Modern Materials Handling articles from August 2006

Modern Materials Handling archives from August 2006

60 seconds with ...(interview with John Evans)(Interview)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... By Staff John Evans on what it takes to build the right kind of relationship between a 3PL and a client. There are really three areas that require attention here. The first is to define expectations of both our customer and ourselves....

Model manufacturer makes less into more.(Revell-Monogram Inc. )(storage and production)(Editorial)
August 1, 2006... By Sara Pearson Specter, Editor at Large Revell Monogram reduces storage and increases productivity by 300%. When Revell Monogram, a major manufacturer of plastic and die-cast models, closed a plant, the company moved its customer...

Carousels consolidate storage.(Bon Secours Health System Inc. improves the storage facilities)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... By Staff Bon Secours saves space and maximizes productivity as it supplies multiple medical centers from a single DC. When it consolidated storage for its four Richmond, Va., area hospitals, Bon Secours Richmond Health System became...

VLM proves powerful tool.(Mississippi Valley Stihl)(Editorial)
August 1, 2006... By Sara Pearson Specter, Editor at Large Orders are filled with 40% less labor at a power tool distributor. After several years of growth, Mississippi Valley Stihl knew it needed to upgrade its product storage and organizational...

Focus on hoists.
August 1, 2006... By Staff Air-powered hoists lift up to 25 tons Staff Rugged cast iron housings make TCR large-capacity, air-powered hoists ideal for heavy lifting in extreme environments. Available in 10- and 25-ton capacities, the vane...

The transportation bandwagon.(cost effective management of the transportation industry)(Column)
August 1, 2006... By Jim Apple Controlling transportation costs has become a critical part of running your DC. Sometimes, as we are working hard to develop the very best layout and process for a distribution center, we get trumped by the team that is...

The story behind the Sunday paper.(Globe Newspaper Co. effectively manages with the sunday inserts)(Editorial)
August 1, 2006... By Gary Forger, Editorial Director It isn't easy building Sunday advertising insert bundles, but The Boston Globe gets it done with new-found efficiencies. Some people read the Sunday paper for the extra features. Others, however, are...

Stop flying blind.
August 1, 2006... By Gary Forger, editorial director Modern runs its share of stories about the retail supply chain. Some of the more recognizable companies we've written about in the recent past include Blockbuster, Stop & Shop, CVS, Michaels, Kirkland's...

Supply chain software is more important than ever.(surveys on Supply chain management software)(Survey)
August 1, 2006... By Staff Growth in the market for supply chain software has slowed, but Modern's readers are increasingly relying on it. In recent years, the market for supply chain software has matured. The overall market for supply chain execution...

Jungheinrich adds reach truck, drops Multiton name.(Jungheinrich Lift Truck Corp.)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... By Staff To improve its position in the U.S. market, Jungheinrich Lift Truck Corp. has introduced a new pantograph reach truck and is rebranding its Multiton line of pallet trucks. The company is the world's fourth largest supplier of...

Combilift offers three new trucks, opens new HQ.(headquarters)
August 1, 2006... By Staff While many think the lift truck business is mature and short on product development, the industry has enjoyed strong growth for three years now, and introduced more than 40 new models in that time. Riding that wave has been...

KUKA introduces compact robots for delicate work.(KUKA Robotics)(KR5 SCARA)(KR5 Sixx)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... By Staff KUKA Robotics ( www.kuka.com ) has introduced a series of compact robots, including the KR5 SCARA robot family and the KR5 Sixx robot family. Both product lines have a five-kilogram capacity and are designed for high-speed,...

The battle for privacy with RFID.(bill passed against the usage of radio frequency identification equipments)
August 1, 2006... By Staff This spring, Wisconsin passed a bill making it a crime to forcibly implant people with RFID chips that could be used to track their movements. That may seem like a solution in search of a problem, but it does highlight the kinds...

Customers want shorter lead times, report says.(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... By Staff Customers demanding shorter lead times is the No. 1 pressure facing manufacturers today, according to research from the Aberdeen Group ( www.aberdeen.com ). This is a shift from what researchers saw 18 months ago, when...

Lean manufacturing: It's popular, but not easy.(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... By Staff Lean manufacturing has become a worldwide trend. Approximately 60% of discrete-parts manufacturers in the United States have adopted lean initiatives, says Ralph Rio, research director at ARC Advisory Group ( www.arcweb.com ),...

Top 20 system suppliers.(Swisslog Holding AG )(reports)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... By Staff Swisslog reported an inaccurate revenue figure for the Top 20 Systems Suppliers ranking published in our April issue. The company's fiscal year 2005 revenue was $448 million, not the $324 million initially reported. This...

People to know.
August 1, 2006... By Staff Ronald Belhasen joined Celerity Automation as plant manager--Supply chain execution software company ClearOrbit promoted John Reece to chief executive officer--Intelligrated promoted Bryan Jones to vice president, corporate...

Product Showcase.(TKO CruiserWeight dock doors.)(4700 series of four-wheel, sit-down electric lift trucks.)(Easy-to-use protective packaging.)
August 1, 2006... By Staff High-speed label dispenser automatically removes backings Staff A high-speed electro-static discharge safe label dispenser, the HLD-2000, dispenses more than 130 labels per minute. It automatically removes backings...

Conveyor gets distributor cooking.(Meyer Corp. )(distribution management)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... By Noël P. Bodenburg Meyer Corp. cut trailer unloading time by several hours and speeds cartons to palletizing. Folks at the Meyer Corporation, a distributor of high-end cookware, were tired from so much heavy lifting. Every...

Top 20 lift truck suppliers.(Editorial)
August 1, 2006... By Corinne Kator, Associate Editor The worldwide lift truck market is still growing, but at a slower pace. After two extremely strong years, growth in the worldwide lift truck market slowed to a moderate level in 2005. According to...

GM plant experiments with hydrogen.(General Motors)(hydrogen-powered lift trucks introduces)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... By Staff General Motors of Canada is launching a two-year pilot project to use hydrogen-powered lift trucks at the GM plant in Oshawa. The project will use the beta version of Hydrogenics' HyPM fuel cell power packs in as many as 19...

EU launches RFID research program.(European Union)(radio frequency identification)(finance for Building Radio frequency identification )(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... By Staff The European Union has invested roughly $9.5 million (7.5 million) in a three-year initiative to study and develop RFID technology based on EPCglobal standards. Coordinated by the global data standards body GS1, the project...

A global standard for RFID.(radio frequency identification)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... By Staff The RFID industry finally has an international compatibility standard for UHF hardware. The International Standards Organization (ISO) has accepted EPCglobal's UHF Generation 2 air interface protocol, making it the...

Gorbel offers overhead handling help.(www.gorbel.com/cranespec)(website introduction)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... By Staff Crane and hoist manufacturer Gorbel has created a free online tool to help architects and engineers specify the right crane for a building or application. The resource site is available at www.gorbel.com/cranespec . The...

Aerial gets a makeover.
August 1, 2006... By Corinne Kator, Associate Editor Automation cleans up this beauty supply distributor's picking operations, eliminating congestion and boosting productivity. Beauty supply distributor Aerial Co. had a messy problem. As the company's...