The Role of the Systems Integrator in
Planning an Automated Storage and Retrieval System

As much as the role of AS/RS has changed in the way it is applied, the role of the AS/RS systems integrator has changed to that of a consultative partner in the project of determining the optimal system for the application. The reason for this is the ineffectiveness of trying to solve problems by breaking them apart into smaller sub tasks and components. Asking a systems integrator to simply respond to concept specifications without having that supplier participate in the overall analysis of the logistics process will usually lead to a sub-optimal concept proposal.

Objectivity of Solutions

There is still a belief that allowing the systems integrator in on the initial planning is a bit like letting the fox design the hen house. In today’s market, however, there is simply too much information being exchanged to seriously believe that a single integrator could substantially influence a project team to only consider his offering.

Real Time Cost Analysis

There are multiple benefits from involving the systems integrator in the planning and analysis process. To begin, if the budget is known by everyone, the integrator, who works with the technology every day, is in a good position to keep the team on track by pointing out the cost impact of “features” that may not be economically feasible.

Use of Standardized Products

More specifically, the integrator will be in a role to help the team understand the application of the technology, including the use of standardized componentry designed to reduce the custom engineering costs of a new design.

Standardized products are often criticized as a systems integrator trying to hammer his solution onto your problem. In fact, standardized products usually offer a wider set of standard functionality and variability than most custom engineered solutions. If the planner is able to use standardized solutions for the AS/RS piece of the plan, substantial cost reductions can be realized in both engineering and total project cycle time.

Performance Analysis and Optimization

Another role of the systems integrator as a member of the team is the ability to use systems based simulation and analysis tools for rough cut analysis and decision making. For example, a common assumption is that the fastest crane will make a system faster and more responsive. There is a trade off of cost for speed, but more specifically, there are system operational characteristics that will limit the ability to effectively use this speed. A person who doesn’t work with the application of this technology on a regular basis will often miss the subtleties of these design limits.

In a recent analysis, one systems integrator offered an 800+ fpm crane for use in an asynchronous process buffer. The crane could start from one end of the system, attain the top speed, slow down and accurately position itself at the end of the 130’ long system. However, the average move under the actual design of the process was less than 18’, with an estimated standard deviation of less than 10’. This means that 97.7% of the moves will be less than 38’. The acceleration and deceleration rates were the same across all speed ranges, but the cost of the 800-fpm drive was wasted since the crane would only attain speeds of less than 350fpm on 98% of its moves. The cost difference between a 350-fpm crane and an 800 fpm crane will approach 21%.

Conclusion

The technology of AS/RS has been reinvented in the last ten years. As part of a strategically planned process, it can effectively serve to free up human resources to other value adding operations.

The trend in application is towards smaller, more strategically focused systems that are located much closer to and integrated with the flow plan of specific processes. While large systems are still being designed and justified, these systems are less common that the small systems being installed within existing facilities without modification to the buildings. The use of standardized system components has reduced the manufacturing and engineering costs of custom engineered, “one-off” designs, allowing planners a broader range of opportunity to use better, faster more reliable and productive equipment in the process of buffering the material flow.

To fully exploit the opportunity for improvement, the planner must evaluate the entire process before simply specifying a storage buffer. Use of the systems integrator in the planning process will improve the quality of the recommendation for improvement, and will insure that solutions proposed are optimized, workable, and correct in terms of cost, schedule and overall system performance.