Materials handling and lift solutions specialist Lödige (pronounced LER-DIGGER) has evolved over the past 50 years from a small business manufacturing hydraulic lifting platforms to a worldwide enterprise with a labour force of over 800 employees, active in over 40 countries.
In that time Lödige has earned a reputation as a reliable partner for the business of handling systems. From the installation of a single lift to a fully automated cargo terminal, Lödige offers the complete solution to its clients’ lifting needs as a one-stop service embracing design and consultancy, manufacture, installation, project management and servicing.
Peter Coles, Managing Director of Lödige (United Kingdom) Ltd, spoke to Warehouse & Logistics News.
Warehouse & Logistics News – First of all, Peter, as UK MD, what is your role in the company day to day?
I co-ordinate staffing levels and marketing activities to further develop Lödige UK’s positive reputation within the industry.
WLN – Are you directly involved in developing solutions for customers?
Yes, I am certainly keen to be involved in our customers’ projects, though it is our sales and service teams, together with our project managers and engineers, who are the experts in ensuring development and delivery of the solutions for clients.
WLN – Can you run through the different products and services that Lödige provides?
Lödige supplies goods lifts, vehicle lifts, scissor lifts, elevating transfer vehicles, roller decks, turntables, stacker cranes, and belt and chain conveyors for warehouse materials handling systems, air cargo projects, automotive production lines and automated car parking systems.
WLN – What loading bay equipment do you provide?
Lödige manufactures high quality cost effective products that range from standard items to bespoke equipment. Our loading bay dock lifts and truck docks are suitable for double and single deck lorries. Our Lorry Loaders can be either static or mobile, providing the solution both simplifying and creating a safe and rapid means to load and unload goods efficiently.
WLN – What’s the typical value of one of your projects?
The values of our projects range from 15,000 Euro to 150 Million Euros.
WLN – When was Lödige founded? Who owns it now?
The Lödige family founded the business in 1948, and it remains in Lödige family ownership.
WLN – How do you sum up the Lödige proposition?
In addition to the standard ranges of goods and vehicle lifts, Lödige are able to offer comprehensive, bespoke solutions for non-standard lifting and materials handling requirements, including air cargo, automotive and a variety of industrial applications.
WLN – What’s the smallest size contract you will undertake?
No project is either too large or too small. We will provide and install a single item from our standard range of lifts and hoists, or design and install a complete tailor-made solution. From the installation of a single lift to designing and commissioning a fully automated cargo terminal or warehouse storage system, we offer our clients a complete solution to their lifting and materials handling needs and provide a one-stop service, taking care of the whole project.
WLN – How is Lödige structured?
Three divisions form the core of our operation – the Machine Division, which manufactures and markets materials handling components and products such as lifts and scissor lifts; the Systems Division, which provides complete, fully automated solutions for materials handling requirements; and the Maintenance Division, which provides service, repair and modernisation to both Lödige and third party equipment. Complimenting these core divisions are two hi-tech divisions, Lödige Automation GmbHand Logit GmbH and LOGIT GMBH. Lödige Automation provides highly qualified specialists using digital image processing applications allowing our systems to be at the forefront of technological development. LOGIT provides software solutions with varying degrees of automation in material handling systems.
WLN – Where is your UK office? When did you open here? What about maintenance contracts?
Lödige’s UK office is near Egham, and therefore close to Heathrow Airport. The UK office was opened in 1998 and now has a turnover in excess of £5m. Maintenance contracts are managed and supported by our UK Service Department, which includes a nationwide team of engineers able to provide 24/7 call-out cover.
WLN – Can you tell us about your installations to date in the UK?
We have carried out installations here for a diverse range of clients including Birmingham Hippodrome Theatre, where we installed a 40,000kg scissor lift to carry articulated lorries from street level to the backstage area below. To compliment this equipment we also installed a smaller scenery lift and a 26-person lift. One of our best-known projects to date is the British Airways World Cargo Centre at London Heathrow, where the material handling system is designed to handle 1,000,000 tonnes of freight per year. It is an automated facility implementing a full version of Cargo Professional. Based on the so-called “Lift and Run” principle it achieves a 45 % higher throughput than a traditional cargo system.
WLN – What is Cargo Professional?
Cargo Professional is a software solution designed for the airline industry for the efficient management of warehouse inventory.
WLN – You recently put in place an unusual materials handling and lifts solution at One Hyde Park, London, one of the world’s most expensive residential apartment and retail complexes. Can you tell us about that?
The development includes three retail units totalling 385,000 sq ft and 86 residential properties marketed at prices from £20m to £136m, with an average 5 bedroom apartment selling for £65m. The aim of the £1.8m project was to install two 30-tonne scissor lifts to ensure service vehicles did not need to stop and cause congestion in Knightsbridge when delivering or collecting from the complex. One lift transports lorries down from street level, the other lift raises lorries from the basement back to street level, providing a one-way system for goods vehicles. And the lifts are busy from about 4am!
WLN – Why was the project so unusual?
It presented us with two major challenges, and a degree of complexity that we don’t normally experience. The first and biggest challenge was the logistics of offloading, assembling and positioning the lifts with millimeter precision into the lift pits, taking into account restricted room to manoeuvre, the possibility of damage to the street due to the weight of the lifts, and the necessity to keep noise and disturbance to a minimum in this exclusive residential area. A section of Knightsbridge had to be closed for deliveries on two consecutive Sundays, due to the size of the lift platforms, base frames and scissor mechanisms. The second challenge was to ensure that the materials, finish and operation of the lifts were appropriate for a prestigious residential complex, suiting the modern architecture of the building and meeting the architects’ specifications. The lifts were required to be operated from control panels within a security room at the complex, and had to work at an unusually high speed to ensure the correct throughput of vehicles and comply with a Traffic Analysis Report. They also had to comply to pre-specified acoustic and vibration levels to ensure the noise couldn’t be heard from the apartments. Very high quality stainless steel was used to ensure that the finish was perfect from ground level, inside the lift, on each floor and even down to the button controls.
WLN – Did you do all this with your UK team?
We used up to 12 engineers at any one time working on the installation, the majority of which were Lödige (UK) engineers, supported by engineers from Lödige’s factory in Germany where the units were designed and manufactured.
WLN – You say that was an unusual contract. Do you normally pull in resources from Germany for major contracts in the UK?
No, normally we only engage Lödige (UK) engineers, however we do have the option to call upon the support of our parent company for unusual and technical projects.
WLN – What sets Lödige apart? Why buy a materials handling and lift solution from you?
Lödige are highly experienced in supplying a full range of lifts for many applications; from relatively small material handling equipment to fully automated handling systems for air cargo handling, automotive production and car parking systems, and we provide full consultancy service, installation and maintenance support.
WLN – What new products and developments will you be showing at IMHX?
We will be talking about our goods lifts, vehicle lifts, scissor lifts, elevating transfer vehicles, roller decks, turntables, stacker cranes, and belt and chain conveyors. To be honest, not many products are brand new although most items are custom built, and in that sense are one-off.
WLN – Will you be showing any specific developments from your loading bay?
Yes, we will be showing one of our smaller dock lifts, but most of our equipment would be far too large to be shown at the exhibition! So we will be showing a number of video clips on our stand.
WLN – What else is new at IMHX?
Not many products are new concepts although most items are custom built, and in that sense are one-off. We will be talking about our goods lifts, vehicle lifts, scissor lifts, elevating transfer vehicles, roller decks, turntables, stacker cranes, and belt and chain conveyors.
WLN – How important are shows like IMHX to your company and its strategy?
Vital! Lödige has not exhibited or advertised in the UK for several years and we believe it is very important to keep our customers, both present and future, informed of our solutions and projects. It is our belief that potential customers looking for an automated materials handling supplier, warehouse systems supplier and/or automated car parking system, should be able to find out about our solutions and contact us with ease.
WLN – The big question: why should a busy professional from the logistics industry take a day out of the office to visit your stand?
To ensure they are aware of all the bespoke materials handling and lifting options available from Lödige, including goods lifts, vehicle lifts, scissor lifts, elevating transfer vehicles, roller decks, turntables, stacker cranes, and belt and chain conveyors.
WLN – Do you offer lifting system health check to people with third party lifting equipment? Will you be offering it on your stand at IMHX?
Yes, we are pleased to provide equipment evaluation and refurbishment advice, covering goods lifts, vehicle lifts, scissor lifts, elevating transfer vehicles, roller decks, turntables, stacker cranes, and belt and chain conveyors.
WLN – Looking at the wider picture, what do you see as the biggest pressures on users of your lifting solutions?
The biggest one is time, in terms of handling stock, products and materials and transferring them to the correct location without contamination or damage.
WLN – Finally, where do you see the UK lifting market and Lödige going from here?
We anticipate demand for new equipment will grow as businesses expand and/or refurbish their storage and materials handling capabilities.
Tel: 01784 221140
email: uk@lodige.com
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