60 seconds with ... Harry Knight from Anheuser-Busch

Harry Knight on what materials handling automation has changed at the brewery.

By Staff -- Modern Materials Handling, 3/1/2006

Before we installed our seven-aisle automated storage and retrieval system and 50 guided vehicles, we only used manual handling. And it was much more complicated and time consuming than the way we operate today. Now we can better maximize efficiencies.

But automation changed much more than that. It opened up a whole new world for our people. To start, it's given them a chance to broaden their work skills. Automated equipment, programmable logic controllers, interfaces and the like have replaced lift trucks.

People had to learn how to use the new equipment, and, as a result, learned skills they never would have had to develop otherwise. That is a big plus for them. And the skills they need are not static. We've had this system in place for five years, and people are still developing new skills to make it even better.

They benefited in another major way, too. Automation has shifted the emphasis from doing the manual work of moving inventory to managing the process for top efficiency.

That means people have become better managers. They direct activities in their areas. The emphasis now is on planning, scheduling and checking.

And with more stock keeping units (SKUs) than ever, we need people to be focused on those three activities to ensure timely delivery of our product.