When one of the largest truss companies came to see JAX The Wood Retriever picking for three saws, they asked, “Why not five saws?”
Watching our one gantry doing a good job, it became obvious that the JAX system could operate with more than one JAX gantry, like a roof truss gantry, with each one working independently of the others. For example, while gantry #1 is traversing to pick from bunk 6, gantry #2 can be delivering boards on the conveyor leading to saw #3.
When we visited our guest’s plant and observed the sun bearing down on his pickers, we saw that JAX would be able to replace them with one part-time associate who will not have to work in the heat of direct summer sun. So, we drew a new plant layout, positioning his five saws and arranging his lumber SKUs as he requested. We returned with several days of their cut lists, which validated the need for a second gantry to keep up with his five saws, for a system we plan on installing for him soon.
Introducing JAX-XL at BCMC
After visiting truss plants that were part of lumberyards, we noticed all the bunks of materials spread across large expanses of their yards, with forklifts constantly moving among them. We saw that their picking labor for a given residential house, for example, far exceeds that of their truss plants, and that they have many more SKUs to pick from. This is a task that begs to be automated, and we realized that the proven JAX material handling technology is ideally suited to the task.
To validate that assessment, we created a virtual lumberyard, with the requisite SKUs, laid out in a tight grid pattern, with a JAX gantry spanning over the entire layout. Sheet goods are stored on the perimeter of the layout, so that they can be accessed by a lift with 6’ forks.
We believe this arrangement can elevate lumberyard material handling closer to the efficiency levels of an Amazon fulfillment warehouse, and in a drastically reduced footprint. Our virtual 3D model is fully functional, from restocking SKUs to picking sticks or sheet goods, and bringing them together, ready-to-load. When you’d like to learn more about what JAX can do for your operation, please call me or Richard Pedde at 980-404-0209, and come see us at BCMC in September!