ThyssenKrupp Materials (UK) expands its fleet of HUBTEX Electric Multidirectional Sideloaders to 6 units
ThyssenKrupp Materials (UK) Ltd, located in Milton Keynes, is a subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp AG which employs 150,000 people in around 80 countries, working with integrity, credibility, consistency and expertise to exceed the demands of their customers.
Dedicated to providing class-leading products and services supporting the needs of their diversified client base , ThyssenKrupp Materials (UK) have invested in premises, people, IT systems and not least, materials handling equipment to ensure consistent, reliable and secure supply.
Working round the clock with 12 strategically located warehouses and processing centres throughout the UK, ThyssenKrupp Materials (UK) has the geographic presence to meet specific customer demands and it was at one of these sites, Milton Keynes, were the proven expertise of HUBTEX UK was once again called upon.
Originally operating from three smaller sites around the Milton Keynes catchment area, ThyssenKrupp Materials (UK) merged operations in 2010 with a move into a single, purpose-built site. The new facility provides both increase stock storage and an integrated processing centre.
Karl Wooton – Warehouse Shift Manager explains:
Our Comments
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The move to larger premises was needed to cater for the ever increasing range and size of products and this also prompted our change to a new fleet of specialised Sideloaders as it became obvious that we needed more capacity, improved performance and greater flexibility. We operate 24 hours a day, 6 days a week so equipment reliability and performance supported by classleading service capabilities were key factors in our selection process.
The HUBTEX MSU30 is a highly manoeuvrable and innovative handling solution. With full multidirectional steering it is ideally suited to handle both long loads and pallets. Its compact design makes it especially suitable for narrow aisle storage and like all HUBTEX products a suite of options can be specified to tailor the truck to meet specific customer needs. Options to enhance operational efficiency and improve safety for both drivers and bystanders are available. For ThyssenKrupp, HUBTEX produced a customised operator cabin to provide sufficient headroom for a 6’ 7” tall driver!
The warehouse and processing centre at Milton Keynes holds extensive stocks of aluminium and steel stock bars/profiles. The MSU30’s are called upon to take products from cantilever racked narrow aisles into the process area where they are loaded into saws and cut to customer requirements. The MSU’s will also load vehicles and provide stock replenishment functionality., These HUBTEX Sideloaders operate in rail guided aisles of only 1,800 mm allowing ThyssenKrupp to maximise on storage density whilst improving operational efficiency.
Being a 24 hour operation calls for a safe and efficient means in which to change the batteries to ensure availability of the trucks at all times. All of the MSU30 Multidirectional Sideloaders are supplied with spare batteries and high frequency, rapid chargers. Following a recommendation from HUBTEX UK, all the batteries are fitted with ‘fork pockets’ which allows one operator to easily and safely change the batteries, a massive improvement on the old method which took twice as long and needed 2 people.
Karl Wooton concludes:
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The HUBTEX Sideloaders have made a significant difference to the efficiency and safety of the operation here at Milton Keynes. The trucks are certainly easier to operate, more manoeuvrable and built to cope with increasing load demands. From day one it felt like HUBTEX were offering a total solution rather than just a forklift to handle our products; the battery change facility has made a big difference as did the special driver’s cab and the service response, when called upon, has been excellent.
The main product features of the MSU30 trucks include:
• Lifting capacity to provide a degree of future-proofing for developing operations.
• A 2-part articulated frame to ensure permanent wheel contact at all times.
• Intermediate Lift Limitation to protect vulnerable areas of the facility.
• A safety system which prevents the truck from moving when mast reach is away from base position.
• Stand-up cabin
HUBTEX UK also provided ThyssenKrupp with support for extensive operator training to ensure efficient and safer handling from day one.
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