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Rethinking Material Handling in Manufacturing with Cart Tuggers

Material Handling

In this blog, we outline the crucial role that electric cart movers and warehouse tuggers play and discuss how they help manufacturers create safer, more efficient material handling workflows.

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A Changing Material Handling Landscape Demands Flexibility

In the intricate tapestry of modern manufacturing processes, efficient material handling stands as the cornerstone to operational success. The movement of components, work-in-progress (WIP) and finished products all make up a collection of essential processes as part of production, manufacture and assembly operations.

Over the years, the landscape of material handling equipment has evolved, spurred by advancements in engineering and automation and an increasing need for flexibility. Amidst this evolution, industrial cart tuggers have emerged as indispensable tools within manufacturing, enabling the just-in-time movement of wheeled goods, parts and components.

What are Tuggers?

Industrial cart tuggers, sometimes referred to as electric tuggers, power tuggers, motorized cart movers or powered cart movers, are compact battery-powered machines designed to move heavy loads on wheels - like carts or trolleys. This can include raw materials, high-value equipment and other resources in an industrial environment, in or around a production line or process, or in sectors such as retail, logistics, waste management and more.

The Benefits of Material Handling Cart Movers

Industrial cart tuggers play a crucial role in improving material flow within manufacturing facilities, leading to streamlined operations and increased efficiency.

One of the main benefits of using tugger systems is their ability to optimize workflows. Unlike manual handling or forklift trucks, industrial tuggers offer precise control and maneuverability, facilitating smoother transitions between workstations and assembly lines. This improved flow reduces cycle times, minimizes downtime, and boosts overall throughput.

Industrial tuggers can tow multiple loads simultaneously, enhancing their efficiency further. By consolidating multiple carts or trolleys into a single train, they maximize payload capacity while minimizing the need for extra resources or labor. This capability accelerates operations and reduces the risk of congestion within the facility.

Example Applications of Industrial Cart Tuggers in Manufacturing

Within the manufacturing industry, applications for electric tuggers and cart movers are diverse, but principally, cart movers and tuggers are used to either:

  • Support production processes
  • Power the assembly line

Applications where industrial tuggers are used to support the production process include examples such as:

Towing Mother and Daughter Carts

Tuggers are often used alongside mother and daughter cart configurations to create tugger trains. Mother carts tow one or more daughter carts, creating a train system that improves operational efficiency. Electric towing tuggers, as the name suggests, are then utilized to tow the train system.

Utilizing tugging equipment alongside mother and daughter cart systems enables manufacturers to achieve greater throughput, improved ergonomics, and enhanced efficiency across their operations.

Tugger train

Moving Work-in-progress (WIP)

Alongside towing trains of carts, material handling tuggers can be implemented to move large and heavy loads like sub-assemblies and work-in-progress. Manufacturers trust powered cart movers to mobilise high-value loads and deliver unrivalled precision and manoeuvrability. Example movements include:

PowerSteered PS3000+ moving heavy plant components

Lineside Delivery of Components

Across industrial manufacturing sectors such as automotive manufacturing, heavy plant assembly and aerospace, the timely delivery of components to the production bays and the assembly line is integral to maintaining throughput and reducing downtime. With no operator license required, tuggers allow a single operator to move components just-in-time, offering a more efficient solution for intralogistics and internal material flow.

LKE

Powering the Production Line

As well as supporting processes like those outlined above, electric cart movers can also be used to power the production line. As a modular and more flexible solution, industrial tuggers offer a scalable alternative to fixed chain driven production lines or other traditional systems. Utilizing material handling tuggers to mobilize the production line enables manufacturers to benefit from greater flexibility, allowing them to scale up or down in line with output.

industrial tug moving along production line

Explore our Range of Industrial Tuggers

Our electric tuggers are designed using the same guiding principle – dependable performance, whether you’re moving 1,100 lbs. or over 154,000 lbs.

Balancing Efficiency and Safety in Material Handling

Efficiency and safety are paramount considerations in material handling, especially when dealing with heavy loads within manufacturing environments. Material handling cart tuggers play a crucial role in addressing these concerns by providing a combination of enhanced handling capabilities and safety features.

Safety as Standard

Ensuring the safe handling of heavy loads is a top priority in any manufacturing operation. Cart tuggers are designed with robust construction and powerful towing capabilities, allowing them to move the heaviest loads with ease. Our tuggers are equipped with impressive safety features such as adjustable speed settings, emergency stop functions, anti-crush systems and automatic braking systems, which help operators maintain control and prevent accidents when maneuvering heavy loads through congested spaces.

Incorporating motorized cart tuggers into processes can significantly improve overall safety within manufacturing facilities. By reducing the need for the manual pushing and pulling of heavy carts, they minimize the risk of strain-related injuries.

Supercharging Intralogistics Efficiency

Streamlining production processes is another key benefit of utilizing material handling tuggers, particularly in the form of tugger trains – where a cart mover can move multiple loads at once. This approach not only optimizes material flow but also improves efficiency and enables the just-in-time movement of parts, components and equipment. Alongside their ability to move multiple loads at once, material movers also free up staff to work on more valuable tasks by enabling a single operator to move loads with confidence.

Ready to Unlock Safer, More Efficient Operations?

Are you looking to improve safety and efficiency in your material handling processes? Contact us to discover how you could transform your processes to enhance efficiency and maximize workplace safety with a powered cart mover.