Vertical energy supply has proven itself in storage and retrieval units from SIVAplan

• What was needed: The guidelok for vertical energy supply: guidelok slimeline P; energy chains and chainflex cables, delivered fully harnessed as a readychain system.
• Requirements: A vertical cable guide for SRUs, with high dynamic travel. Even at high speeds and abrupt braking, the cable guide must be kept safely on track.
• Industry: Storage and retrieval units, material handling
• Success for the customer: The guidelok guidance system guarantees a secure hold for hanging energy chains thanks to its automatically actuated rocker. And the pre-fitted readychain saves assembly time when setting up the SRU.

SIVAplan GmbH & Co. KG is considered a specialist in automated warehouse and conveyor technology throughout the food industry, but also in other sectors. The company mainly works for those customers who see a perfect logistics chain as a success factor.
SIVAplan has been working with some customers for many decades, planning not only new buildings but also extensions and modernisations of their warehouses, and if the user wishes (and this is increasingly the case), even as a general contractor.
However, the control technology, the conveyor technology and even the storage and retrieval units (SRUs) come from our own development and production.
In every SRU project, one of the electrical design tasks is the design of the energy supply to the load carrying equipment. The energy supply system accommodates cables for energy and signals as well as bus systems, in addition to potential equalisation and, in most cases, data cables for video or image processing systems.
This is a challenge because the SRUs are highly dynamic. The hanging chain must therefore be guided in such a way that, on the one hand, it can be moved freely in the vertical direction and, on the other hand, it remains on track even during high acceleration or braking in two axes. However, since the energy supply first has to be installed in a complex manner before it can function properly, a simple solution should also be found for the installation. In the past, the energy chains and cables were ordered separately, so that the chain had to be purchased with the cables, which was a complex process. The subsequent test also took time.

SIVAplan found the solution for energy supply in our guidelok slimline P (GLSL-P) guide system, a special guide trough that guarantees a secure hold for hanging energy chains. In each guidelok segment, an automatically actuated rocker ensures that the chain is securely positioned and prevents unwanted swinging, rocking and swaying. If the chain passes through the segment in the radius, the rocker is unlocked and the energy chain can move freely. When the chain leaves the radius of the segment, the rocker locks and secures the energy chain again.
As the guide rail including the holder is made of plastic, the entire system is lighter and more cost-effective, and the plug-in glass-fibre reinforced plastic guide rails drastically reduce the assembly time. Another advantage of the new plastic material is that vibrations and noise are absorbed even better.
The glass-fibre reinforced plastic brackets are also highly resistant to deformation and cold. Impacts against the rails have no effect compared to metal troughs, which would immediately show dents or other deformations. Even in deep-freeze warehouses at temperatures as low as -35°C, the guide rails are tough enough to withstand shocks and impacts.
Tests in our in-house laboratory also confirmed the durability of the guidelok system. In simulations prior to the series launch, the glass-fibre reinforced plastic material of the guide showed no wear even after 1.5 million cycles on a vertical axis.
However, SIVAplan's design engineers have been relying on our energy chains and chainflex cables, which run in the guidelok guide system, for even longer. To be more precise, the energy chain and cables are supplied together and completely pre-fitted as a so-called readychain system. This also saves assembly time and complexity when setting up the SRU.