Meijer Special Equipment wins the innovation award with the RollerForks®
 They are simple but ingenious: the RollerForks®. RollerForks® have been developed and manufactured by Meijer Special Equipment in St. Jacobiparochie, northern Holland. Since first developing their telescopic forks in 1980 MSE have become widely known and respected within manufacturing and logistics industries. The telescopic forks are now used all over the world and it is expected that the innovative RollerForks will enjoy the same levels of success. Product development has taken three years. The introduction of this groundbreaking attachment for loading and unloading will take place during Logistica 2003. The RollerForks have been nominated for the Logistica Innovation award - the result is expected during the show.
 The desire to find new materials handling techniques that led to the creation of the RollerForks was partly inspired by the company Huhtamaki, based in Franeker, The Netherlands. This manufacturer of packaging products made from moldable cardboard is constantly looking for opportunities to save money on transport. Alex D'Anjou, product manager at Egg packaging says,, We produce voluminous products that are transported to clients all over Europe. Any saving in time, space and handling is in our interest but also in the interest of the client. We sometimes supply customers with our products placed on pallets because it is desirable. Pallets are only useful when handling goods. Not during transport.
With pallets in a lorry or in a container one is practically transporting air. Pallets have rental costs and administration costs. Apart from that the pallets have to be moved from one place to another. This is very time-consuming. Our company alone spends about 150,000 kilometres on transporting empty pallets annually. Eliminating these costs will realise substantial savings.
Improving efficiency
It sounds simple, this starting point. But like many ideas it is easier said than done. Huhtamaki has been searching for a long time via many different international channels, but did not find a useful alternative. Because of this the manufacturer of egg-boxes decided to put the question to MSE. This decision was based on the experience of MSE in the field of special features for lift trucks. Huhtamaki expected that MSE would definitely come up with an innovative solution. MSE is also manufacturer of KOOI-REACHFORKS® which are telescopic lift truck forks that are well known in the logistic sector.
Some of the first concepts developed by MSE did not offer enough possibilities for Huhtamaki. D' Anjou says,, These concepts did not bring the desirable measurable time and labour savings along. Development came to a standstill. At that point we simplified our wishes in order to restart the process. We asked for a system that can load lorries once in a short period of time. When this was achieved with a system in which rollers played the most important part, MSE came up with an idea. That same principle should also be applicable to lift truck forks.
The secret of the opposite direction of rotation
MSE applied the concept of the rollers to the traditional lift truck fork. This led to the RollerForks -a concept MSE has patented. RollerForks are applicable on every type of lift truck. Each fork is equipped with 2 layers of rollers that are able to move vertically. But it the opposite direction of rotation is what makes it so special. The lower layer of rollers move over the floor and by doing this the upper rollers will also start moving, but in the opposite direction. As a result the load is pulled up the forks by the upper rollers. The system has already been shown to work for most kinds of load.
 Tests have shown that the operation is optimised if the load is placed on a slip-sheet. It is even possible to use a simple cardboard sheet in some instances. ,, This is Colombus' Egg" , says Alex D'Anjou of Huhtamaki. We compared this concept to the paperclip, it is that simple. Because of the opposite movement of the rollers even the heaviest loads are "rolled" onto the lift truck fork without any friction or resistance. A load that is rolled onto the forks stays strikingly stable. While testing the product we have handled enormous loads of eggs - a vulnerable product, but there were no problems. We also took a good look at our current clients. Our clients have to be able to load and unload with their existing lift trucks. With the RollerForks there is no problem because these forks can unload goods with the application of an electric stacker. BT Rolatruc in The Netherlands were interested in the development and wanted to participate. They put the required lift trucks at our disposal with which we carried out some tests. These tests worked out fine.
Alex D'Anjou is convinced that the transport sector is looking forward to a solution like this. "When you can eliminate pallets it will save a lot of money. I think the RollerForks are going to score politically. Because there is more space per kilometre there is automatically less transport. This is ecologically sound and roads are not as busy as they used to be" D'Anjou says that pallets will never disappear completely. It will stay an efficient device for internal use for manufacturers as well as clients. ,,Real saving is in transport" says the product manager of Huhtamaki.
Universal and Durable
RollerForks are applicable worldwide. They fit on every type of lift truck. Lift truck drivers will be able to learn the techniques needed to operate them very quickly. According to Folkert de Graaf of Meijer SE the user-friendliness, the volume profit and the costs saving will exceed all expectations. He says: ,,We have tested our new product at numerous clients and reactions are very enthusiastic. Initial investment is paid back quickly, particularly when you consider that less money has to be invested in pallets. A lot of companies will be able to improve their logistic processes by using our RollerForks. After an intensive period of development and a heavy test program with prototypes, the special "fork on rollers" will be officially presented to the public at the forthcoming Logistica exhibition at Utrecht. Huhtamaki, one of the driving forces of this innovative project, already uses this new product to optimize their logistic systems. D' Anjou says: ,,I can recommend the product". Meijer SE will do further production and marketing. Folkert de Graaf speaks of a "strong, maintenance friendly" product. Because they are made of high-grade wear-resistant steel, the RollerForks are extremely durable. De Graaf says: ,,The principle is so easy that any company is able to do the necessary maintenance themselves".
Since Meijer SE took over the marketing and sales of KOOI-REACHFORKS® from KOOI-AAP (November 2000) and have established an extensive international dealer network. De Graaf is convinced that RollerForks will be a great success and that they are going to play an important part in future transport systems.
Click here to download the the RollerForks® brochure
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