Joloda Hydraroll has partnered with Georgi Handling to install an air cargo material handling system in its new goods processing warehouse. The overall aim of the project is to make transferring cargo and freight in and out of trucks more efficient and safer. “As a company, we have several product groups and we see cargo in general as a big market sector where we are active in. We have systems for automatically loading/unloading random freight,” Bart Sloot, Joloda Hydraroll’s sales manager, said.
Georgi Handling has recently extended its client services and opened a new warehouse at Leipzig airport to process inbound and outbound air cargo freight. The warehouse will act as a hub to distribute cargo further into its network, and to provide added services and support.
First, however, the warehouse needed to be equipped with the necessary facilities. It was originally fitted with a traditional-style loading dock with roller shutter doors; there were no facilities to safely and quickly load and unload unit load devices (ULDs) and PMC pallets from standard and mega air cargo (low floor height) trailers into the warehouse.
The air cargo logistics specialist required a safe, flexible, yet temporary solution to make the operations in the warehouse as efficient as possible. “The growing need for cargo and e-commerce that was moved from the airport really boosted our business,” Sloot said.
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Joloda Hydraroll specified and supplied one of its peumatic rise and fall rollerbed solutions – the Joloda Hydraroll Modular Rollerbed System – which is specifically designed for warehouse applications. The system enables the warehouse floor to be converted into an air cargo handling station. Operators can directly transfer the cargo by rolling it in and out, helping Georgi Handling to speed up its freight transfer and optimise the loading and unloading processes.
The idea of Joloda Hydraroll’s system is to improve automation in cargo facilities, boosting the efficiency of the loading process, helping to grow the output and reduce the number of trucks, trailers and warehouse staff required. “It’s boosting the output…We can load a full truck in two or three minutes with 30 or 40 pallets. That’s really fast, so it means you have very short downtime,” he added.
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The rollerbed system is a prebuilt, modular system that can be installed on top of any flat surface, such as a warehouse floor or a trailer. When safely docked in the loading bay, the rollerbed system can transfer goods from the trailer onto the rollerbed in the warehouse. Tyre guides and ramps help to level the trailer to the warehouse floor so the rollerbed is continuous. The system also offers great flexibility during setup, as the modular rollerbed frames and wheel ramps are retro-fitted and secured to the concrete with heavy-duty bolts, which makes it possible to remove.
The pneumatic rise and fall rollerbed technology ensures the system is much safer than live-roller alternatives. Safety features include auto lowering of the rollers, pallet stops and quick exhaust valves, as well as a safety cage and safety fuse around the electric winch. The winch is used to pull out, load and unload the pallets, which keeps operators at a safe distance from the system during use.
The company has been forced to navigate a few hurdles to provide its product to customers though, as the global markets have been affected by a string of challenges. “Our factories are all based in the UK, so we were definitely impacted, as a lot of material was coming in by sea. As with every company, we have seen our costs increase. That’s market wide,” he said. “We try to think creatively and find new ways to keep the impact as low as possible for customers.”
All in all, the modular rollerbed system took just two days to fully install. Since then, the company has been able to easily and safely roll in and out ULDs and PMC pallets from its rollerbed trailers into the warehouse. By handling all cargo on rollers, the air cargo logistics specialist has improved operational safety for both the workers and the cargo itself, while meeting the necessary safety requirements from their customers – the airline operators. The pictures and videos speak for themselves. Just seeing them opens people’s eyes. I think it’s the perfect fit for a lot of companies,” Sloot concluded.
