Automated truck loading systems

Automated Truck Loading Systems - ATLS has been commonly used in the material handling industry to refer to the automation of loading or unloading trucks and trailers with product either on or without pallets, slip sheets, racks, containers, using several different types of automated guided vehicle systems (AGV) or engineered conveyor belt systems that are integrated into vehicles, automating the shipping / receiving and logistics operations.[1]

These conveyor systems are commonly referred to as

  • Roller beds
  • Slip chains
  • T-Bars
  • Live Floors
  • Roller Tracks
  • Belt Floors
  • Trailer Skates
  • Skate & Tracks
  • Slat Floors
  • Chain Floors
  • Cable Floors
  • Powered Cargo Rollers

Some of these systems are used to handle bulk products such as garbage, agriculture products, recycled tires, cotton, bark or sawdust. Manufacturing industries such as automotive, food & beverage, paper, consumer products, appliance manufacturers and uses ATLS systems for incoming materials and outgoing product to increase throughput and streamline production. The transportation industry relies heavily on ATLS material handling systems to rapidly move product via land, sea, and air.

Next to solutions for palletised goods, Ancra Systems developed a custommade trailer unloading system for the automatic unloading of loose loaded parcels. The major advantages of this solution:

ATLS vehicle loading technologies significantly reduce the manpower required on the shipping and receiving docks, eliminate product damage, accidents, and ergonomic injuries related to lift-truck operation. Generally, products can be loaded quicker and product density is increased resulting in more payload per shipment which reduces shipping cost, using a loading automation system. Loading automation is often the key component to achieve complete plant automation.

See also

References

  1. ↑ David J. Piasecki (2003), Inventory Accuracy: People, Processes, & Technology, OPS PUBLISHING, ISBN 0-9727631-0-4
  2. ↑ "Automatic truck loading solutions - ANCRA SYSTEMS - Home".
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Friday, October 10, 2014. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.