Age of Automation: Autonomous Vehicles on the Rise

May 05, 2021

Delivery drones. Self-driving cars. The Age of Automation is here… driverless forklifts may be coming to a warehouse near you!

Automated forklifts are gaining traction across the nation – to transport, lift, lower, put away and retrieve loads.  With fewer workers onsite during the pandemic, along with the challenge of finding workers, led some businesses to rely on technology to get orders out the door.

An automated system helps increase productivity and maximize labor resources – enabling teams to perform with more proficiency in less time.  Essentially, autonomous forklifts can run 24 hours without any breaks.

As a solutions provider for our customers, MHS Lift helps companies in manufacturing, warehousing and distribution find cost-effective ways to run efficiently. Automatous vehicles, utilizing the most current technology available, may be a viable option to help streamline operations for some businesses.

Automated and manual operating modes offered by Crown’s DualMode lift trucks provide flexibility to utilize automation where it makes sense then switch to manual operation to accommodate dynamic changes in the production plan. Trained employees can perform the switch to manual mode, complete the operation and return the vehicle to automated mode.

Rocla’s modular Automated Guided Vehicles offer the flexibility to configure and select the right guided vehicle make-up to suit a business, processes and workflows.

Automation Benefits

  • Improved efficiencies – the positioning system enables operators to be more efficient by guiding the forklift along the most effective route to the next rack location
  • Increased performance of production and warehousing – runs 24/7 without any breaks
  • Savings on labor costs
  • Reduced product damage and rack damage
  • Increased safety – installations are designed according to the highest safety standards and tailored to customers’ needs
  • Reduced operation and maintenance costs

Is Automation Right for Your Business?

The MHS Lift team works with customers to look at a number of factors to determine if automated vehicles are the right solution, including: labor, the number of shifts, number of forklifts, number of employees and vehicles operating during a shift, and employee hourly rates. All this information is reviewed and analyzed to determine the investment and payback – and to show the return.

From there, our team of engineers will determine the best solution that will most efficiently and effectively perform in the customer’s operation, create a timeline – from start to finish date, and determine if any changes are needed in the current rack layout, or develop a new rack layout if one is not already in place. Our vendor’s automation systems experts will handle system programming including automated guided vehicles, storage and retrieval systems, conduct run through tests, and a live test.