Europe’s largest robotic sorting system goes live

Turkish-owned parcel distribution company, Kuryenet, has installed Europe’s biggest application of robot-based sortation technology

Designed and fitted by LiBiao Robotics, in conjunction with its Turkish distribution and after sales support partner, Lodamaster, the system has been implemented at Kuryenet’s Tuzla facility on the outskirts of Istanbul.

The system uses 120 LiBiao ‘Mini Yellow’ autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) to connect over 700 destination chutes with five parcel induction points, with the capacity to process a whopping 45,000 items per hour.

This range is a cost-efficient and flexible alternative to the traditional tilt-tray and cross-belt conveyor-based sortation systems. Each robot requires just one-fifth of the floor space needed for conveyor systems, has a load capacity of up to ten kilograms, and is equipped with collision avoidance technology to ensure safety during route-based tasks.

Derya Aydin, Assistant General Manager of Operations at Kuryenet, commented: “Our aim is to become a global brand in the parcel delivery sector. We believe that automation is the key to our success, and we have always been early adopters of pioneering technology and systems.

“Time is very important in our industry, so the reliability of the robotic system was very attractive to us,” he stated. With efficiency in mind, the robots only require a five-minute charge to operate for four hours, and they automatically travel to the nearest battery charging point when needed.

Derya added: “The installation went particularly smoothly with engineers from LiBiao working closely with our operations personnel to ensure the success of the project. We’re delighted with the way the robotic system has integrated with our other technology, and we’re currently achieving 99.9 percent accuracy.”