Automated picking and packing solution supports workstations

Belimo Americas is a world leader in the design and manufacture of damper actuators and control valves used in commercial HVAC systems. To achieve more efficient production and improved inventory controls, the company built a 75,000-square-foot automated warehouse in Danbury, Conn.

The primary purpose of the new facility is to ensure a reliable supply of raw materials to support a growing manufacturing operation as well as reduce shipping times of finished product to customers. The new facility includes a mini-load system; a gravity-flow area connected to the mini-load; zone bypass conveyors; goods-to-person workstations for picking, packing and made-to-order (MTO) items; very narrow aisle racking; and a warehouse control system (WCS).

With the new system (SSI Schaefer Systems International), full pallets are stored in the very narrow-aisle racking, which are later used for the direct picking of super-fast movers or to feed the picking workstations functioning as putaway and inventory replenishment. The conveying loop allows for three picking areas: a conveyor diverter where super-fast items are directly picked from pallets; picking faces on the flow rack for fast items; and goods-to-person workstations directly fed from the mini-load for all other slower moving items. The mini-load is sized for 16,320 locations with 264 flow rack channels and can be extended for future growth.

Once the picking process is completed, order totes are conveyed to either the packing workstations (for finished products) or the MTO workstations to assemble the pre-picked components to a finished assembly, which upon completion will also be conveyed to the pack-out workstations. The MTO process allows Belimo to prepare final assemblies for shipment in minimal time from receipt of the customer order. Both the assembly and pack-out workstation areas are ergonomically designed to provide the optimal work environment for each employee, leading to increased throughput, quality and reduced fatigue.

“We built in the capacity to expand the building if additional production or office space is needed,” says John Coppola, Belimo’s vice president of finance and administration for America operations. “The project was delivered on time, and we were able to transition into our new facility on schedule without interruption to our business and customer service.”