Moscow. Delivering quality service at reasonable prices is writ large at Victorya. To fulfil its commitment this fresh produce supplier with distribution centres in Moscow enlisted the services of Jungheinrich as its general contractor.
In Moscow, when people think of fresh produce, one name always crops up: Victorya. With head offices on the eastern periphery of Moscow, the firm has been doing business since 1954. For almost fifty years Victorya was charged with keeping the central districts of Moscow, including the Kremlin, supplied with fresh fruit and vegetables.
The company was privatised in 1992, but its main business activity remained the same: wholesaling fruit and vegetables – in other words, storing and distributing temperature-sensitive food. “Our wholesaling activities are carried out on the basis of a contract with the Moscow city government,” explains Roman Ignatenko, project manager at Victorya in the Russian capital. “Our scope also includes keeping social institutions in Moscow supplied.” In addition, Victorya is active in warehousing, renting out warehousing space and producing canned fruit and vegetables.
2.000 Pallets a Day
The establishment of Victorya’s logistics centre is still underway. At present the first terminal is already in service. This warehousing unit is divided into four refrigeration areas, differentiated according to their technical specifications. In total the firm can boast close to 17.250 square metres of storage space, which accommodates more than 24.500 pallets.
“In all we can handle up to 2.000 pallets in one day,” says the project manager not without a little pride in his voice. At the moment we can unload up to 23 lorries at the same time. “On this side we have 13 gates for docking big trucks,” explains the project manager on the walking tour of the warehouse. “On the other side another ten small lorries can be unloaded.”
Forklifts and Shelves of Jungheinrich
Victorya acts as the wholesaler for different producers who send their fresh produce for storage and distribution. Once the ESE 120 and ESE 220 series pallet trucks from Jungheinrich have unloaded the goods, they are subject to quality control and then barcoded with information on the product, e.g. weight, size, sell-by date, as well as the number of cartons on a pallet and the storage location.
This data is transmitted wirelessly to the proprietary warehouse management system (WMS). “Our WMS has been in operation for a number of years, but our IT specialists are constantly updating it in line with the latest developments and requirements,” adds Roman Ignatenko.
WMS Specifies Storage Area
Once all the relevant information on the goods being stored in the central warehouse has been saved, Jungheinrich EFG 216 counterweight and EFG 110 reach trucks transport them to the warehouse. “The narrow aisle system with Jungheinrich 15-metre-plus racks enables us to store almost 25.000 pallets in this distribution centre alone,” reports Ignatenko.
When the goods are to be made ready for delivery, the WMS sends the driver a message, shown in the cab display. The retrieval and dispatch occurs in the reverse order to the storage operation. Either whole pallets are retrieved or individual items are order picked from the slots in the narrow aisle storage and dropped off at the goods dispatch area, where they are prepared for shipping and loaded on to waiting lorries or readied for shipping by rail to the final destination.
Extremely High Throughput Rates in Narrow-Aisle Warehouse
Six Jungheinrich electric trilateral stackers ensure the storing and retrieval cycles in Victorya’s narrow aisle warehouse run smoothly and efficiently. The EKX 515 k series forklifts, manufactured at Jungheinrich’s Bavarian production plant in Moosburg, are high-rack order picker/trilateral stackers with a capacity of up to 1.500 kilograms.
“This kind of truck easily masters the required 15 metre lift heights,” relates Alexey Vershynin, head of system technology at Jungheinrich Russia, “and thanks to the 80 volt three-phase drive, the forklift can handle very high material throughput rates in the narrow aisle warehouse.” The design of the EKX 515 k, also referred to as a combination stacker, because this truck can be used for stacking and order picking, puts the focus on the driver/operator, says Vershynin.
Considerably More Comfort and Safety
“The forklift driver climbs into the spacious cabin through a generous entrance. Furthermore, the very low traverse/pivot system and lift masts give the driver an excellent view of the payload and the path ahead.” The folding comfort seat on springs and optional heating and lumbar support adds to the well-being of the driver on-board.
Roman Ignatenko can also vouch for the enhanced comfort and improved safety of the EKX 515 k. For instance, at the centre of the cab is the electrically-adjustable operating console with integrated steering system designed for switchless, two-handed operation. As the central control and information unit it boasts multiple innovative performance enhancing features, a high resolution colour display as well as soft-touch keys and a membrane numeric pad.
Jungheinrich Always at Client’s Side with Reliable Expertise
“The driver can activate individually tailored travel programmes,” adds Alexej Vershynin. The switchless sensors register the driver’s touch and transmit the information to the on-board computer. “The driver uses the tried-and-tested thumb control to regulate travel and hydraulics,” concludes Vershynin.
Victorya selected Jungheinrich on the basis of “its reputation for outstanding customer service in Russia“ (Ignatenko) – but for more than just industrial trucks. It also selected the Hamburg-based company as its general contractor for the entire construction of the warehouse. “For us it was the icing on the cake”, relates project manager Roman Ignatenko, “that Jungheinrich was able to deliver an all-in-one solution.”
Victorya Wants to Continue Cooperation
Apart from the forklift trucks, this included the complete racking system. “This made it easier in terms of integrating warehouse design, logistics and processes for increased productivity,” adds Ignatenko, “as well always having Jungheinrich at our side to provide its qualified expertise.“
Jungheinrich’s all-round professional expertise, according to the project manager, fits in extremely well with Victorya’s overall mission in Moscow – i.e. to operate Moscow’s biggest logistics centre at a high service level and at reasonable cost. For this reason, too, Victorya wants to continue its cooperation with Jungheinrich for the construction of a second terminal.
jak – 2012