Heinz - Automatic Loading Solution

Joloda have just completed another installation of an automatic loading dock for the famous Heinz company we all know and love.

The Heinz site in Wigan produces all the Beans, Spaghetti and Tomato soup we eat everyday and also stores the products there in their NDC for UK supermarket distribution.

By using a Joloda automatic loading system, it reduces the need for forklift trucks which reduces carbon emissions. Also, the automatic system moves the pallets to the very end of the trailer so all space is utilized, meaning less trailer trips needed.

Heinz have already been using 2 Slipchain automatic loading/unloading docks installed by Joloda nearly 12 years ago, one at the factory and 1 at their NDC.  However with the increase in product portfolio over the last few years of HP sauce, new flavours of beans and sauces and now also new packaging of beans to suit different lifestyles, their output from their factory has increased extensively that they needed another loading dock from Joloda in their network to increase capacity.

As well as the automatic dock systems, they have 4 slipchain shuttle trailers 16m long, which travel the distance of ½ mile, around 42 times per day. 

The slipchain system they use handles up to 30 pallets per load and the trailers are loaded and unloaded in 2 minutes.  This dramatically speeds up the loading/unloading process of using forklifts which can take 30 minutes or more.

The Hydraroll Slip chain system incorporates pneumatically activated rise and fall chain and roller track giving high speed pallet accumulation and loading and unloading of full pallet loads. The pallets are automatically transferred from the dock into the trailers which are also fitted with a Hydraroll slipchain system. The slipchain system is used for short shuttles.