Assembly In Action: Modular Flow Storage Sharpens Assembly Technology
The components include the Logix 4000 and conveyor beds, featuring 12-gauge galvanized steel, 1.9-inch-diameter, high-capacity rollers. The average container load is approxi- mately 1,000 pounds. However, some approach 3,000 pounds. A speed controller that limits the speed of containers and pallets to less than 60 feet per minute is installed at every pallet station.
Robert A. Mathus, supervisor of material handling engineering for truck and minivan assembly at the South St. Louis site, states that operational improvement in all areas of the plant is traceable to flow storage. For example, the Improvement Program appears to be more on track, now that a method for automatic replenishment of assembly parts is in place. Assembly people are more confident that unanticipated delays, associated with individual part shortages and misplaced items, are no longer factored into the productivity equation.