Find out in five steps!
Bild
SFX 40 at Mubea: Heavy-Duty Transport for Centralized Die Maintenance
In Mubea’s press shop, heavy die changes are part of daily operations. Press dies are loaded onto the platform transporter by crane, moved across the facility, and set down again at the destination—reliably, consistently, and at a high pace. To consolidate several decentralized maintenance areas and use floor space more efficiently, the site needed a transport system that combines heavy-duty capacity, flexibility, and energy efficiency. The choice was the electric HUBTEX SFX 40 platform transporter.
Centralisation with clear performance requirements
Moving to centralized die maintenance significantly increased the demands on internal transport: the dies reach total weights of up to 88,200 lb—a knockout criterion for many standard market solutions. In addition, around 30 die moves per workday had to be covered over distances of up to 591 ft. Rapid availability of a suitable system was also critical, as the plant was already close to implementing the new structure.
“Through our constant drive for improvement, we came up with the idea of bringing several small maintenance areas together into one larger area to leverage synergies,” explains Stefan Werner, Site Manager at Mubea.
Remote control and multi-directional steering for dynamic routing
In operation, the SFX 40 is controlled via a radio remote. This makes positioning easier during crane loading and unloading and supports safe workflows in areas with changing traffic. The required maneuverability is provided by the electro-hydraulic multi-directional steering system: all wheels are steerable, and steering modes can be preselected on the remote. Especially practical is the proportional joystick steering: the operator steers smoothly left or right; when released, the wheels automatically return to the straight-ahead position. “Of course, the system’s flexibility is very important to us so we can respond to specific situations—for example, oncoming forklift traffic,” says Werner.
Which multidirectional forklift is the right one for your requirements?
Operational synergies – and automation as the next step
With centralisation, the site was able to realise synergies, for example through shared use of machinery and consolidated maintenance processes. Werner also highlights the course of the project: from the outset, the collaboration with HUBTEX was professional; requirements and boundary conditions were consistently captured and translated into a suitable solution. In day-to-day three-shift operation, Mubea sees the benefits of the SFX 40 primarily in its “reliability, flexibility and manoeuvrability”. The next expansion stage is already planned: “The next logical step for us is automating the system, which is planned to be implemented later this year.”
