A Big Lift

The T H WHITE Lorry Cranes aftersales department will again see its already excellent customer service capabilities further increased thanks to a significant investment by the Group.

Following continued growth of the Lorry Cranes division, the decision was taken to replace the existing Megaamat Megalift in the Parts department and replace it with a brand new automated vertical lift, the Shuttle XO-500 from Kardexremstar.

The original Megalift was near the limit of its capacity and as the 15-year old machine is no longer in production, replacement parts would soon have become a problem.

High-tech infrastructure is used by the parts department to store hundreds of different components for Palfinger, Orteco and Isoli crane systems, with an electronic lift freeing-up floor and rack space in the workshop. The old machine had a footprint of four square metres with an internal capacity of 64 cubic metres, while the new XO-500 is not only larger at just under ten metre square footprint, but also has a capacity of over 165 cubic metres.

The deconstruction of the old Megalift and installation of the new XO-500 took just seven days in September, enabling the parts department to begin using the new machine with minimal disruption as soon as it had been refilled.

Gerald Webb, Parts Manager for the Lorry Cranes division, commented: “The increased capacity of the new machine will not only release valuable storage space for additional items in the stores, but its faster electronic lift system will also improve efficiency and speed up response times. This, in turn, will have a positive impact on the aftersales service we provide to customers, offering a dedicated ordering helpline with 90 per cent of parts in stock and a 24-hour delivery service from warehouse to customer.”

“We are now looking towards the future, with a view to installing an automatic picking process to expedite the service provided by the Lorry Cranes Aftersales department even further.”