Product,
Testimonials
At AGILOX, we stand for the development of intelligent Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) that enable our customers to take their intralogistics to a new level. Because we develop and produce all technical and construction and design components ourselves, we can respond to individual needs and optimize our products precisely to our customer's wishes.
SPITZ - Food
For more than 165 years, the Austrian family-owned company Spitz has been producing 100% Austrian-made food products in various product areas and is considered one of the most important, broadly positioned food companies in the country. "Our requirement for a competent manufacturer of Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) was that it should fit smoothly into our existing infrastructure. At our company we must supply 14 production lines with packaging material and transport finished goods from one station to the next. What did not work before now works without any problems with AGILOX," says Alfred Jungmayr. The special requirement was first to develop a customer-specific operating program that could be used equally intuitively by all employees. Then, thanks to our unique AGILOX X-SWARM Technology, it was possible to put our vehicles into operation on-site in just a few hours. "We were astonished when the first pallets were transported by the AGILOX vehicle just a few hours later," says Alfred Jungmayr, production manager for confectionery and bakery products.
The initial skepticism among the employees, who feared being replaced by AMRs, was quickly dispelled during a meeting. "[...]and then on the day the AMRs were put into operation, the employees had an almost tumultuous argument about who would be allowed to operate the machine first," Alfred Jungmayr smiles in retrospect. Since then, our AMRs at Spitz have been taking care of the removal of finished pallets and ensuring the supply of packaging material to the production lines, while the employees can devote themselves to all those activities with much higher added value.
GEBERIT - Sanitary
Founded in 1874 as a plumbing company in Rapperswil, Switzerland, the company made a name for itself early on by manufacturing WC cisterns - an innovation in 1900 that made it possible for the first time to install toilets inside houses. Today, Geberit AG is a Group operating in 50 countries worldwide and the European market leader for sanitary products with around 12,000 employees. The focus of its mission is on sustainability to offer environmentally friendly, resource-saving, and durable products as well as solutions for sustainable construction and for production processes in which water and energy consumption can be minimized. Clean drinking water has already been a central issue for Geberit for many decades. Norbert Brammer, Supply Chain Specialist at Geberit's Pottenbrunn site in Lower Austria, describes the day-to-day logistics work as constant change: machines are relocated, production lines are changed, kanban shelves are enlarged or downsized, and pick-up stations are moved. "Our requirement for an automated guided vehicle (AGV) was therefore that it should not only fit smoothly into our existing infrastructure but also respond flexibly to changes in the environment." And that is exactly what our AGILOX AMRs are perfectly designed to do.
"With the system from AGILOX, commissioning worked completely smoothly. Only 15 weeks passed from initial contact to commissioning. However, not only the plug-and-play commissioning but also the associated expansion options of the autonomous intralogistics system from AGILOX, which does not require any interfaces, offer significant added value. In this context, the AGILOX company offers Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) whose components can be developed, produced, and thus customized under one roof," adds Norbert Brammer. In addition, the possibility of collaborative use of AMRs with people and manual forklifts was an important requirement for Geberit. "In our company, pedestrians, person-controlled forklifts, and automated AGVs (Automated Guided Vehicles) share the same routes. You look in vain for demarcations in a mixed operation as we have. For this reason, we were also unsure at the beginning whether the introduction of AMRs would work without problems. However, we very quickly saw that the initial skepticism was completely unfounded. We didn't even have to change or redesign walkways or driveways, and yet the AGILOX system works smoothly," says Norbert Brammer. Currently, two AGILOX AMRs are in use at the Geberit site in Pottenbrunn with capacity utilization of over 90 percent. "[...] for us in three-shift operation, this means an ROI (Return of Investment) of well under two years," adds the Supply Chain Specialist.
MAHLE - Automotive Industry
MAHLE, headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany, is a leading international development partner and supplier to the automotive industry. As a pioneer and technology driver for the mobility of the future, Mahle also pursues the mission of optimizing combustion engines and making alternative fuels more efficient, environmentally friendly, and comfortable. In addition, the company wants to use its developments to lay a broad foundation that is sustainable in the long term for acceptance and the shift toward electromobility.
MAHLE uses our AGILOX AMRs in their replenishment processes. More precisely, as soon as a pallet is about to be fully loaded, the employees who supply the belts order the next pallet from the warehouse using a simple scanning process. This is delivered by an AMR as part of a completely automated process. AGILOX's automated guided vehicles (AGVs) make it possible to automate the entire process and further optimize the return journey of the vehicles in that they avoid empty runs. As several pallets are often handled at the same time during operation, three to four AGILOX AMRs must work together in a very confined space - this is where the full potential of the X-SWARM Technology proves itself. "We are always surprised how the four vehicles independently solve complex traffic situations. The devices are even able to pick up slightly twisted or shifted pallets, which ensures that the processes run very stably." What is more, "We have now been using the devices for a year and a half, and in that time, we have been able to establish that the devices are virtually maintenance-free. Except for the half-yearly and annual maintenance, we do not have an AGILOX technician on duty. Should any problems arise during operation, they can usually be solved via remote maintenance, i.e., access by AGILOX from outside. [...]" Thomas Oxfort, Head of Process Optimization and Logistics at MAHLE, adds that AGILOX vehicles can be adopted into existing processes with unsurpassed ease and speed, and converted into automated processes. Thanks to the software, which was developed by AGILOX itself and is perfectly matched to the hardware, it is completely unproblematic to create new stations, move stations, or change entire storage areas. This makes it possible for internal employees themselves to automate processes or to adapt already automated processes very quickly to new conditions, projects, and customers.
HANSGROHE - Sanitary
Founded in 1901 and headquartered in Schiltach in the Black Forest, Hansgrohe is a manufacturer of sanitary products such as faucets, showers, thermostats, drains, and bathroom accessories. The requirement on the part of Hansgrohe about automated transport vehicles was the quick and easy integration of the vehicles into existing processes. "We didn't want to align our processes with the fleet, but rather map existing processes with an automated fleet," says Vanessa Podak, logistics planning specialist at the Offenburg site. After an exploratory phase and comparison of various providers, Hansgrohe finally decided on AGILOX - not least because of its user-friendly and intuitive web interface.
The current AGILOX fleet at Hansgrohe comprises 6 AMRs and supports the company with in-house processes regarding supply processes with pallet Kanbans and the disposal of finished goods from the assembly and production areas. The AMRs operate around the clock in 3 shifts during the week and carry out supplementary processes at weekends, covering around 3,000 km per month and transporting 13,000 pallets. On the part of the workforce, there were initial fears of contact, which dissolved into enthusiasm and fascination for the technology within a few days of the introduction. Today, "Fiona", "Shrek", "Kermit" and Co. are naturally part of the "staff".
You must be curious about the ground-breaking and forward-thinking possibilities that comes with the technology advancements of AGILOX AMRs and why this makes AGILOX the best option for you. If so, you should download our free factsheet, which provides you with a concluding overview and is available for you here. In addition, you can access in-depth articles such as this one via the factsheet on each of the topics briefly summarized there.
