About the customer: Orfit Industries
Orfit Industries is a family-owned company located in Wijnegem, Belgium, with offices in France, Germany, Hong Kong and the United States. Its medical device products are distributed to more than 100 countries worldwide
The issue: Operational capabilities not keeping up with growth
Orfit Industries is a Belgian company that produces thermoplastic medical devices used for orthotics, prosthetics, rehabilitation and radiotherapy applications. The company was experiencing rapid growth and a significant increase in product demand. However, its manual methods were slow and prone to picking errors, leading management to doubt that additional personnel alone could solve the problem. Additionally, the company needed to optimize space in its warehouse, which was inadequate given the ongoing growth.
The solution: Modula VLMs boost productivity, save space, ease operator’s workload
To meet the increased demands as well as save space, Orfit chose Modula Vertical Lift Modules. With the combination of the automated storage solution and a laser pointer to indicate where the items to be picked were located in the delivery tray, both speed and accuracy improved significantly.
The company was able to move from processing 40 lines an hour to 220 lines an hour, with accuracy nearing 100%. The VLM trays were equipped with separators, dividers, and tray extensions to optimize storage. Furthermore, the company did not need to hire additional personnel to enhance productivity – a single operator handled all functions from the VLMs.
“Last year we had tremendous growth of the company, and had we not had this system, we would have had trouble coping with the increased demands,” said Dirk Pattyn, Director of Operations and IT. “Today we are fully operational and we are very satisfied with the system.”
Key benefits:
- Productivity jumped from 40 to 200 lines per hour
- Picking accuracy increased to virtually 100%
- Space saved – 1,476 square feet (450 square meters) of storage space on 236 square feet (72 square meters) of floor space
- Company able to sustain growth due to more efficient operations
| Modula's technical details in Orfit | |
| Number of units | 7 |
| Model | 5 ML50Ds of varying capacity, 1 ML50, 1 ML75D |
| Bay type/quantity | External dual delivery (4 units) and internal single delivery (3 units) |
| Trays | 35-48 per unit, all 161.41x 33.74 inches (4,100 x 857mm) except for 1 161.41x 25.75 inches (4,100 x 654mm), holding between 1,102 lbs (500 kg) and 1,653 (750 kg) each |
| VLM Height | Between 19’4” (5,900 mm) and 22’7” (6,900 mm) |
| Software |
Modula WMS Premium Modula WMS Driver |
| Options included |
Laser pointer Sliding Copilot console Alphanumeric LED bar Automatic closing door |
Case summary
Orfit Industries, a Belgian company that produces thermoplastic medical devices, experiencing rapid growth that it was concerned about handling operationally with its manual system. The traditional shelving system occupied too much space, was inefficient, and had a high risk of picking errors. To address these issues, the company purchased Modula Vertical Lift Modules (VLMs) and immediately noticed the benefits of space-saving, increased efficiency, and improved accuracy without the need for additional personnel. Efficiency alone improved nearly sixfold, from 40 lines per hour to 220 lines per hour.
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