The Pandemic has changed the buyers’ preference to ‘click and buy’ and this has led to mushrooming of warehouses. And to manage these warehouses right from storage to retrieval to timely final delivery of products MHEs is playing the vital role
In the recent couple of years when many of the industries went into negative growth, the material handling sector (MHE) reported a positive growth. Industry analysts have concludes growth of warehousing sector in India, especially in the Pandemic to the prime reason for the growth of material handling sector in India. It was during the Pandemic the e-commerce sector gained growth. The Pandemic followed by lockdown gave increased impetus to online buying which in turn gave tremendous boost to the warehousing sector. According to Savills India, leasing of industrial and warehousing spaces across eight major cities went up by 35 per cent during 2021 to 35.1 million square feet, driven by higher demand from third-party logistics and e-commerce players.
Without material handling equipment, modern warehousing is incomplete. “To be competitive in the global trade in terms of throughput & logistics cost, Indian government is spending huge amount of money towards modernization of infrastructure, in and around the ports. There is a need of faster movement of material which can be achieved only with correct deployment of material handling equipment. The increase in consumption has led to an increase in warehouses across the country including in Tier 2 & Tier 3 cities leading the change. The higher land costs, unavailability of labor, and the shrinking delivery times to enc consumers require material handling equipment which can work in narrow aisles with increased productivity,” says Anil Lingayat, Executive Vice President and Business Head, Godrej Material Handling.
Sensing the demand for MHE and to cater to the growing market, Godrej Material Handling has launched electric operated UNO series of forklift trucks for the warehousing sector and BS-4 compliant forklift trucks with a capacity from 5T to 16T for the port sector. “For warehouses, we have launched electric operated UNO series of forklift trucks with a capacity of 1.5T – 3T and PRO series of Reach trucks from 1T – 2T which can lift loads up to 12.5m. The indigenous 3W-electric forklift with twin motor technology and Articulated Forklift is the solution to work in tight aisles to allocate enough space to the goods than to the equipment,” says Anil Lingayat. KION India has come up with no-contact MHE which are flexible, have longer operational working hour capability, minimum maintenance and which can be installed easily on sites. KION Group AG has invested in ~Rs. 300 crores in infrastructure development of material handling equipment. They have set up largest and modern material handling equipment manufacturing factory in Pune. A couple of years back, BYD India, a subsidiary of the BYD Group, has forayed into the material handling equipment business to provide MHE products with lithium-ion phosphate battery. To cater to the growing market, Godrej Material Handling has a wide network of more than 400 technicians based within 50-km of any major industrial parks across the country. “We have a wide network of more than 400 technicians based within 50-km of any major industrial parks across the country. These technicians are well supported by more than 50 service engineers to ensure the customers get the highest uptime. We provide technical assistance, maintenance contracts, and equipment on rent to meet the varied needs of the customers. The central warehouse having more than 5000 SKUs ensures more than 92% of parts availability. The services are digitized which allows complete transparency and visibility for seamless after-sales support,” says Anil Lingayat.
Technology
During the Pandemic when the country has come to a standstill, research and development were going on. The MHE industry too invested in coming with better products and better technology. The industry came up with contactless operation MHEs for safer working environment. Godrej Material Handling’s Uno Electric Forklift Series has highest battery offering of 48V/756 Ah for 1.5T - 2T capacities and 80V/560 Ah for 2.5T - 3T. The higher capacities eliminate the requirement of a second battery and can run 2-shift operations. It can lift a full rated capacity up to 4.5-m in height. This eliminates the need to invest in higher capacity equipment for lower loads of upto 4.5-m.The shift to an 80V system from the current 72V system in the UNO series of an electric forklift is designed to increase efficiency and productivity leading to higher run time. The units are equipped with Operator Presence Sensing (OPS) that prevents the forklift from starting when the operator is not seated, or the seatbelt is not fastened. If conditions are neutralized, OPS safely brings the forklift to a halt, restricting travel and lift capability. The indigenous twin motor technology with in-house motors on 3W and 4W Bravo series electric forklift saves space and is a perfect solution to replace Diesel trucks with the benefits of electricity. The company’s Reach Truck Pro Series & Articulated Forklift can lift up to 11 meters & 12 meters high respectively and utilizes warehouse space to the maximum. The Dynamic Response Steering (DRS) System in Reach Truck gives full control and more confident driving. Ergonomically designed Godrej Operator Reach Arm Console (GORAC) ensures essential hydraulic controls at the fingertips for better productivity and efficiency. Over the last few years the MHE industry has started adopting automation and robotics. The prime reason, then, was shortage of skilled manpower. Now, with Pandemic the shift to automation and robotics has increased manifold. The advantage of using robotics and automation increases productivity and helps to streamline operations. In the current times, with a shrunken shop floor staff and the need to ensure business continuity, adoption of technology such as AI-enabled MHE, AGVs, mobile automation and robotics have increased. With the help of these technology companies will be able to recognise and handle a greater variety of products in a more agile and flexible way, thereby increasing productivity and output. Robotics also takes menial tasks off the list for employees. KION India offers most of these technological solutions through its brands Linde &Dematic. The Linde technology offers a complete logistics solution interfaced with customers’ own logistics management software ensuring real-time supervision. This real time solution comprises with telematics, wireless communication & artificial intelligence. The new robotic solution, the most advanced available solution, provides incredible competitiveness gains and a unique flexibility for the customers. KION India offers most of these technological solutions through its brands Linde & Dematic. The Linde technology offers a complete logistics solution interfaced with customers’ own logistics management software ensuring real-time supervision. This real time solution comprises with telematics, wireless communication & artificial intelligence. The new robotic solution, the most advanced available solution, provides incredible competitiveness gains and a unique flexibility for the customers. Godrej Material Handling is also actively investing in digitization to enhance customer experience through telematics. Their IoT driven system ‘SafeLog’ empowers customers to manage their fleet at multiple locations with real time information about the health and utilization of their Godrej fleet. Based on data captured by this system, advance warnings of potential equipment failure are generated that enables the Godrej Service team to respond before the eventuality. This ensures that the equipment stays in operation with minimal downtime. Data about forklift utilization helps the customer optimize their fleet size to suit each location’s demand levels. Reminders about scheduled services to Godrej and the user ensure that periodic serving of the forklifts is done in time.
Rental Scheme
There is a growing demand for warehouses from the e-commerce, food & beverages and pharmaceuticals sectors. But the long period of the Pandemic has dented the purchasing power of the customers. MHE players are coming up with innovative solution to sell their products to the customers. They have tie-up with various banks and NBFCs. KION India is offering rental solutions through their Linde to support the customers who does not have access to adequate capex. While Godrej Material Handling has its RenTRUST, a rentals business, which offers rental options ranging from a month to a couple of years. “We offer equipment on finance through various leading banks and financial institutes across the country. We are the first company to provide a finance lease option to our customers which helps them to utilize their Capex better with the flexibility of choosing the ownership after a definite period,” says Anil Lingayat.
Government Assistant
Unlike the other manufacturing industries whose associations are strong in putting forth their demands to the government and government bodies, the MHE manufacturers have to tend for themselves. Industry leaders opine that material handling equipment should be awarded the status of an ‘essential industry’ because it supports all manufacturers, including those making medical and essential goods, in their supply chain. "The Indian government fortunately continues to raise emission norms to curb pollution, but it currently applies to equipment Made in India. These should be made applicable to any equipment operating in India, irrespective of its country of origin. Similarly, BIS standards for material handling equipment need revision to reflect developments in more advanced markets and also ought to apply to all equipment sold in India irrespective of country of origin. The safe load that can be lifted by a human being is limited to 20 kg. This needs to be enforced as a law. Standardisation and adoption of pallets is another area where the industry needs to be encouraged. The government is keen to raise safety consciousness and safety standards. Trained and certified operators for all types of powered material handling equipment would serve to dramatically improve safety in the factory and warehouse. The Government can contribute by making such requirements mandatory,” says Anil Lingayat.
Road Ahead
The Pandemic has changes the buying preference of the customers to ‘click and buy’ sitting on the comfort of their homes from physical visit to brick and motor stores. Today’s modern e-commerce warehouses’ every length and breadth and every nook is filled to brim and the demand is for more warehouses is increasing. According to report “Warehousing Market in India 2021" by ResearchAndMarkets.com's, the warehousing market in India was valued at Rs 1,050 billion in 2020. It is expected to expand at a CAGR of ~14.86% between 2021 and 2025, to reach a value of Rs. 2,028.86 billion by 2025. The report further states “however, with the rising demand for e-commerce activities and doorstep delivery services in the tier-II and tier-III cities, the warehousing sector in India is expected to grow potentially in the coming years”.
“India is among the top 5 economies of the world and is among the fastest-growing economy globally. When it comes to handling material on pallets, we are way behind and do not even rank among the top 15 countries of the world. The opportunities are tremendous; the increase in consumption due to an increase in disposable income will lead to handling more material across the industries. The material movement must be mechanized to increase efficiency in the logistics chain and drive down the overall cost. The standardization of pallets, the movement of material on the pallets, and the infrastructure across the supply chain to handle material through equipment will facilitate the growth of the industry. We expect the industry to grow at a CAGR of 8-11% in the next 3-5 years,” says Anil Lingayat.
The Indian warehousing market is on a high growth trajectory as demand from e-commerce platforms has risen sharply for warehousing space. This in turn has given impetus to the MHE sector and they in turn are coming up with advance technology driven MHE to cater to demanding market requirement.
