Hundreds of boards, stacked with utmost precision. Robotic arms grasp, lift, and pack – fully-automatically.
Processes run like clockwork in the new Egger board storage system in St Johann, Austria, and it was all made possible by the Business Unit Board at IMA Schelling with a custom-made logistics solution.
A faint hum fills the new Egger warehouse, with hundreds of Eurodekor boards and decor impregnation materials stored here in high rows of shelving, accurately stacked and ready for the next order.
A shuttle moves repeatedly and precisely into position to pick board stacks while in the fully automated packaging area, robotic arms pack, secure and label the pallets for transportation.
In recent years, Egger has focused increasingly on automating its logistics processes whilst never losing sight of its goals: to be as efficient and flexible as possible in supplying customers.
“We want the new logistics solution to achieve a number of key objectives,” explained Herbert Horngacher, head of high bay storage production logistics at Egger.
“These included better utilisation of our coating systems due to reduced set-up times, a fully automated picking area for Eurodekor boards, and more flexibility so that we can be even better at meeting individual customer requests. Significantly reducing forklift traffic and bringing the error rate down to zero were also important factors.”
The investment in the new ultra-modern logistics system at headquarters in St Johann is another milestone for a company steeped in tradition. Intelligent storage and packaging solution specialists in the Business Unit Board at IMA Schelling took charge of the design and implementation.
“This project was a challenge, but these are just the sort of tasks we love,” said Stefan Hinterholzer, head of the Business Unit Board at IMA Schelling.
“From the initial idea to the complex solution, every detail needed to be thoroughly examined to make the flow of materials as efficient and reliable as possible.”
MAXIMUM FLEXIBILITY WITHOUT COMPROMISE
The task assigned by Egger was both clear and demanding: the logistics processes should be more flexible, take up less time and require less manpower – but without compromising on safety and quality. The logistics experts at IMA Schelling translated these requirements into smart technology and automated processes.
“The complex solution includes a picking warehouse for faced boards, ensuring that the decor impregnation materials and boards are efficiently stored and retrieved,” said Mr Hinterholzer, outlining the concept.
“Customer commissions are assembled to order in exact quantities to homogeneous or inhomogeneous board stacks, ready for dispatch. The stacks then go through a fully automatic packaging process and are ultimately ready for shipping by road.”
FULLY AUTOMATIC HIGH BAY WAREHOUSE ON THREE LEVELS
The key element of the logistics solution is a fully automatic high bay warehouse with three aisles on three levels from LTW Intralogistics. Each line has a storage and retrieval line to the high bay warehouse, where Eurodekor boards and impregnation papers are stored. The stacks are stored and retrieved on three levels in accordance with the following principles:
- Level 0m – with roller tracks as an emergency mode
- Level 7.20m – regular storage and retrieval using roller tracks
- Level 9.85m – the goods are made available for picking via mobile platforms (shuttles)
A lift station provided by Egger takes care of the vertical flow of materials within the storage system, transporting the stacks upwards from the lowest level.
As soon as the goods are picked, the complex packaging unit takes over. Automated processes ensure that each Eurodekor stack is perfectly and securely prepared for transportation.
“We wanted to install a packaging system that is not only fast, but also extremely precise,” explained Mr Horngacher. “Our customers expect delivery to be flawless, with no errors at all – and now we can guarantee exactly that.”
The solution from IMA Schelling includes an automatic strapping plant with automated squared timber integration at the top of the stack. A robot is responsible for handling the squared timber. Another robot places a box on the finished board stack to protect it against damage in transit. Finally, a labelling robot attaches the packing slip – with all the relevant shipping information.
IMA Schelling says the highly automated processes improve efficiency, ensure consistently high packaging quality, and reduce manual intervention to a minimum.
“What used to be done painstakingly by hand now happens fully automatically,” said Mr Horngacher. “We have also noticeably improved the error rate and the accuracy of the quantities.”
Egger sees the solution as making its operations fit for the future, allowing faster order processing, shortened delivery times and error-free picking.
“The new logistics solution has significantly improved our processes. Today we benefit from complete traceability, better inventory accuracy and also an increase in delivery capacity. When it comes to conveyor technology, we have been collaborating with IMA Schelling for more than a decade – the solutions are reliable and have always met our requirements.”
From IMA Schelling’s perspective, the installation demonstrates its capabilities and how panel sector clients can bring large improvements.
“The new storage system at Egger shows how modern automation can sustainably improve the logistics chain,” said Mr Hinterholzer. “IMA Schelling does not just supply the relevant technology; the company also supports customers with extensive concept and engineering experience.”
Egger Group:
Egger Group, headquartered in St Johann in Tirol (AT) is a full-service provider for furniture and interior design, structural timber construction and wood-based flooring. The group currently has more than 11,000 employees and 22 manufacturing plants worldwide.
LTW Intralogistics:
For more than 40 years, LTW Intralogistics has stood for premium quality and maximum precision. The specialist has demonstrated high-performance continuity with over 1,000 projects installed in more than 35 countries. Complete solutions from LTW Intralogistics stand for maximum system availability, optimum space utilisation and secure storage of an extremely wide range of products.
IMA Schelling
The IMA Schelling Group develops, designs and manufactures machinery and plants for woodworking, plastics and metalworking companies. Its customers include international furniture manufacturers, aircraft manufacturers and family-run carpentry businesses with exacting requirements. The company draws on over 100 years’ experience when developing its innovative processing solutions for the most advanced networked production lines, tailored to individual customer needs – right through to fully automated batch size 1 systems.
IMA Schelling has a global network of 19 subsidiaries and 70 sales partners, plus three production sites in Germany, Austria and Poland. In 2024, IMA Schelling and its 1,960 employees around the world generated total sales of €395m.
