News from the NA 2008 Show Floor, Day Four

Find out what's happening at the NA08 conference today, April 24, 2008.

By Staff -- Modern Materials Handling, 4/24/2008

So long NA, hello ProMat. The exit signs say it all: Thanks for coming to NA08. See you at ProMat09.

Green companies among first-time NA exhibitors. Companies exhibiting at NA08 have a variety of reasons for being here. From expanding their brand presence to introducing new products, exhibitors hope to generate new business opportunities.

Job posting Web site for MH students. The new Gateway job posting Web site is the first site dedicated solely to recruiting students within the materials handling industry.

Four days of problem solving and networking. Today marks the conclusion of NA 2008, four days of comprehensive problem solving and networking to provide solutions to the complex manufacturing and supply chain challenges faced by industry today.

Gorbel improves light-duty lifting. Gorbel (Booth 2804) introduced a new jib crane and several new intelligent lifting devices at a press conference on Tuesday.

Yale shows masted walkie truck. Yale Materials Handling Corporation (Booth 1801) is displaying lift trucks that offer productivity, dependability and ergonomic solutions, in line with its new Industrial Grade Critical Components initiative.

Seegrid demonstrates new camera-guided robot. At a press conference Tuesday, materials handling industry veteran Greg Cronin used those words to describe the technology offered by Seegrid Corporation (Booth 2627), a start-up company he recently joined as executive vice president.

Supply chain software suite. HighJump Software, a 3M company (Booth 832), released the latest version of its extended supply chain execution solutions.

TranSystems | ESYNC combine supply chain expertise. Twelve months ago, ESYNC (Booth 1640) was a 60-person consulting company, with a focus on transportation and distribution and an expertise in supply chain software and automatic identification technologies.

Plug Power showcases fuel cell technology. Plug Power (Booth 2647) is exhibiting two counterbalanced lift trucks and a pallet truck, each equipped with GenDrive technology. GenDrive is the company’s line of hydrogen fuel cell power units designed to fully replace lead acid batteries in lift trucks and other materials handling vehicles.

AC trucks offer environmental benefits. At Jungheinrich (Booth 1408), concern for the environment led to a push in the continued development of AC electric vehicles, offered as a replacement for internal combustion engine trucks.

Wider bins offer expanded carousel storage. The EXACTPick carousel system, featuring 4-foot wide bins for expanded storage and picking, was released yesterday by Diamond Phoenix (Booth 1622) in a press conference.

New pallet runner introduced. Konstant (Booth 3000), a supplier of warehouse racking and pallet storage solutions, introduced an automated high density storage system for users of drive-through pallet rack.

Branded, reusable packaging totes. At Scholler Arca Systems (Booth 3045), a variety of smaller, handheld reusable plastic totes are on display.

New ink jet printer delivers high-speed multi-line messages. A new ink jet printer from Videojet (Booth 2632) is designed for customers who want to print multi-line messages at high speeds.

Holjeron improves motor-driven roller. As the cost of electricity rises, energy-efficient motor-driven roller (MDR) conveyor is becoming increasingly popular. At NA08 this week, Holjeron (Booth 1420) is showcasing two new technologies that make MDR conveyor even more attractive.