On December 16, Ezaki Glico announced that its subsidiary, Kansai Frozen, had introduced automated guided vehicles (AGVs) capable of operating in a -25°C cold storage warehouse, coinciding with the relocation of its Hiroshima branch (Hiroshima City) to a newly constructed building.
By automating the transport of heavy trolleys in a frozen environment and integrating it with a warehouse management system (WES), we aim to significantly improve the efficiency of frozen warehouse operations, reduce the workload on employees, and enhance safety.
<Introduction of Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs)>
The AGV was jointly developed by Aichi Machine Techno System, Ezaki Glico's SCM Headquarters Technology Development Department, and Kansai Frozen, which possesses expertise in cold storage operations, by combining their respective technologies and experiences to create a specification suitable for cold environments. Its features include a design that maintains stable battery performance even at -25°C and a mechanism to prevent sensor malfunctions due to condensation or freezing.
The introduction of AGVs will automate the towing of heavy carts, which was previously done manually, using six AGVs, and is expected to reduce working hours by approximately 4928 hours per year (13.5 hours per day). This will shorten the time employees spend working in a refrigerated environment, creating a more comfortable working environment, and will also lead to reduced truck waiting times due to the increased efficiency of transportation operations.
Ezaki Glico plans to use the introduction of AGVs as a starting point, gradually rolling them out to Glico Group logistics warehouses nationwide while verifying their effectiveness, with the aim of establishing a new standard model for frozen logistics.
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