ŠKODA AUTO opens automatic warehouse for small-size parts in Kvasiny plant

› Small-size parts will be shelved and transported to the production line automatically

› The migration to AKL is one of ŠKODA AUTO´s biggest logistics projects in its modern history

› ŠKODA AUTO has invested over €8 million, expecting to achieve annual cost savings of more than €1 million

› The new AKL will enhance the efficiency of handling the increasingly diverse types of material

Kvasiny, 25 July 2017 – ŠKODA AUTO has put into operation a new automatic warehouse for small-sized parts (AKL) in its plant in Kvasiny, Czech Republic. The construction of the AKL is one of the biggest logistics projects in the brand´s modern history. ŠKODA AUTO has invested over EUR 8 million in this innovative solution. The Kvasiny-based automatic warehouse for small-sized parts will enhance the efficiency of handling the increasingly diverse types of material and make the on-site logistics processes even more flexible.

"With the new automatic warehouse for small-sized parts opened in Kvasiny, we continue our journey to automating the process of shelving and picking small-size parts at ŠKODA AUTO," says ŠKODA AUTO Board Member for Production and Logistics Michael Oeljeklaus. "The AKL technology will increase our efficiency and productivity, make our logistics processes more effective, help us reduce material inventories and enhance the ergonomic and occupational-safety parameters of our workplaces."

The uniqueness of the warehouse lies in the degree of automation. The solution comprises a system of automatic shelving carried out by camera-fitted robots and automatic robot-aided picking, lifting tables and pusher. The robot reloads boxes from the conveyor to the trolley completely automatically without any human intervention.

The Kvasiny plant produces, among the others, the ŠKODA KODIAQ and ŠKODA SUPERB and will soon be launching production of the new ŠKODA KAROQ. In its AKL facility small-size parts are stored in a central location inside the parts warehouse, and the shelving and picking processes are fully automatic. From the AKL the parts are transported directly to the assembly line, using a Just-In-Sequence system, thus in the exact order in which they should be used. The new AKL in Kvasiny offers a capacity of 45,000 small load carriers (KLT).

The construction work in Kvasiny started in January 2016. ŠKODA AUTO has invested over €8 million, expecting to achieve annual cost savings of more than €1 million.