DAIFUKU: Green logistics – individual measures not effective

Optimizing material handling promotes a sustainable energy balance – individual measures are not effective.

Green footprint through efficient intralogistics

 

More and more logisticians are thinking “green”. But environmentally friendly and resource-saving intralogistics requires highly efficient and well-thought-out material handling systems. This not only means the energy consumption of systems, but also the efficiency of individual components of a logistics center.

Since 2010, legislation has stipulated that logistics buildings must ensure low-CO2 operations. This means that a large proportion of energy consumption must largely come from renewable sources. By 2020, the federal government has set itself the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40% compared to 1990. Germany is expected to become almost greenhouse gas neutral by 2050. Not only politics, but also rising energy costs and customer requirements are putting pressure on a better energy balance. A study conducted by PwC on sustainability in the transport and logistics industry comes to the conclusion that customer requirements are the strongest determining factor for sustainability regulations. More and more companies are therefore committed to an environmentally friendly supply chain - and not just for reasons of reputation. Markus Becker, Business Development Manager at the Japanese material handling expert DAIFUKU, explains: “We have been following Environmental Vision 2020 since 2011, with which we as a company stand for a sustainable environment. Every business activity we do is carried out against the background of environmentally conscious actions. Of course, this particularly includes the development and provision of material flow systems with low environmental impact.”

Optimization potential of logistics centers

According to a final report by the Chair of Materials Handling, Material Flow, and Logistics and the Chair of Building Climatology and Building Services Engineering at the Technical University of Munich, published as part of a project promoting industrial collaborative research and development, buildings in the EU and Germany are responsible for 36% of greenhouse gas emissions and 40% of energy consumption. Lighting, space heating, hot water, and air conditioning are particularly significant factors, accounting for 35% of the energy consumption of non-residential buildings in Germany. It is already possible to achieve energy savings of almost 50% in a logistics warehouse – for example, in temperature-controlled warehouses through heat recovery. Energy consumption can be minimized not only through appropriate building design but also by examining the energy requirements of intralogistics parameters. A truly green optimization of a logistics center can only succeed if all energy flows are monitored for their energy consumption. While in a manual warehouse only a small portion of around 20% of electricity consumption is attributable to material handling technology, intralogistics in a fully automated distribution center is responsible for 85% of the total energy demand.

Energy-efficient components in intralogistics

Markus Becker is convinced that this trend can be further expanded and optimized in the coming years. "At DAIFUKU, we are far ahead when it comes to green logistics. For several years now, we have been focusing on energy-efficient intralogistics systems." This is due, he says, "to rising energy costs on the one hand and political influences on the other." He observes, "When investing in new intralogistics systems, performance criteria such as throughput or dynamics are no longer the sole deciding factor," and adds, "The energy consumption of the systems is becoming increasingly important in tenders." Consumption depends significantly on the masses being moved. In recent years, DAIFUKU has therefore drastically reduced the weight of its storage and retrieval machines. This has allowed them to minimize the drive power of the motors used, and thus energy consumption, while maintaining or even improving dynamic performance.

A concrete example is provided by the H-Class pallet stacker cranes, which are built up to a height of 40 meters – here, 25% of the mass has been saved. This was achieved, among other things, through a completely redesigned mast. This solution consists of a combination of a lattice mast and steel tube profiles. These design measures are complemented by sophisticated control concepts that, for example, actively counteract mast vibrations during acceleration and deceleration. In combination with an automated storage system, DAIFUKU's STV (Sorting Transportation Vehicle) also forms a high-performance integrated transport system. A frame structure with fewer control boxes results in a 9% weight reduction, the use of highly efficient motors leads to a 10% reduction in power consumption, and CO2 emissions and energy consumption are also reduced by 10% compared to previous models.

In addition, DAIFUKU developed the Shuttle Rack M. Besides the increased throughput compared to a conventional automated small parts warehouse (AS/RS), this system reduces power consumption because the shuttle weight to payload ratio is particularly advantageous.

Individual measures not effective

“When optimizing and designing logistics buildings and facilities, it’s not enough to simply improve individual components,” explains Markus Becker. “Even if logistics halls are built according to current energy efficiency standards, their internal systems must be included in the energy planning.” However, the weighting of these factors varies: The final report from the Chair of Materials Handling, Material Flow, and Logistics and the Chair of Building Climatology and Building Services Engineering at the Technical University of Munich concludes that three types must be distinguished, each with a different weighting of potential savings. Manually operated logistics halls can most readily reduce their overall energy consumption through measures implemented on the building itself. In a semi-autonomous warehouse, the influence of intralogistics already rises to 70%, and consequently, a fully automated logistics center is 85% dependent on energy-efficient intralogistics. The importance of scalable and energy-saving intralogistics is therefore a crucial factor in the planning of an autonomous logistics warehouse.

DAIFUKU CO., LTD. – the company

Founded in 1937, DAIFUKU is one of the world's leading providers of material handling systems. As a globally operating company, DAIFUKU maintains eleven factories at its production site in Shiga, Japan. Independent subsidiaries in Great Britain and Germany, as well as partners in Spain, Portugal, and Scandinavia, are also part of the company. Currently, over 30,000 storage and retrieval machines and 10,000 systems are in operation worldwide. Reference customers include BELIMO, Canon, Dagab, DELL, Hammesfahr, ICA, Lever Fabergé, Levi Strauss, Netto, Opel, Riverford, Supergros, and many more.

Your contact person at DAIFUKU ⯈ Mr. Markus Becker: Contact form – Telephone: +49 2161 68 33 044