Product category:
Batteries, chargers and circuit protection
News Release from: EnerSys Motive Power | Subject: Hawker brand batteries
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 12 July 2006
Smart charging options encourage battery
switch
Wincanton has switched to the EnerSys Hawker brand of batteries for the entire lift truck fleet at its national chilled distribution centre (NDC) in Gloucester.
Wincanton has switched to the EnerSys Hawker brand of batteries for the entire lift truck fleet at its national chilled distribution centre (NDC) in Gloucester Wincanton changed suppliers because of the superior quality of service offered by Hawker, and the company's ability to supply and maintain batteries, plus ancillary systems and equipment, at a fixed cost over a five year period, with no 'hidden extras'
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 15 Feb 2008 at 8.00am (UK)
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Battery management system frees up floorspace
Company has also eliminated manual handling of batteries and expects battery efficiency and lifetimes to be improved.
Chargers top up truck batteries
Hawker high frequency (HF) high-speed chargers from EnerSys Motive Power are designed to refresh battery charge while trucks are parked during drivers' short rest break.
The fully-powered battery changing system that Hawker has also installed is much less labour- intensive, and significantly safer, than the previous manual handling operation.
The new regime, which includes a 'smart' battery management system, offers extended battery life and increased productivity.
Wincanton's Gloucester NDC is a multi-user site, with customers including major supermarkets and manufacturers, handling chilled and ambient food products for distribution nationwide.
The NDC has a 102,000-location automated store, served by 12 low- and high-bay cranes, with 1932 picking faces.
An ambient goods store has 4420 pallet locations and a chill store, at +2 to 5C, has 1780 locations.
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Lifetech chargers are both lightweight and compact, enabling them to be wall-mounted, thereby liberating valuable warehouse floor space.
Automotive company chooses batteries and chargers
EnerSys' Hawker Motive Power brand of batteries and chargers has supported Peugeot's move from two to three shifts at the Parts Operation distribution centre in Tile Hill, Coventry.
Batteries offer fast charging
When a vehicle is not in use its Powerbloc battery can be plugged into the HF charger for re-charge, making it ready for the next duty cycle.
The ambient and chill stores are served by 40 powered pallet transporters, 22 of which operate on a mezzanine, and 23 low-level order pickers.
The site also has 20 electric counterbalance trucks that, along with the pallet transporters, are used to load and offload lorries.
The site operates round the clock, seven days a week and is currently picking and despatching almost 1.9 million cases per week.
Hawker has supplied two PerfectPlus high performance batteries for each of the electric trucks.
The charging areas, on the ground floor and mezzanine, are equipped with Hawker's Powertech high frequency (HF) chargers, which offer outstanding energy efficiency - as much as 25% higher than 50Hz chargers.
The chargers automatically detect the battery's level of discharge and will supply only the amount of power needed - and no more - to restore full charge.
This means less mains power is required to charge a battery.
Thus the energy costs per charge are considerably reduced, leading to significant savings in electricity costs.
The chargers serving the batteries used on the trucks operating in the chill stores are specially programmed to accommodate low battery temperatures.
A further benefit of the Powertech charger is its low weight and compact dimensions - it can be conveniently wall-mounted.
This has enabled Wincanton to halve the space used for the battery charging area.
The 'intelligent' diagnostic software in the Powertech chargers forms part of a computerised Battery Fleet Management system.
Data is transmitted to a large display screen installed in the main battery changing area.
The display clearly indicates the order in which batteries, for each type of truck, should be retrieved, ensuring that only fully-charged units are taken.
This makes certain that all batteries receive the correct amount of charge before being used, and that the batteries are systematically rotated, overcoming the potential problem of operators simply taking the nearest available battery, regardless of its true state of charge.
Correct rotation considerably extends battery life.
Battery changing in the main charging room is undertaken with Hawker's Pro-Series BBH semi-automated change cart.
This electrically driven device runs on concealed rails between the banks of chargers, using a powerful extending electro-magnet to extract the battery from the truck onto its onboard roller bed and then push it into place for charging.
The whole battery change process is a very quick and simple one-man job, which again helps sustain truck uptime.
The Pro Series BBH involves no potentially injurious manual handling.
"The previous manual battery change operation was potentially risky", says DC Manager Mark Ford, "particularly with batteries weighing as much as one tonne".
"It was also labour intensive; for example it needed two people to change certain batteries".
"With the Hawker system it's now a one man job, which has greatly improved productivity".
"One of the main reasons for Wincanton switching to Hawker, however, was the level of ongoing technical and service support the company offered", explains Wincanton's Engineering Services Manager Tony Stewart, who is responsible for specifying all mechanical handling equipment for Wincanton in the UK.
"There will be no hidden costs through the period of the contract, particularly relating to service".
"And Hawker after sales service is arguably the best in the business".
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