Background

AvestaPolarit – part of Outokumpu since 2003 – is among the world’s leading producers of stainless steel. Tornio’s cold rolling mill is equipped with a modern material handling system that includes automated high bay racks, cranes and AGVs. EP-Logistics has been involved in the development of Tornio mill’s logistics since 1993.

The cold rolling mill has a material handling system that features 16 AGVs and 5 automatic cranes, and the total length of AGV path is 4 kilometers. The operability of the system was ensured with simulation before procurement and commissioning.

The assignment and the results

The simulation model was used to test the operation of the AGV system with different network structures, guiding principles, varying number of vehicles and different material flows. The animation associated with the simulation gave good ideas to further improve the operability. With the simulation, the operability of the system could be ensured beforehand without economic risks.