Sheets for the first 2 punching machines in the old production hall were originally stored on pallets on the ground. The customer built a new production hall where he placed 2 punching machines from the old production hall and purchased 2 new punching machines.

Since the storage on the ground for 4 punching machines was no longer sufficient, the customer decided to solve the metal sheet storage with the MS Multi Tower automated vertical storage system from the Heavy Tower vertical systems portfolio. This system was installed between all 4 punching workstations within reach of the column jib cranes that are at each workstation. The MS Multi Tower system has thus facilitated the work of the operators of all punching workplaces, who no longer need to use a forklift for their work - the MS Multi Tower system prepares the required metal sheet at the operator dispensing area, and the operator uses suction cups to move the metal sheet to the table of the punching machine, where it subsequently starts the punching process. The storage system is also equipped with an independent station for the entry of material into the storage positions. The storekeeper uses a forklift to place the depalletized sheet metal package on this station and store it.

The customer uses this MS Multi Tower sheet material storage system to store various sheets of max. format 1250×2500 mm with a weight of up to 3500 kg as a storage before further processing in production at punching stations. All operator dispensing areas are equipped with a material lifter for storing entire packages of sheets with a forklift or for easier manual removal of a single sheet. Before entering, the package of sheets is removed from the pallet using a "depalletizer", then the package of sheets (no longer palletized) is handled by a forklift into the MS Multi Tower storage system. A column jib crane in the hall with suction cups is used to remove individual pieces at the output areas, or the operator moves them manually using a static conveyor to the table of the punching machine.

Effective use of the Multi Tower system is guaranteed by the careful specification of the customer's requirements, on the basis of which the storage parts of the system were designed as close as possible to the punching stations.

The system of 4 storage towers with 5 operator areas is controlled by a PLC with its own intuitive control interface for controlling and diagnosing the storage system. The operator can call the requested number of the container to the required dispensing area. A standard communication interface was used to connect the WMS (Warehouse Management System) used by the customer. The operator therefore uses the WMS they are used to. The device enables remote management and therefore it is possible to perform remote access from the supplier and perform remote customer support.

With this advanced technology, we have created 266 m² of effectively usable area for the automated storage of items with a total storage capacity of 266 tonnes on a floor area of approximately 80 m².

It doesn't end there! The customer evaluated the effectiveness of this solution and after a year implemented the exact same project in the attached ship of the production building. Two identical MS Multi Tower automated storage systems therefore serve a total of 8 punching machines with a total capacity of 532 tonnes.