Transferring cartons and parcels
From pallet to conveyor, from conveyor into the shipping carton – at working height instead of from a stoop.
Industry
Lifting aids for logistics, order picking and packaging
In order picking the problem is rarely the single parcel; it is the sum. Anyone moving eight hundred cartons a day shifts several tonnes per shift. Handling technology keeps performance constant across the shift – and the error rate in the evening at the level of the morning.
- Parcels per shift and station
- 800
- Typical container load
- 50 kg
- Movement instead of a lift
- 1
01 — Applications
The last hour of the shift should look like the first.
Typical handling tasks in Logistics & packaging — and what they demand technically.
Palletising and depalletising
Build and break down layers without anyone working above shoulder height.
Containers and beverage crates
Grip and stack crates, trays and shrink packs.
Big bags and sacks
Lift, position and empty big bags; guide sacks to the feed in the right orientation.
Reels, spools and coils
Set film, paper and cable reels onto the mandrel – the most common two-person task in packaging plants.
Returns and inspection stations
Turn and inspect bulky returns without setting them down.
02 — What matters
What Logistics & packaging demands of handling technology
Ergonomics pays in pick rate, not only in sick days
The debate about lifting aids is usually held in terms of occupational safety. That is correct but incomplete. The more measurable effect is constant output: a picker who guides rather than lifts works in the eighth hour at roughly the speed of the second. It is exactly that drop at the end of the shift which determines a station’s daily output – and it appears in no accident statistic.
Vacuum is the obvious answer – but not always
For cartons with a smooth, tight surface the vacuum lifter is unbeatably fast: attach, guide, release, three seconds. As soon as recycled board with a porous surface, damp packs from the chilled area or wrinkled film trays come into play, it becomes unreliable. Then a mechanical clamp gripper or a combination is the better choice. We test that on your actual cartons – not on samples.
The route matters more than the load
A picking station rarely has a weight problem but almost always a route problem: the pallet is on the floor, the conveyor at 90 centimetres, the shipping carton beside it. Every parcel travels through bending, twisting and lifting. Before we size a unit we therefore look at the geometry of the station – sometimes half the answer is a lift table and the other half a balancer with short reach.
It has to be fast, or it will be bypassed
A lifting aid slower than lifting by hand will not be used after two weeks. In logistics the pick-up time therefore counts for more than the payload: fast gripping, short stroke, direct control at the handle. The combined control that merges travelling and lifting into one element is almost always the right choice here.
03 — Device catalogue
Start the device finder
Equipment for Logistics & packaging
Design, payload and reach — the shortlist for this industry.
Lifting equipment · Balancers
01
Skyline Rope Balancer
Weightless handling – floating instead of lifting.
View device
Lifting equipment · Manipulators
02
I-GO Articulated Boom
Articulated arm plus integrated lifting axis.
View device
Lifting equipment · Mobile
03
I-GO Mobile
Mobile lifting axis for flexible lifting.
View device
Lifting equipment · Conveyor systems
04
Rail System
The whole area covered – in X and Y.
View device
04 — Services
From analysis to inspection
01
Workstation Analysis
We look at the workstation before we talk about equipment.
View
02
Sizing & Custom Solutions
Load, reach, cycle time – plus grippers for anything without a catalogue entry.
View
03
Lifting Technology
Lifting equipment, manipulators and balancers for industry, medical technology and logistics.
View
05 — Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions from Logistics & packaging
Is a lifting aid worthwhile for cartons of only 20 kg?
Not for one carton, very much so for eight hundred a day. Assessment methods weigh frequency on a par with weight – and economically what counts above all is that the pick rate does not collapse at the end of the shift.
Do vacuum lifters work on recycled cartons?
Only to a limited extent. Porous or damp surfaces hold the vacuum less well. We test on your actual cartons and, where needed, choose a clamp gripper or a combination of both principles.
How fast is a manipulator compared with lifting by hand?
For single light parts the hand is faster. As soon as the load exceeds 15 kg, would be lifted by two people or has to go above shoulder height, the ratio turns clearly in favour of the unit.
Do seasonal staff need training?
Yes, but briefly. The units are designed so that operation is self-explanatory at the handle. An instruction under industrial safety regulations is still mandatory – we supply the documents for it.
06 — Applications
Tasks from this industry
Application
Moving eight hundred cartons a shift
Twenty-five kilos are allowed. Eight hundred times twenty-five are not.
Read the case ApplicationLoading film reels into the machine
Any crane can pick it up. The unit has to hit the shaft.
Read the case ApplicationTipping and emptying containers
The container is not hard to lift. It is hard to meter.
Read the case
07 — Guides
Read more
9 min
01
Ergonomics at the workstation
There is no limit value. There is a duty to assess.
Read the article
9 min
02
Grippers & lifting devices
The unit lifts. The gripper decides whether it works.
Read the article
7 min
03
Economics
The second person is the most expensive line in the calculation.
Read the article
Contact
We do not know your shop floor yet — but we know the task.
One short conversation usually settles more than three quotations. Call or write — you will reach an engineer directly.