Client: Olympus is a leading brand and company, producing fresh milk, cheese, juices, butter, and fresh and healthy dairy products. The brand is popular not only in retail chains but also in restaurants, cafes, and HoReCa establishments. Olympus distributes its products in more than 47 countries worldwide with a well-established network of warehouses operating under special storage conditions;
Project Location: The newly equipped refrigerate logistics hub of the company is located near the city of Larissa in Central Greece, in the region of Thessaly. This is an important economic center;
The city is connected to key transportation areas, including railway lines, the port of Volos, as well as the major cities - Athens and Thessaloniki;
Larissa, and the automated distribution center of OLYMPUS are strategically located close to the important Thessaloniki-Athens highway, part of the European route E75;
Industry and Specifics: The logistics of fast-moving goods with a limited shelf life is a complicated task. Refrigerated warehouses and distribution centers are the heart and brain of any cold supply chain. OLYMPUS products require special storage conditions. The new, fully Automated Storage Systems and Racking Systems had to be adapted to these specific requirements of the client;
Project Execution Period: The design and engineering were completed at the beginning of 2024. By mid-year, the new Warehouse Automation System for pallets was already processing palletized goods - autonomously.
Challenge: All newly integrated Automated Storage Systems had to perform in full synchronization to ensure optimal goods rotation, without the need for direct human intervention;
The software and hardware teams of STAMH Group had to provide an optimal material flow system (MFL – Material Flow System) in the warehouse. This was a real challenge - both from the perspective of PLC programming and in terms of the provided solutions for industrial automation and robotics;
Solution: The engineering teams of STAMH Group designed and implemented a new 100% Automated Storage System for pallets weighing up to 800 kg - each in a special refrigerated warehouse with a height of more than 9.5 meters and a depth of over 70 meters;
The capacity of the Automated Storage System is over 3000 pallets, preserved under special storage conditions. All automated components of the Warehouse Automation Solution operate at temperatures between 0° C and 5° C, with the t° range being much wider if necessary;
The system includes special Roller Conveyor Modules that transport the pallets to the stacker crane at a maximum speed of 0.3 m/s and also – special chain roller transfer tables. The stacker crane transports a robotic pallets carrier, storing and retrieving pallets autonomously;
The stacker crane can move at an impressive speed of 200 m/min, and together – the stacker crane and the robotic shuttle-pallet carriers can achieve up to 24 double cycles of storing and retrieving pallets per hour;
An interesting addition to the newly designed Warehouse Automation System is the ability to autonomously re-arrange the pallets in the warehouse during periods of lower turnover. The stacker crane, together with the robotic pallets carrier, can autonomously re-order the pallets in the Racking System according to their expiration date, positioning them closer to the expedition area;
Achievement: The fully automated refrigerated warehouse of Olympus is designed to allow 100% integration of all the Automated Storage Systems – including the already existing AGV solutions in other areas of the warehouse;
