Virtual automation tour announced for Coca-Cola plant

An Australian Coca-Cola site, which handles 60 million drinks per year, will feature on Swisslog’s global virtual automation tour.

The World Automation Tour series will showcase the Swisslog Automated Storage and Retrieval System (ASRS), which is currently being used at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) Northmead site.

The ASRS system is designed to enhance operational efficiency and safety and to deliver high-level customer service and stock availability.

“The tour joins automation solutions from Berlin, London, Barcelona, New York and more, as Swisslog adapts to the global COVID-19 environment and seeks to continue to offer insights into our advanced solutions,” said Sean Ryan, Head of Sales and Consulting, Swisslog Australia.

“CCEP Northmead is an outstanding example of a solution that consolidated storage space, improved accuracy, enhanced efficiency and facilitated further growth for the customer. And with these virtual tours, viewers can see all this from their workplace, lounge room or local cafe.”

CCEP's Northmead site.

CCEP Northmead

The warehouse at Coca-Cola Amatil in NSW Australia handles 60 million unit cases of soft drinks per year and 2000 cans and 600 PET bottles per minute.

This high bay has the capacity to store more than 55,000 pallets, which is the equivalent of 158 million cans.

Swisslog’s automation solution is supported under a lifetime partnership approach and includes storage, transportation hub and staging systems. In continuous operation, the warehouse requires just 26 staff.

Vectura Stacker Crane Technology

Given CCEP’s high pallet storage requirement and its limited availability of on-site space, the solution maximised vertical height using Swisslog’s Vectura stacker crane ASRS.

Swisslog’s Vectura energy-efficient high bay warehouse pallet stacker crane is used in more than 2000 customer projects globally. The cranes can perform equally well in temperatures as low as -30°C in a frozen food warehouse or in ambient environments as high as +50°C. Depending on the storage density and throughput requirements of a warehouse, it can handle one, two or more loads in single, double, triple and multi-deep layouts.

In high buildings and where land space is limited, the cranes operate at heights up to 50 m. Energy consumption is up to 20% lower than traditional cranes due to an innovative mast design and lighter crane weight.

The CCEP Northmead virtual automation tour will be live on 14 July from 4–5pm (AEST) (register here), providing viewers the opportunity to experience automation in action and have any questions answered in real time.