A Sunnier Side to Lifting Awnings

The construction industry is as buoyant as ever. For manufacturers and providers of conservatories, awnings and other weather protection systems, that means a constant demand for individual shading solutions. One of the main players in this market is Erhardt Markisenbau GmbH. Founded in 1980 by Robert Erhardt, the company has been part of StellaGroup Northern Europe since 2019. At its production location in Burtenbach between Ulm and Augsburg, Germany, around 260 employees develop and produce awnings, terrace roofs, all-glass sliding doors, pergolas and outdoor living products – all with custom widths, lengths, frame colors and materials.

Schedler Sonnenschutz-Logistik, a division of the transport logistics company Schedler Transport-Logistik GmbH, takes on the logistical part of the task. This family-run company has transported bulk materials and paper rolls for the paper, timber, agriculture, construction and recycling industries since 1984. The service provider has 40 staff and around 30 vehicles, and is active across the DACH region, the Benelux states and France. In 2012, it began to specialize in sun protection logistics. “Loading and transporting professional sun and weather protection systems requires a lot of expertise and the appropriate hardware,” explains Karl Schedler, Managing Director at Schedler Transport-Logistik. The company uses wing liner trucks, special transport frames and suitable truck-mounted forklifts to safely transport these sometimes oversized high-quality products safely and make it easier to unload them.

Both companies were facing the same challenge: packages of up to seven meters in length and 200 kilograms in weight had to be handled purely manually – a massive burden for staff, which led to frequent absences and a high turnover of employees. “Two of our colleagues had to take the packages from the packaging line and place them onto our transport trolleys by hand,” explains Tobias Eppler, Supply Chain Manager at Erhardt Markisenbau GmbH. Depending on the season, the company produces up to 600 packages per day over four different lines.

When the transport trolleys arrive at Schedler, staff add bar codes to the individual packages, re-sort them and assign them to the individual routes. Stored in suitable transport boxes, Schedler automatically puts away the products. Once the shipping date is set, they are picked and loaded into the trucks. “We restack the goods at our facilities four to five times before the actual delivery,” says Karl Schedler. Like at Erhardt, that required four strong hands and a lot of physical effort. The burden placed on staff was even higher at Schedler: Since the transport service provider works with several different awning manufacturers, it has to handle up to 2,000 packages per day during the high season.

The awning manufacturer eventually took the initiative and sought out a solution to relieve the burden from manufacturers of lifting aids. “It turned out that the combination of the unusual length and the weight of the packages was a challenge that many providers could not meet,” remembers Tobias Eppler. He discussed the problem with the experts at J. Schmalz GmbH at LogiMAT – which led to a tangible result. The vacuum experts attached a tube lifter JumboErgo 200 to a SK-JU 200 column-mounted jib crane. Like the JumboErgo, its six-meter long jib has a maximum lift capacity of 200 kilograms. Twelve bellows suction cups attached to a four-meter beam hold the cardboard boxes securely. The solution has been in use since January 2019. “There wasn’t much enthusiasm to start with – our staff were expecting the process to be accelerated, which of course wasn't our intention at all,” reflects Tobias Eppler. “Once they eventually noticed the significant improvement in terms of ergonomics, however, they were very happy with the system.”

Karl Schedler reports a similar story. He made contact with Schmalz through the awning manufacturer. However, his requirements were even more complex because packages arriving at Schedler come from several different manufacturers – in a variety of dimensions and weights and varying cardboard box quality. “We wanted a system that worked for all kinds of workpieces, to ensure an uninterrupted workflow,” explains Karl Schedler. Schmalz solved the issue of ergonomically handling awnings of up to seven meters in length by using an overhead crane system with an operating range covering 36 by 15 meters. “No other lifting equipment manufacturer could offer us such dimensions,” says the Managing Director. The large radius of action minimizes the need to restack the packages before depositing them in the transport boxes. Staff now use one of the two vacuum tube lifters Jumbo Low-Stack to ergonomically handle the packages. Equipped with multiple vacuum grippers, the lifters can safely hold any kind of cardboard boxes delivered. They are operated with an intuitive twist grip control. “The low-stack version makes unloading the transport trolleys much easier – our staff no longer have to stoop over, even at the lowest point,” explains Schedler.

The impact of both solutions from Schmalz has been impressive: the companies require less man power. The work can now comfortably be performed by one person with no need for physical exertion. The staff turnover rate has also fallen and staff are more motivated. The project partners view the collaboration with Schmalz just as positively. “From devising a custom solution through designing and installing the system to servicing and subsequent work, everything went completely satisfactorily,” reports Tobias Eppler happily. There were also challenges in the process: initial tests at the awning manufacturer’s facilities revealed that the vacuum power was insufficient to hold the heavy awnings securely. However, a solution was soon found: “Schmalz switched the compressor for a stronger one, and everything has worked perfectly since then,” continues the MD. “Schmalz installed our overhead crane system in 2019. Working with it is now second nature to our staff, and we are consistently receiving positive feedback,” confirms Karl Schedler.