MegaStation Vertical Carousel
The
MegaStation vertical carousel has been manufactured by MegaStar for over 50
years. It's reliability is
legendary. Moving parts and sensors are
kept to a minimum.
This is the same concept as you see in many doctors' offices to keep files, but the industrial systems are far larger and heavier duty. Several models are available, varying by weight capacity. The heaviest duty model can handle up to around 1500 lb per carrier (shown in tan in picture). Common installations of industrial models are 15 to 33 ft high, 10 to 12 ft wide, and up to 6 ft deep.
The carriers can vary from 8 to 10.5 ft wide, from 12 to 24 inches deep, and from 8 inches to 19.5 inches high, and a single carrier can have multiple shelves so that a single 19.5 in high carrier can hold, for example, 4 levels of 4 in high totes. (One additional shelf level per carrier is shown at the workstation opening in the picture.) Each level would be considered by the carousel electronics as a separate shelf level, and when requested, that level would stop at the workstation opening at the level of the posting board. When shelves are no longer needed, they could be removed, and the carousel electronics can be reconfigured to no longer recognize that level. All carriers can be configured with different numbers of additional shelves at different shelf levels for additional flexibility as different size shelf clear heights are needed.
The major advantages of MegaStation Vertical Carousels are:
Uses a fraction of floor space used by static shelving,
usually around 80 sq ft or around 25% of
Simplicity (high reliability, low requirement for
electronic coordination of moving parts)
High speed in picking multiple parts (machine presents
all parts in all order requests in one
High weight capacity - up to around 1500 lb per carrier
Flexibility using different configurations of additional
shelves in each carrier and reconfiguring
Security (when the door at the workstation is locked, the
machine is a sealed box)
Better ergonomics (all parts are presented at waist
level, minimizing back problems)
Although most vertical carousels are sensitive to internal balance, the MegaStation can handle very high out of balance situations - near double the weight on one side versus the other.
MegaStations can be modified to operate in various environments, including refrigeration, heat, Electrostatic Discharge (ESD), and nitrogen purge.
MegaStations can be set up to operate with multiple workstations, and therefore multiple controllers so that workstations can be on upper and lower floors or in rooms on opposite sides for the machine.
Power requirements for this system can be opted for without additional cost. The MegaStation can run on 208-3-60AC to 480-3-60AC.
Customers can select the color of the machine from several selections, including two tone.
With the basic carousel electronics (ie, without outside software), the operator can punch in a shelf number, and the carousel will turn either way at 6 inches per second to bring the correct shelf to the workstation opening by the shortest possible route.
The carousel can be outfitted with an internal parts locator software package (ie, not requiring a separate computer) which can maintain the location of a particular part within the carousel and can bring that particular part to the workstation opening when it is requested. The part number, name, and location of the part can be displayed on the controller screen for verification by the picker. The internal software package can be linked across several machines so that each machine does not have to be searched for a particular part.
To further enhance the picking operation, a row of pick lights can be opted for so that when a part is requested, the light which is directly in front of that part location will light when that shelf is presented at the workstation opening. In addition, since totes can be divided front to rear, allowing locations from front to back as well as from side to side on a shelf, a depth light display can be opted for to show the particular location of the part requested.
Using one of the separate software packages (those that require a separate computer), as shown in the Software section of this website, requests for parts can be downloaded automatically from other computer systems. Besides parts requests, the software can download entire orders or kits or multiple orders and/or kits consisting of many part numbers and multiple quantities of each part and can then pick all orders and/or kits at the same time. The software packages can handle multiple computers or can be set up as servers to handle multiple groups of machines, each with its own computer.
In addition, an order table can be positioned across from the machines with its own set of lights so that the picker can pick using the lights on the machines and distribute the picked parts to the correct orders using the "put" lights in front of the order containers. This system is called "pick-to-light/put-to-light", and it allows the picker to pick parts without having to know what is contained in the orders or to know what the parts look like, although the picker can be part of the picking accuracy control by comparing the picked part with either the part number and nomenclature shown on the carousel controller screen or a picture which can be stored in the software package.
By using a separate computer, a bar code system can be incorporated, allowing the customer to input part numbers by bar code gun and/or printing bar code labels.
The separate software can be used with multiple machines as previously mentioned, and as shown in other sections of this website, and it can be used in systems with different kinds of machines in the same system. In addition, inventory in other locations than the automated system can be controlled, for example, inventory on shelving, flow rack, test stations, or even the trunk of a salesman's car. In addition, machine inventory records and reports can be accessed from remote locations, like the inventory control manager's desktop computer.
Vertical Lift HD Files Spacesaver Horizontal Carousel Mobile Pallet Rack Vertical Carousel Software