CHAPTER - ONE

MATERIALS HANDLING
EQUIPMENT
Introduction to Material Handling
• Every modern and ancient wonder has one common factor
between them, i.e., the time, which had taken to complete these
wonders.

• Take example
- Lalibela, Axum, Taj Mahal, Pyramids or Eiffel Tower.

• They all had taken many years to complete.

• If at present if we wish to construct all these wonders they may

take few months.

• So where is the difference arises.

 Cont’d
• In ancient times material handling is not a
concept but it is only formal work which is
needed in any activity.

- Elephants, Horses, Bulls, Axes etc. also

human being is the most important
material transporter.

• In middle age history, wheels were

invented.
• The job of material handling become easier
than earlier.
 Cont’d
• As we turn towards modern history
materials handling gained lots of importance.
• Modernization of industries and civilizations
needs MHE;
- Handle heavy loads
- High speed
- Great reliability and safety
• The first assembly line at the Ford Motor
Company, within a short time, number of
other production assembly had been set
upon various types of conveyors.
• Materials handling can be defined as the art and
science of conveying, elevating, positioning,
transporting and packaging and storing of materials
regardless of size, form and weight which effect a
saving in money, time and place.

 Art: the experience and judgment of individual

materials handling engineer.
 Science: analytical methods and engineering data,
formula, statistics and standards
Material Handling System
• A materials handling system can encompass an entire
plant and in some cases, even the facilities of
suppliers and customers.
• In a manufacturing plant for example, it may begin at
the receiving dock, and continue through inspection,
storage, processing, packing, and shipping.
• materials handling system should contain two parallel
flows-the physical flow of materials, and a
corresponding flow of information.
 Cont’d
The benefits that can be achieved by applying the
systems approach to materials handling are:
• Better adaptability to control
• Better coordination with suppliers or customers
• Continuous flow of materials and information
• Fewer delays between operations and departments
• Higher levels of equipment utilization
• Improved scheduling
 Cont’d
The benefits that can be achieved by applying the
systems approach to materials handling are:
• Less product damage
• Lower labor costs
• Reduced inventories
• Reduced space needs
• Safer, more systematic work procedures
 Materials Handling and Productivity
• Materials handling is increasingly being recognized as
a primary tool for improving productivity.
• In a typical industrial facility, material handling
accounts for 25% of labor cost, 55% of all factory
space, and 87% of production time.
• Material handling is estimated to represent between
15% and 70% of the total cost of manufactured
product.
 Cont’d
• In a manufacturing process raw material passes
through
1. Basic processing,
2. Assembly,
3. Materials handling
4. Inspection and test and
5. control
• MHE is a non value adding activity with a major cost
contributor to cost of the final product.
Material Handling Equipment‘s(MHE)
• Starting from the time, the raw material enters the
factory gate and goes out of the factory gate in the
form of finished product MHE can link various
processes together and synchronize them in a manner
not possible by any other means.

• In many cases, materials handling equipment is the

only possible means of moving materials.
 Cont’d

INPUT INDUSTRIAL OUTPUT

FACILITY

CONTROL

Flow of Materials in an Industrial Facility

 Cont’d
• Material handling operation are performed in the
following stages;
- Unloading the incoming material
- Moving the unloaded material to assigned storage
places in warehouses
- Lifting the material from its storage place during
order picking
- Moving the material for inspection and packaging
- Loading packages/boxes/cartons on to transport
vehicles
 Cont’d
• Operation of unloading equipment may vary from
seasonal or intermittent use at some mines, grain
elevators and small plants, to “ day in, day out”
service at steel mills and large steam generating
stations.
• Unloading of free flowing material Sluggish or sticky
materials often require car shaker.
Unloading Equipment's
Cont’d
Cont’d
 Cont’d
• After the unloading process, the material is
stored and then a uniformly controlled feed is
necessary depending upon the required
capacity, as well as the size, flowability,
moisture content and other characteristics of
the material.
Feeding Equipment's
A Good MH system have the following benefits.
i. Reduce cost
– Utilizing space to better advantage
– Increasing productivity
– Making a few effective movements
ii. Reduce waste
– Eliminating damage during handling.
– Maintaining proper control over the in-and-out of stock
handling process
iii. Improve working conditions
– Providing safer working conditions
– Reducing worker fatigue
iv. Improve the efficiency of the plant
– Providing a better organization of storage facilities
• The five distinct functional divisions or spheres of
activity are:

1. Bulk handling
2. Unit handling
3. Packaging
4. Warehousing
5. Carrier Handling
• The three groups of materials handling equipment
classified by their design features are:

a) Hoisting Equipment
b) Conveying Equipment
c) Industrial Vehicles
Classification of MHE
• The nature of industries, manufacturing processes involved and
types / designs of machines and plants in operation are
numerous.
• Consequently the variety of materials handling equipment and
systems used in industry is also very large in number and diverse
in concept and design.
• MHE can be classified based on the following basic types of
equipment:
i. Industrial Vehicles/Trucks
ii. Conveyors
iii. Hoisting Equipment
iv. Robotic handling system
Industrial Vehicles/Trucks
• Suitable for the movement of mixed or unitized load,
intermittently, where primary function is
maneuvering or transporting.
• Manual or power driven

• The three categories of industrial vehicles are

walking, riding and automated guided.
Walking Industrial Vehicles
• Walking industrial vehicles can be classified as hand
driven and power driven.
Two Wheel Hand Truck

Bent-noise truck Heavy-duty truck Single-grip handle Single-cylinder

for bags for boxes truck for beverage truck
 Cont’d
• Hand Lift Trucks
Powered Industrial Trucks
• It is used to lift, maneuver, and transport
material for short distance.
• Its battery powered for both lifting and
transporting.

Pallet lift truck(battery)

Riding Industrial Vehicles
• Allow the vehicle operator to ride to, form, and
between locations.
• They are typically used for longer moves than walking
vehicles and also offer additional weight and storage
height capacity.

stand-up counterbalanced fork truck double reach fork truck

 Cont’d
Fork Lift Trucks
• These are self loading, counterbalanced, powered,
wheeled vehicles, with the operator seating on the
vehicle.
• Designed for lifting, lowering, loading and unloading
and maneuvering of medium to large weight, uniform
shaped unit loads, intermittently.
Cont’d
 Cont’d
The limitations of these equipment are
i. Usually requires pallet/skid/container,
ii. Requires skilled operator,
iii. Equipment needs maintenance facility,
iv. Capacity of these equipment vary from 1ton upto
about 60 tons,
v. Slow travel speed (10-15 kmph) ,
vi. Suitable for short hauls (hundreds of meters).
Automated Guided Vehicles(AGVs)
• The AGVs belongs to a class of highly flexible,
intelligent and versatile material handling systems
used to transport materials from various loading
locations throughout a facility.

• An AGV is a material handling system that is

independently operated, steerable, wheeled vehicle,
driven by electric motors using storage batteries; and
it follows a predefined path along an aisle.
 Cont’d
Components of AGVs
• The vehicle
• The guide path
• The control unit
• The computer interface
 Cont’d
Types of AGVs
Some commonly used AGVs are:
• Driverless train (Towing vehicle)
• Unit load vehicles
• Pallet trucks
• Fork trucks
• Work platforms
 Cont’d

Driverless train
Pallet truck

Unit load vehicle

 Cont’d
AGV
Management of AGVs
• Some of the important issues that must be
considered for the proper management of AGVs:
• Guidance systems
o Wire guidance system
o Non-wire guidance system
• Routing
• AGVs control systems
• Vehicle dispatching
• Interfacing with other subsystems
Automated Storage and Retrieval system(AS/RS)
• An AS/RS consists of a variety of computer-
controlled methods for automatically placing and
retrieving loads from specific storage locations.
• Typically used in applications where:
o There is a very high volume of loads being moved
into and out of storage;
o Storage density is important because of space
constraints;
o Accuracy is critical because of potential expensive
damages to the load.
 Cont’d

Single mast machine

Double mast machine
 Cont’d

Typical Load/unload Configurations

Conveyors
• These are gravity or powered equipment
commonly used for moving bulk materials in
process industries or unit load continuously or
intermittently, uni-directionally from one
point to another over fixed path.
Typical Conveyors

Belt Conveyor Oscillating Conveyor

 Cont’d

Apron Conveyor Screw Conveyor

 Cont’d

Flight Conveyor Pneumatic Conveyors

 Cont’d

Bucket Elevator
Hoisting Equipment
• Hosting equipment are usually powered
equipment used for lifting and lowering unit
and varying loads intermittently.

• The primary function of hoisting equipment is

transferring through lifting and lowering
operations.
Hoisting Equipments
Jacks
Hoisting Equipments
Winches
• The means of traction employed into
rope winches and chain winches;
• The way of mounting, into stationary
winches and mobile winches;
• The number of drums, into single
drum, twin-drum, and multi-drum
winches; and
• The type of drum used, into grooved-,
smooth-, and whelped -drum winches.
Hoisting Equipments
Capstans
Hoisting Equipments
Hoists
Hoisting Equipments
Lifts
Hoisting Equipments
Travelling cantilever wall cranes
Hoisting Equipments
Bridge crane
Hoisting Equipments
Tower crane
Robotic handling system
• Designed to move material, parts, tools, or
specialized devices through variable
programmed motions for the performance of
a variety of tasks.
Robotic handling system
Area of Application
1. Manufacturing Industry
2. Building Construction Industry
3. Heavy Construction Industry
4. Mining Industry
5. Food Industry
6. Automotive and Transportation Industry
Selection of the Proper Equipment
The principal technical factors for the choice of types
of MHE are the following:
1. Kinds and properties of load
2. Required hourly capacity
3. Direction and length of travel
4. Methods of stacking loads
5. Characteristics of production process involved in
moving loads
6. Economic and other considerations
 Cont’d
• Usually there are various alternative methods for
handling materials in any given facility.
• The question is how does one go about selecting the
right approach.
a. Identifying the Problem
• Often problems in a plant are attributed to other
factors, such as production or quality control, when
the underlying cause actually stems from the
handling approach being used.
 Cont’d
b. Defining the Problem

• Once a problem has been identified, the next

important step is to define it fully.
• The problem definition must include its scope.
 Cont’d
c. Collecting Relevant Data
• Answers to some of the necessary question may not
be immediately available.
• Rather, some data collection and analysis may be
necessary in order to uncover the desired
information.
d. Analyze the Data
• A good first step in analyzing the data is to
consider the 20 Principles of Materials Handling
The Twenty Principles of Materiel Handling
1. Orientation Principle: Study the system
relationships thoroughly prior to preliminary planning.
2. Planning Principle: Establish a plan to include basic
requirements and desirable options for all material
handling and storage activities.
3. Systems Principle: Integrate those handling and
storage activities which are economically viable into a
coordinated system of operation.
4. Unit Load Principle: Handle products in as large a
unit load as practical.
 Cont’d
5.Space Utilization Principle: Make effective utilization
of all cubic space.
6.Standardization Principle: Standardize handling
methods and equipment wherever possible.
7.Mechanization Principle: Mechanize the handling
process where feasible to increase efficiency and
economy.
8. Ergonomic Principle: Recognize human capabilities and
limitations.
 Cont’d
9. Energy Principle: Include energy consumption of the
material handling systems.
10. Ecology Principle: Minimize adverse effects on the
environment.
11. Flexibility Principle: Use equipment, which can
perform a variety of tasks.
12. Simplification Principle: Simplify handling by
eliminating, reducing, or combining unnecessary
movements and /or equipment.
 Cont’d
13. Gravity Principle: Utilize gravity to move material
wherever possible.
14. Safety Principle: Provide safe material handling
equipment and methods.
15. Computerization Principle: Consider computerization
in material handling and storage systems.
16. System Flow Principle: Integrate data flow with the
physical material flow.
 Cont’d
17.Layout Principle: Prepare an operational sequence
and equipment layout for all viable system solutions.
18. Cost Principle: Compare the economic justification
of alternate solutions.
19. Maintenance Principle: Prepare a plan for
preventive maintenance.
20. Obsolescence Principle: Prepare a long range and
economically sound policy for replacement of
obsolete equipment.
e. Evaluating Alternatives
• Once appropriate data have been assembled and
analyzed, the engineer can begin developing and
evaluating alternative solution plans. The elements of
a materials handling solution include people,
equipment, facilities, money, and time.
f. Choosing the Solution
• The proper choice of MHE requires knowledge of the
operational characteristics of the various MHE and a
thorough understanding of the production process
and organizational setup of the enterprise.
 g. Applying the Solution
• Once a preferred solution has been identified, the
major challenge is developing the implementation
plan. Generally, the following steps are involved in
implementing a materials handling systems project.
1. Develop specifications
2. Evaluate supplies
3. Evaluate bids
4. Select supplies
5. Award contracts
Advantages
• Improvement in the
productivity
• Better use of floor space and
facilities
• Reduced cost of transportation
• Less fatigue to the workers
• Improved work environment
• Reduction in bottlenecks
• Greater flexibility
• Improvement in the safety and
reduction in the accident
Disadvantages
• Initial cost of the equipment in
the most of cases is high
• Skilled labour or operator is
required to operate almost all
types of material handling
system.
• If not operated well there are
concerns of horrible accidents
and hazards.
• Regular maintenance is required.
• Installation and operating cost is
high.