Swisslog Automates Warehouse for Food Retailer Virto in Spain

The Swiss intralogistics provider Swisslog is automating the warehouse of the Spanish food retailer Virto Group. The commissioning of a pallet shuttle system in Funes, Navarra, is planned for summer 2022. The solution will improve Virto’s logistics processes, thereby creating optimal conditions for further growth.

(Buchs AG/Switzerland) The automation of warehouses and distribution centers is particularly the means of choice in highly competitive industries, such as the food and beverage sector, when material flows need to be made more economical. Furthermore, as efficiency requirements in e-commerce rise, with experts predicting a tripling of revenue by 2022, there is no real alternative to logistics automation: This conclusion was reached by the Spanish Virto Group, headquartered in Azagra, Navarra.

As one of the leading suppliers of frozen food in Europe, North and South America, primarily frozen vegetables, the company has recently decided to automate its new warehouse in Funes, also in Navarra. The implementation order was awarded to Swisslog AG, Buchs, Switzerland, which will install the PowerStore pallet shuttle system for Virto. Its commissioning is planned for summer 2022.

31 Multi-Level Shuttles and Nine Vertical Conveyors

The Virto Group supplies frozen food to retail, food service, and the food industry. To meet their continuously increasing demand, including online, the new logistics building will store 50 to 70 million kilos of frozen products – alternatively on 56,000 Euro or 48,000 industrial pallets. The warehouse throughput is planned at around 350 pallets per hour. Tailored to this requirement profile, Virto and Swisslog have designed the PowerStore shuttle solution with 31 multi-level shuttles and nine vertical conveyors. A shipping buffer for 204 pallets complements the system, as does adjacent conveyor technology that connects all functional areas such as goods receipt and goods dispatch as well as production. The overall control of the logistics automation is determined by Swisslog’s warehouse management software SynQ.

High Storage Density and Maximum Throughput

PowerStore will be used by Virto at an ambient temperature of minus 30 degrees Celsius. Designed as a compact warehouse with multiple deep aisles, the shuttle system ensures high space utilization. Swisslog CEO Dr. Christian Baur says: “Our solution is predestined for all pallet warehouses, even for existing buildings with structural constraints, where very high storage density combined with maximum throughput is essential.” Baur adds: “If we are dealing with a relatively low number of SKUs, PowerStore particularly excels.”

That optimal utilization of available space while maintaining operational flexibility and increasing performance is crucial is also confirmed by Jose Antonio Baldero, Technical Director of Virto, who relies on the expertise of his logistics partner: “Swisslog has extensive experience and is a benchmark for innovative and technologically advanced solutions. These enable us to successfully implement a project of this magnitude.” Baldero adds: “The PowerStore system will help us meet our company’s growth expectations.”

Photo: © Swisslog