JBT’s line of automatic guided vehicle (AGV) systems, solutions which are enabling many high profile companies in the food sector to make substantial efficiency savings, will be centerstage at this year’s Pack Expo, which will be held at Chicago’s McCormick Place Convention Center from October 14-17. JBT will be showcasing the CB750, a counterbalance-style forklift AGV capable of carrying 750 kg, which will be running host-free at the show.
What this means in practice, says JBT AGV’s Laura McConney, is that the forklift will be operating without any high-level software and will make all the intelligent decisions itself. Ideal for handling pallets, racks, and rolls, the counterbalance AGV excels in floor-to-floor transfers, and its end-mounted lift mast allows the vehicle to move multiple load types without complications.
“The AGVs handle a lot of packaging materials for customers, principally towards the end of line as packaging materials are coming off the production line,” explains McConney. “We do really well with palletised units and can also automatically load and unload trailers.”
Efficiency savings
However, one of the most outstanding attributes offered by the AGV is its ability to deliver substantial efficiency savings. Manufactured in the US – as well as the UK for Europe and China for Asia, respectively – the AGV units remove repetitive and wasteful work practices, enabling companies to redeploy resources more effectively.
“Most of what we’re delivering to customers is labor savings,” says Mark Longacre, JBT’s applications manager for automated systems. “We think of that as allowing them to redeploy labor to where they can create more value in their process. Having people on a forklift moving products from one end of the plant to the other all day does not add value to the product. In reality, it can affect safety and often does. People get bored and careless and make mistakes, which can create accidents and personal injury, as well as plant and product damage.”
JBT will be exhibiting at Pack Expo 2018 at Booth N-4725 in Chicago’s McCormick Place Convention Center from October 14-17.