Zwijndrecht, 6 February 2012 - Egemin Automation has won a new AGV contract with laminate flooring manufacturer Unilin, well-known for its Quick-Step flooring. The contract comprises the delivery and commissioning of three automated Still FMX trucks for storing laminate packs in block storage and in racks. At a later stage Egemin will be supplying 2 additional FLV1010/S laser-guided AGVs for the manual picking areas. Increased automation of the process allows for greater cost efficiency and more structure, leading to operational benefits.
The automated forklift trucks and AGVs are destined for the Flooring Department in Wielsbeke. Delivery onsite and commissioning of the vehicles are scheduled for early September this year.
AGV Automation Pack for standard forklift trucks
Since 2009, Egemin has been integrating its AGV technology into conventional forklift trucks in the form of an Automation Pack. The AGV Automation Pack complements Egemin’s standard and made-to-measure AGV solutions which Egemin has been providing to customer since the early seventies. The technology pack consists of sensors for navigation, safety and pallet positioning, navigation software to allow the vehicle to drive automatically and central management software for traffic control and dispatching. Egemin wants to introduce this technology as an internal transport solution for standard applications due to the quick return on investment and short installation time.
Since 2010 Egemin has already sold dozens of AGV projects with automation packs. As with many previous projects, Egemin once again chose Still reach trucks to integrate its Automation Pack on. Thanks to the close collaboration and knowledge sharing between Egemin and Still, the Automation Pack has been optimised for Still’s FMX and MX warehouse trucks.
Teaming up automation projects
Egemin Automation and the Unilin Group have been working together on automation projects for a long time. In the period 2000 – 2009 Egemin integrated a fleet of 17 automatic guided vehicles spread over 10 different stages. These AGVs are used to transport laminate flooring between the production machines and the automatic warehouse.
Egemin performed a full-scale retrofit of the AGVs afterwards. Egemin also installed a high-bay warehouse at Unilin incorporating WMS software for the warehouse management and control of the stacker cranes. Unilin’s Insulation Department in Desselgem is also a customer of Egemin.