Yale® products have helped printing specialists Ellerhold Group to maximise efficiency in its Zirndorf warehouse with a made-to-measure solution developed by Nuremberg based Yale dealer M. + S. Bauer.

The Client: Ellerhold Group

Founded in 1987 in the town of Zirndorf, near Nuremberg, Ellerhold Group has developed in a short space of time into a well-known poster printing company, with a staff of 600 employees in Germany and a total turnover of around EUR 76 million in 2015.

From indoor posters to outdoor billboard advertising, Ellerhold Group has a versatile product portfolio with an offering that has evolved to meet ever-changing market demands. In 1999, the company opened its second location in Radebeul near Dresden – where it is currently headquartered – and purchased, modernised or expanded four other production sites in Wismar, Witten, Glücksburg and Berlin.

Investing for the future: the intralogistics challenge

In 2014, production expanded to self-adhesive labels for the beverage industry, bringing with it a need for Ellerhold not only to buy new presses, but also to expand its production site in Zirndorf. With a total investment of 3 million Euros, Ellerhold Group built a new two-storey administrative and production building in 2015, including a warehouse on an area of about 1,500m2.

The old printing premises were completely demolished and a new building was built that corresponded to the typical Ellerhold architectural style. One particular characteristic of the Ellerhold business is the curved roof in the storage area of the print shop, which presents the intralogistics supplier with major challenges, because offthe- shelf storage technology solutions cannot be used. This is where Yale has played an integral role.

Yale: a modern, scalable solution

“In the market the name Ellerhold stands not only for high-quality printing products, but also for on-time delivery,” says Bernd Schmidt, CEO of Ellerhold in Zirndorf. “For this reason we wanted to equip our warehouse with a modern intralogistics solution that even with continued growth offers scalability. Among the many proposed solutions, the Yale concept was the only one that convinced us.”

On average Ellerhold Zirndorf receives 40 orders a day, and about 100 picking orders are processed daily in two shifts. At about 50,000 individual daily orders, the printing specialist wanted to leave nothing to chance even with the internal logistics.

“The Yale dealer, M. + S. Bauer from Nuremberg offered the best overall concept by far,” explains Bernd Schmidt, “consisting of a high-bay warehouse and a narrow aisle truck. It was important that the space is used optimally, so that we have the largest possible number of pallet spaces available. Sufficient area also had to be provided for ground-level parking spaces to pick fast-movers using a pallet truck.”

That the intralogistics solution comes now from one source is an added bonus. “With M. + S. Bauer,” he continues, “we now have a reliable contact who knows the project and all its components and has been involved in the planning and implementation. With the Yale solution, not only was the desired number of pallet spaces achieved, but also the ground-level parking spaces. The existing warehouse space was thereby maximised perfectly.”

“Due to the fact that the hall layout could not be modified any more, it was very difficult to meet the requirements with standard shelving systems,” explains Martin Gärth, V.M.L. Consultant at M. + S. Bauer. “A customised shelf solution was necessary so that we were able to deliver perfectly with the PowerPal® pallet racking system, as the manufacturer provides custom dimensions. With the flexible PowerPal-shelf systems, Yale has utilised the available space optimally, to offer a high-bay warehouse for around 900 pallet spaces in an area of approximately 500m2.

“With such a narrow aisle width, the materials handling vehicle had to be very compact, to still be able to operate safely in the aisle,” adds Martin Gärth. “The Yale narrow aisle truck MTC 10 with swivel reach fork and integrated pantograph was the perfect truck for Ellerhold.”

Real space saver in narrow aisles

The Yale narrow aisle truck MTC 10 was especially designed for applications where a maximum utilisation of storage space is important. The truck at Ellerhold has a lifting height up to 7,800mm with a capacity of one tonne.

Through the use of a pantograph the width of the vehicle has been reduced to 1,420mm. “40mm was ultimately decisive,” says Martin Gärth. “With this measure, the goods remain inside the cabin contour and a safe use in the aisle is ensured.”

The pantograph that is integrated into the swivel reach fork also enables a faster and more precise storage of pallets on the shelves. In addition, the top and bottom mounted swivel reach fork ensures a perfect load handling at all times as well as a good view of the forks and pallet. Even in the lowered fork position, the operator has both forks in view.

Tailored to customer requirements

The narrow aisle truck at Ellerhold was adapted to the specific application in the high-bay racking. For instance the speed was limited when the vehicle leaves the high-bay racking and passes under the longitudinal beams of the shelf to receive the goods on the staging areas before the high-bay warehouse. Due to the limited space these spaces can only be operated when the vehicle is turning on the spot.

Yale and Ellerhold: a 25-year proven partnership

“In the past we have had a very good experience with Yale and the Yale dealer,” says Bernd Schmidt. “This relates to the quality of the equipment, durability and especially the good service. If we need help, the response from M. + S. Bauer is always immediate and they have solved problems quickly, with minimum administration and competence for 25 years.”

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