Advantages of the clad-rack and Pallet Shuttle systems in an Argentinian poultry business cold storage

The needs of Granja Tres Arroyos

Granja Tres Arroyos is a renowned Argentine business that focuses on the manufacture and distribution of poultry and delicatessen products. It was founded in 1965 and since its origins, has always opted for the integration of technology throughout the production process, as well as marketing at the international level. They currently boast an impressive 35% export of manufactured products to other countries.

The company has a traditionally constructed cold storage located next to its production centre, but it proved to be inadequate to meet the market demands. For this reason, they decided to build new cold storage with greater capacity and a faster inflow and outflow of goods.

The company sought the advice of Mecalux, who analysed all the operational needs and flows required by Granja Tres Arroyos in detail, in order to find the solution that best met its requirements.

The solution by Mecalux

Mecalux designed and built a 1,410 m² clad-rack cold storage with a capacity for more than 3,400 pallets with a maximum weight of 1,300 kg. Clad-rack warehouses are comprehensive buildings formed by the racks that support their own weight, the vertical cladding and roofing, in addition to the goods. Provision is also made for the external force of the wind and possible seismic movements.

The facility is 14 m high and equipped with the high-density Pallet Shuttle system, with 150 storage channels that have the capacity to deep-store 22 pallets. The loading and unloading of goods are carried out thanks to four electric shuttles that move autonomously along rails inside the racks.

It is worth noting that although Granja Tres Arroyos’ clad-rack warehouse is not very tall, it is nevertheless the most cost-effective option for the company, since the storage channels have been designed with the depth that is strictly necessary, calculated according to their functional requirements.

The Pallet Shuttle system
The Pallet Shuttle shifts the load from the inside of the channels until it reaches the first open location where it is deposited. Forklifts do not need to enter into the aisles, thereby avoiding the risk of accidents and damage to the racks.

This system minimises the number of movements performed by the operators who, with the help of reach trucks, only bring the pallets to the entrance of each channel and change the Pallet Shuttles position when necessary.

The operators give orders to the Pallet Shuttle via a RF remote control. They must enter a numeric code and the shuttle performs the desired functions. Mecalux has also developed cold adapted tablets with Wi-Fi connection, which communicate the orders through an intuitive user interface.

Clad-rack cold storage
Clad-rack warehouses are a very useful solution in cold storage due to optimisation of the surface and the available height.

In addition, they are much simpler constructions than traditional buildings, which are implemented in a very short time and with minimal civil works.

The entire structure is interior and is erected on a resilient concrete slab that favours the connection of the floor insulation with the sides of the building.

It also allows the set-up of cooling equipment without having to drill and in a way that is accessible for maintenance tasks.

Advantages for Granja Tres Arroyos

• Optimisation of space: the clad-rack warehouse is built using only the strictly required surface area, reducing its volumetric and energy consumption.
• Maximum storage capacity: the new Granja Tres Arroyos cold storage has a capacity for more than 3,400 pallets in just 1,410 m².
• Increased productivity: the Pallet Shuttle performs movements automatically and very quickly within the channels, so that operators only stay a short time in the interior of the warehouse at sub-zero.
• Stepped up safety: not having to insert a forklift inside storage aisles reduces the risk of accidents to almost none.