Eaton's solutions for SBS's new smart logistics hub: automation, electrical protection and fire safety for Warehouse 4.0
Improving the level of offered service
"We had worked with Eaton before and we decided to work with Eaton again owing to their experience in energy management, and the reliability and flexibility of their solutions. Other key aspects in choosing a partner were efficiency, product quality, and the ability to offer us timely and professional support throughout the entire development and implementation process."
Background:
Founded in 1994 in the province of Novara, SBS S.p.A. is an international benchmark for the cell phone accessories sector, which covers everything from smartphones and tablets through to gaming and photography. By combining innovation and creativity with a strictly "Made in Italy" design, SBS's range meets the market's most varied needs.
Challenge:
To boost its competitiveness, SBS wanted to implement a plan for improving the level of service it offers by refining the product supply system and implementing new warehouse technologies.
SBS recognized the benefit of collaborating with a single partner to set up the new smart logistics hub, as this would allow the company to meet its needs in terms of maximizing storage capacity and streamlining management, as well as improving the traceability of goods and the dispatching of orders. This necessitated implementing solutions to automate the conveyor belts, securing the warehouse with a fire safety system and providing the plant with electrical protection systems. It was also essential for SBS to be able to adopt a backup power supply and energy efficiency system to ensure continuity of service by means of energy monitoring and control functions.
Solution:
Boasting a comprehensive range of state-of-the-art solutions in various areas, Eaton studied and analyzed SBS's needs. After that, a unique and comprehensive solution was identified and presented capable of guaranteeing quality and stability in the automation process, compliance with deadlines, occupational safety, continuity of operations and reduced energy consumption — not to mention a satisfactory return on investment. The entire project was managed by Studio Bignoli, a design studio for industrial, civil, tertiary, lighting, anti-intrusion and video surveillance electrical systems. SBS relied on Studio Bignoli for methodology, professionalism, and adopted techniques that are characterized by avant-garde and innovation.
"We had worked with Eaton before and we decided to work with Eaton again owing to their experience in energy management, and the reliability and flexibility of their solutions. Other key aspects in choosing a partner were efficiency, product quality, and the ability to offer us timely and professional support throughout the entire development and implementation process," said Gianni Storti, CEO of SBS.
"In addition to our already strong relationship with SBS, the key to our success was being able to offer a comprehensive solution package comprising smart automation, UPS devices and life safety systems. Thanks to the excellent team work between all our divisions, we've achieved an excellent end result," commented Francesco Mossina, Sales Engineer at Eaton.
Traditional warehouse activities—such as labeling incoming packages for transportation, weighing, quality control and final labeling—have been reorganized with a view to Industry 4.0. This was an ambitious challenge, to which Eaton responded by creating an automatic package handling and storage system supported by SmartWire-DT intelligent wiring system technology. This made it possible to subdivide the logistics hub system into three zones (picking, ring and line) and minimize cable clutter. The final solution developed by Eaton was designed with two aims in mind: Firstly, to make the typical processes in a logistics hub more efficient while containing costs; secondly, to develop workflows that help operators to fulfill orders in a timely manner according to individual customer specifications while reducing the risk of error to almost zero even as the number of references and pickings increases.
Moreover, setting up remote control enabled Eaton to complete this project during lockdown with just one technician on-site — indeed all support was provided and managed entirely virtually.
Thanks to Eaton's various automation devices (motor-protective circuit breakers, contactors, push buttons) that are connected via SmartWire-DT and managed through the Profinet network based on Ethernet protocol, SBS's new hub is able to boast smart Industry 4.0 logistics that offers three key benefits: interconnection, traceability and scalability.
Eaton's project was not limited to setting up a smart warehouse — it was also commissioned to safeguard the warehouse against fire using an automatic fire detection and emergency lighting system that covers all areas of the logistics hub. The fire detection system installed by Eaton consists of a single fire alarm control panel—CF30002GIT—that manages the control units and pipes in the various areas. Inside each one are highly sensitive sensors that detect the level of particles in the air and sound an alarm, if necessary, through specific sirens. In addition to the main control unit installed in the compartmentalized and fire-protected electrical cabinet, Eaton then installed a repeater panel in the operating offices.
To increase the level of protection, the project also included an emergency lighting system in all areas. This system is equipped with NexiTech standalone and symmetrical lamps that have high-visibility pictograms for safely and efficiently indicating the escape routes, as well as self-diagnostic functions for lamp status and battery life. In the offices, meanwhile, Eaton installed indoor luminaires with symmetric and asymmetric lenses based on LED technology—Micropoint 2—which are characterized by a discrete and modern design.
Lastly, SBS accepted Eaton's proposal to adopt the 30-kVA UPS 93E to guarantee operational continuity and protect the power supply of the new logistics hub. This is a double-conversion solution located in the electric room, which provides simple and effective protection dedicated to ensure the continuity of power to critical loads. The Eaton 93E UPS is equipped with a maintenance bypass switch, that enables any maintenance and replacements to be carried out with minimal interruption. Furthermore, Eaton implemented a 10-kVA 9E UPS for the lighting lamps in the showroom and the emergency exits to guarantee unrivaled safety standards. The logistics hub offices, by contrast, were fitted with the Eaton 9130 UPS. This enables prolonged autonomy of the essential equipment during power outages, which in turn allows gradual and remote shutdown of the systems and non-critical processes.
Results:
Smart management of the hub, by which all movements are recorded and visualized in real time, has given SBS a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of what happens in the warehouse. Moreover, analyzing the data enables the company to measure productivity and warehouse capacity for the benefit of the commercial office and its customers, since it means that requests can be very quickly calculated in terms of volumes moved and/or rows and/or number of items.
Introducing the system has radically changed the management of activities and processes from the point of view of company organization too: Indeed automation has reduced the complexity of processes while simplifying organization and minimizing the error rate, times and costs of managing the warehouse. Specifically, the first sets of data showed four times shorter picking times than those previously recorded, thus enabling SBS to plan the organization of shift work too.
