Aisle-changing crane offers increased productivity
solutions, has launched an all-electric, free-roaming, and fully
automatable aisle-changing crane.
The company claims that the Cleco Condor is a cost-effective alternative for high-bay automated storage and retrieval (AS/RS) up to 51 feet, offering higher facility throughput, increased order accuracy, and reduced order fulfillment time over competing solutions.
Because the Condor can change aisles, Condor applications also require fewer units and less capital investment than competing solutions using fixed-aisle cranes.
"With floor-space, efficiency and cost pressures increasing, the Cleco Condor gives warehouse and distribution centre managers an important option for maximising their throughput via high-density AS/RS that is more flexible and less capital-intensive than an aisle-dedicated system," said Percy May, director of sales and marketing, FKI Logistex manufacturing systems.
"The Condor yields a fast return on investment and high utilisation rates. It is a reliable performer for a variety of FKI Logistex clients worldwide, including retailers, food producers, and grocery distributors."
FKI claims that the Condor is also suited for frozen food applications.
"One of our frozen food clients, Preferred Freezer Services, operates six distribution centres, all using Cleco Condors."
Operating manually, semi-automatically or fully automatically, the floor-running Cleco Condor provides greater safety, efficiency and performance than traditional turret trucks for pallet-handling applications. It utilises a top-steady feature that offers stability and comfort, while allowing higher speeds, higher accelerations, and full capacity at all heights.
For unit-load handling, the Condor's all-electric operation makes it an automatable alternative to conventional VNA (very narrow aisle) trucks, as it can maintain carrying capacity and operating speed, even at high elevations.
FKI claims that other benefits of the Condor include reduced operating expenses; greater energy efficiency; higher equipment utilisation due to less downtime and reduced inventory levels because of its overall material handling efficiency.
The Cleco Condor uses synchronised traversing or rotating forks or telescopic shuttles to handle its load, and charges its battery during in-aisle operations. The unit has a maximum horizontal speed of 9.5 ft/sec and a maximum vertical speed of 1.6 ft/sec. Its weight capacity is 3300 lb.
