Solve warehouse bottlenecks with smart solutions for SMT reel storage

Siemens Material Management solution has addressed the challenge of bottlenecks on the shop floor by enabling a smooth and continuous flow of materials between the warehouse and the production line. Ironically, this advancement has pushed production bottlenecks to the warehouse, where staff now needs to locate and deliver the materials needed to keep the machines running more quickly than ever before. The traditional manual approach is error-prone and time-consuming—a manual picking operation can require up to five minutes per line item and returning each reel to the warehouse can also take several minutes. Automated solutions are needed to improve warehouse efficiency.

Improve picking performance and accuracy with smart SMT storage

Siemens has partnered with Inovaxe, a leading provider of material handling and storage solutions, to offer an integrated, semi-automatic smart shelf SMT reel storage solution that solves the warehouse bottleneck without the need for costly robotic towers. Valor Material Management generates pick lists and sends them to the Inovaxe shelf system. LEDs at each reel location illuminate when a pick-up or return is required, enabling quick reel selection. The LEDs on the smart shelf can even be set to light up in a specific order according to their use on the line, further reducing kitting times and eliminating decision making. Inovaxe shelves achieve higher storage density than robotic towers and are maintenance-free. Read more about the solution in the full white paper.