Finning: A Case Study

Finning’s associate director of marketing and support services, Bob Hay, says the company decided to install these carousels, supplied by Couzens, due to the equipment’s ability to pack many parts into a small area.

After Finning decided on a system, installation began in November 1994. By February the carousels were in place and operational. The actual move took place after hours and on weekends so as not to disrupt warehouse capabilities.

For small to medium sized parts, four vertical carousels were installed and two horizontal units store larger, heavier parts.

The 7650 sq ft space saving was achieved because the carousels utilised carrier lengths of 3,500mm instead of the more usual 2,500mm. This meant four machines could do the job of seven fitted with shorter carriers. Also, unlike many carousels, the horizontal carousels were floor-mounted meaning the space taken up equated only to the height of the unit.

Each of the four vertical carousels has 28 rotating carriers. The two centre carousels have carriers, each with a capacity of 350Kg, subdivided giving 84 shelf levels giving over 9000 locations. The two heavier units have 500Kg capacity carriers subdivided giving 50 shelf levels and adjustable slotted bin combinations with larger bins and shelf dividers for the storage of larger, heavier items.

Aware of out of balance problems in some carousels, Finning favoured Couzens solution because the units have two drive motors eliminating the problems caused by having to balance the total load in the machines and possible disruption to picking and replenishing the units.

A dedicated local area network, linked to the Finning inventory control main-frame, controls the carousels. All picking information is captured on a printer as the main system receives it.

Picking on all the carousels is undertaken using a barcode scanner which reads the part number from a barcode pre-printed on the picking sheet / despatch note.

Rollers

Bins

Access in and out of the storage trays is assisted by small rollers set into the picking port work table.

If more than one part is on the picking sheet, the operator pushes the pick confirmation button, set at intervals along the working area and the carousel automatically moves to the next shelf level, indicating by light, where to pick.

The vertical carousel uses a light bar with a 30 lamp position indicator board to show the operator which location to pick.

Access in and out of the storage trays is assisted by small rollers set into the picking port work table. If more than one part is on the picking sheet, the operator pushes the pick confirmation button, set at intervals along the working area and the carousel automatically moves to the next shelf level, indicating by light, where to pick.

By pressing confirmation buttons along the front edge of the carousel it allows a picker to select any other items on the picklist without any further information input.

On average, the part arrives at the picking port in 20 seconds. The vertical carousels provide an optimum picking height, preventing operators stretching or reaching with heavy and awkward loads.

The PC alerts the operator when the pick is complete or if parts are still to be selected from other units. Picking on the horizontals again uses a barcode scanner reading off the picking sheet and brings the appropriate part to the operator access port. "We recognised that half of a parts pickers time was spent walking to find parts. Now, 85 per cent of all items selected are within 10 paces, " says Paul Bleasdale. warehouse supervisor.

"We can give better service because we're stocking more parts, " says Bleasdale. "We used to wait till a customer ordered a part number three times before we'd regularly keep that part in stock for him. Now, with the added space, we'll stock that part after only two calls. With the extra space we can move the packaging area closer to the picking points and consolidate even more."

For further details on how your business can benefit contact: Couzens Storage Solutions Limited,

*More for Less* *Finning's automated parts system freed 7560FT2 in its warehouse whilst also enabling it to increase the number of parts stocked.*
Maintaining control over 116,000 line items for a product range of over 300 models, falling into 40 different product families from loaders and dozers, to engines and lift trucks poses interesting problems. Finning UK Ltd, in Cannock, distribute and provide total support for Caterpillar plant and equipment throughout the United Kingdom and customer satisfaction drives their operations.
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	However in the early 1990s, Finning UK Ltd had a dilemma. Faced with handling growing volumes of parts, the company decided whether to expand its facilities, an expensive proposition, or to manage its cube more efficiently.
The vertical carousel uses a light bar with a 30 lamp position indicator board to show the operator which location to pick.

A Case Study: Finning UK Limited