Simple materials handling systems often can be designed with paper and pencil, a calculator, and some other basic tools. More complex operations, however, generally require sophisticated analysis and, in many cases, computer simulation. The latter turned out to be necessary when a drug store retailer needed innovative small parts sortation for its e-commerce side of its business.

The retailer commissioned a team from ASAP Automation and Bastian Material Handling to design and analyze this system.

Multiple objectives were pursued during months of work. The team wanted to evaluate and identify the impact of any system bottlenecks. Cycle time needed to be determined. The number of automatic guided vehicles required to transport non-conveyables also had to be identified. Sorter capacity had to be quantified. To verify design alternatives and its analysis, the team turned to computer simulation to ensure the system would perform as predicted.

Simulations of the retailer's traditional process and a proposed process were carried out to investigate the impacts of the many operational factors, to evaluate system performance, and to optimize processes. The simulation software has a 3-D animation capability, which provides a realistic picture of how the facility would operate under different conditions. The model animation can be viewed from any angle or perspective, providing the team with excellent visualization capabilities.

Simulation modeled the overall layout of the sorter system as well as such processes as presort and customer assignment, sorter induction, packaging, use of AGVs, manifesting, and pack quality control.

Simulation, according to the team, helped finalize a number of system parameters, including resource distribution for optimal utilization. The team determined that processing 5,500 orders over a two-shift day was the sortation system's upper limit, for example.

AutoSimulations Division of Brooks Automation
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