Daifuku is targeting the automotive industry with SPDR – a temporary storage and sortation systems for spare parts.
SPDR (pronounced Spider) comprises an automated robotic arm, which automatically lowers and raises to grasp a wide range of tote sizes. This flexibility enables the picking of small items quickly, which is ideal for kitting.
The system does not use racking – it is based on a framework which enables movement in four directions. The system stacks cases directly onto the floor of any open area within the support columns.
The arm mechanism is a proprietary technology and can handle cases of varying sizes. It can grasp cases one by one or in a stack, and can handle cases on lower layers, which facilitates operation, such as picking retrieval and grouping retrieval, to satisfy requirements on the line side.
Harry Chana, head of automotive at Daifuku said: “We had received many requests from customers who wanted to use limited space more effectively, automate operations with different case sizes and also install temporary storage solution in a short time period. SPDR has proven very popular globally so we’re keen to offer this flexible solution to European OEMs.”
The system has a throughput of up to 80 storage and retrieval cycles per hour, with a maximum storage height of 7m.
