SMA Solar Technology AG trusts SSI Schaefer for his new logistical centre

Around the middle of April of 2012 the company SMA Solar Technology AG, leading of the world-wide market of photovoltaic investors, put in service his new logistical centre in the park Magna Park Kassel. In a ship of some 47.000 metres squared the company groups and optimises his logistical processes for the supply of materials of the production.

The group SSI Schaefer accompanied this project like partner commissioned to implement the installations intralogísticas. “The global concept has convinced us regarding the quality, flexibility and capacity of reaction”, affirms dr. Armin Lohse, vice president launch management & supply chain of SMA. Taking into account also the very just term, the decision of SMA had been correct. “From the planning until the first put in partial service have happened hardly 10 months. To be able to realizar this project need a reliable partner with the same professionalism and the same vision that ours”.

Commercial relation with a lot of tradition: from 15 years ago SMA uses containers and technology of shelves of SSI Schaefer, for example, shelves of panels, of paletización and shelves by gravity. Also the greater part of the shelves served manually or with carts in the new logistical centre proceeds of the provider of systems of Neunkirchen. A special importance in the logistical chain of SMA has it the warehouse miniload automatic with 5 corridors in the area of service as well as a system of semi-automatic storage for containers for small loads (KLT). This last serves for the supply “just in time” of all the centres of production.

In a first moment the defective investors envoys by the customers capture and store provisionally in the area of service. The software Wamas of SSI Schaefer connected to SAP represents the structure of the warehouse included the occupation of the shelves or modules. On the base of these informations, the system determines free modules and takes into account, go in go in things, the classes of height, the degrees of filled, the distribution and the availability. To continuation, the units of load are transported by means of the stravel transportadoras in loop to the corridor assigned where are loaded by the corresponding transelevador and stored in one of the 9.940 locations of the warehouse miniload. At the same time it takes place the confirmation or answer to SAP.

The desalmacenamiento carries out according to two distinct principles: The desalmacenamiento of defective investors is initiated by the system of control of manufacture and transferred via SAP to the system of control of the warehouse. After his repair the investors are stored again provisionally in the warehouse miniload. The process of desalmacenamiento of the equipment of spare repaired realizar, instead, according to specific informations as, for example, the numbers of series contained in the orders generated by SAP.

The five transelevadores of the type SMC 2 are equipment of two compact columns. With a speed of course of until 5 metres and a speed of elevation of until 4 metres by second can store and desalmacenar some 62 devices by hour and by corridor. The access to the supports of the devices of distinct sizes effects by means of a device tomacargas designed like telescopic table combined with device of exchange.

An ulterior flexibilización achieved thanks to the warehouse miniload semi-automatic of 3 plants with a special solution of the system of continuous transport for containers and boxes. The altillo with shelves by gravity for bultos integrated has been inserted inside a shelving of paletización with 460 locations. In the system of storage of containers for small loads, the supply of the trains of trailers serves to the production. By this reason, results especially important the hygiene of the processes. In the case that they arose problems in the installation, the production detains in all the factories two hours afterwards, at most, since these do not have of existences of materials. “Therefore, we have opted only by a system of partial automation”, explains the director of project SMA dr. Lohse. “Of this form do not see mermada our flexibility and can control our resources of suitable form.”

The ready containers in the shelving by gravity for bultos are provistos of a bar code, planted manually in the system of continuous transport for containers with capacity of electrostatic download and diverted to one of the eight stravel of destination.

“The global solution of SSI Schaefer corresponds exactly to our requests regarding a configuration of the flexible and slim processes”, resume the sr. Lohse.