, so various are the solution concepts with OSR Shuttle technology. Thanks to the modular design and flexibility of the system there is plenty of freedom in designing a shuttle system solution that is perfect for the various sectors.

Low Complexity Warehouse

One of the decisive advantages of an intralogistic system with the OSR Shuttle is that a complex warehouse can be designed and built to be easy and uncomplicated to operate. KNAPP calls this strategy the "Low Complexity Warehouse". From the viewpoint of the operator, the complexity is especially reduced because almost all the processes are covered using one central technology.

Various processes, such as a faster goods-in buffer, picking according to the ergonomic principle of goods-to-person, a buffer for temporary storage of partial deliveries and the final sequential retrieval of the entire order can be realized with the OSR Shuttle.

Above all, these applications pose a software challenge, but it is exactly here where KNAPP scores in comparison to competitors: since KNAPP has had shuttles successfully operating for customers in various sectors and for various areas of use, KNAPP has both years of experience and comprehensive know-how.

High performance buffer Fastbox

For a functional, sustainable general concept, complementary products such as the flexible, modular high-performance buffer Fastbox are particularly valuable. The Fastbox can be used for various applications such as a fast-moving product buffer, a transport container buffer, a sequencer or simply as a high-performance lift.

Open Shuttles

In Hanover, KNAPP will be exhibiting the free-moving shuttles for containers and cartons for the first time. Free-moving shuttles for pallet transport have already been successfully employed for customers in the food sector such as Spar and Tus. The Open Shuttles move freely in the warehouse and are used for both transport and picking orders. A warehouse without a conveyor system is therefore possible making future solutions highly flexible.

Image 2: Open Shuttle for transport and picking orders

Pick-it-Easy

Ergo-dynamic and multi-functional goods-to-person work stations

KNAPP pays a great deal of attention to ergonomic analyses, with the insight gained going straight into the design of our products. This gave rise to KiDesign, an intelligent design for goods-to-person solutions fashioned according the principles of ergonomics, ergo-dynamics and multi-functionality. The work stations of the Pick-it-Easy series were created in close cooperation with the Occupational Health Centre Graz and the renowned Institute for Occupational Health of the TÜV Rheinland. Pick-it-Easy stands for highly ergonomic and sophisticated work place solutions based on the goods-to-person principle.

Pick-it-Easy Shop

The highly dynamic picking solution for e-commerce applications

Image 3: Pick-it-Easy Shop – the work station for all e-commerce applications

Pick-it-Easy Shop is a revolutionary work station custom designed for e-commerce. Pick-it-Easy Shop is designed for handling different types of goods placed into order containers or cartons at different heights. Ergonomically seen, a horizontal layout is ideal.

The order containers or cartons, irrespective of their different heights, are supplied at the optimal ergonomic height for the operating staff.

The products are placed in the target container by hand, so that the available space can be fully exploited and even delicate products such as glass bottles can be picked. The work station is therefore ideal for e-commerce applications in various sectors such as food or internet trade.

Pick-it-Easy Tray

Exceptionally ergonomic picking of groceries

Image 4: Pick-it-Easy Tray for ergonomic picking of groceries

The popular and established method of manual picking in food wholesale, where products are picked from the source pallets at floor-level and placed into roll containers or onto pallets, places a lot of physical strain on the staff. The design of the Pick-it-Easy Tray station minimizes strenuous tasks such as lifting, carrying or bending down by supplying trays at an ergonomic height for the staff.

Pick-it-Easy Tray is designed for picking both single items and large pack units. The highly dynamic OSR Shuttle guarantees the essential sequence for the correct packing of product groups in a roll container or on a pallet. The OSR Shuttle supplies goods on trays to the work station, where picking takes place. Several large pack units, a single large item or even a container holding small pack units can be located on a tray.

The trays are presented to the operator at an ergonomic height. The picking process itself is optimized in terms of time and ergonomics. The software provides visual support of the picking process. An ideal control process ensures high performance in line with the highly-dynamic logistics system. Semi-automatic height adjustment of source and target objects as well as gentle movements in handling the cartons for picking and transfer to the target locations minimize strain on the staff. A picking performance of 650 large pack units/hour with typical products from the grocery sector may be realized without problem.

Pick-it-Easy Pack

The flexible pack station for the fashion sector

Image 5: Pick-it-Easy Pack – the pack station for combined processing of hanging and folded garments

Pick-it-Easy Pack unites the highly-ergonomic packing station technologies of the KNAPP Group with technologies for hanging and folded goods. Consolidation of partial orders, automatic disposal of empty hangers and containers, visual guidance and RFID for sequenced supply in stations for hanging and folded goods provide process reliability and support the error-free strategy.

Central belt system

New features and application areas for the classic autopicker

Image 6: Central belt system SDA at Sanacorp in Planegg, Germany

Ultra-modern autopickers are absolutely essential in the pharmacy wholesale sector because of high picking peaks and orders coming in on short notice. New ejector technology has now placed the central belt system by KNAPP in operation in other sectors such as cosmetics, tobacco and lifestyle products.

Along with channels for cylindrical products such as lip gloss, eye liner, antiperspirants and tubes, the newest generation central belt autopicker SDA with its functions and design offers many advantages for picking fast-moving products. Functional add-ons and an individual ejector profile determined by the product characteristics make the picking process gentle, precise and error-free.

The ACS control system (Autopicker Control System) was completely integrated in the autopicker product line and covers all combinations of ejector types and transfer stations. Very intuitive to operate, the software is based on a simple industrial hardware concept that reaches new heights in terms of communication performance and robustness.

Image 7: Intuitive user interface of the ACS control system

The user interface was designed to be as user friendly as possible for intuitive operation and was designed together with experts in a usability study. User interactions are made exclusively on a touch screen that has an optimized user interface. A keyboard, mouse or other pointing devices are not required because the user can make entries very efficiently using the on-screen keyboard. The most important components are displayed in 3D for preventative maintenance and troubleshooting. In this format the states of all the associated sensors and actuators are visible; the functions can be checked and actuators manually controlled or processes triggered.

To keep up with high standards of user friendliness and easy maintenance, the proven safety and access system from warehouse technology has been adapted for the high-performance transfer stations. Operation and maintenance can be regulated and monitored for authorised staff, and servicing is made practical and safe through modern safety techniques.

The fastest autopicker in the world naturally requires an automatic and ergonomic design for the replenishment products, provided by a combination of the OSR Shuttle system, replenishment staff and applications. Next to the proven RF guided replenishment with lot tracking is the newcomer to the programme, KiSoft Vision. Intelligent visual user guidance and integrated control allow the user complete freedom of movement. An optimal sequence is guaranteed for the replenishment process.

KiSoft Vision for 100% quality

KiSoft Vision is the first optically guided picking system where virtual information appears directly in the field of view of the operator wearing a head-mounted display. The integrated navigation system leads the way to the target storage location, where products to be picked are optically highlighted. An integrated camera registers barcodes, lot and serial numbers during the picking process. Extra steps for acknowledgement are completely eliminated.

Images 8 + 9 Visual user guidance with KiSoft Vision

Introducing optical technologies in picking makes it possible to raise process quality in the entire warehouse to new levels. KNAPP offers customers 100% error-free picking through the right combination of processes and technology. Any errors that may occur are identified on the spot and can be immediately corrected. Complicated error detection at the end of processes is eliminated along with the connected high cost of error correction.

KiSoft Vision in real warehouse operation starts in June 2011 at a reference customer. In this case, KiSoft Vision is used as a picking system in the manual picking area and for 100% checks at an OSR Shuttle work station. The integration of KiSoft Vision improves performance as well as the quality of the picking process. Serial numbers can also be automatically captured without extra work.

About KNAPP

The KNAPP AG ranks among the leading system and solution providers in warehouse automation and warehouse logistics software. The range of products includes customer-specific adaptations of patented logistics components for warehouse and automation projects, tailored systems for major customers that meet every demand for more efficient logistics solutions, and the servicing and maintenance of existing warehouses. The high export quota of 99% reflects the international character of the business. Europe, North and Latin America as well as Asia are key market areas. KNAPP is represented in 36 countries around the world. The international subsidiaries are located in UK, Belgium, Italy, France, Spain, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Brazil, Germany, China, Switzerland, South Africa and USA.

Image 10: KNAPP Headquarters in Hart bei Graz, Austria