Initial situation
- •Manual transports created bottlenecks, media breaks and safety risks between the halls.
- •Safety, tracking and WCS data had to remain synchronised across legacy PLCs.
04/2023 – 2024
AGV-supported hall transfer
For RECON tobacco the intralogistics and material flow between halls 8 and hall 2 in Germany (DACH) were automated through integrated warehouse management control – including ek robotics AGVs, priority buffers, barcode verification and shuttle integration.
Project at a glance
- Period
- 04/2023 – 2024
- Industry
- Tobacco manufacturing
- Region
- Germany (DACH)
- Role
- Lead automation engineer
Project Details
Solution
- •Implemented a failsafe Siemens S7-414F/317F architecture with a central FIFO data store and priority logic.
- •Connected AGVs, buffer conveyors, barcode scanners and shuttle logic through harmonised ProfiNet / ProfiBus interfaces.
- •Extended the WCS interface with destination parameters, status feedback and diagnostics for every movement.
Impact
- •Line call-offs are served automatically, line downtime reduced by approximately 25%, material flow availability increased to >95% uptime.
- •Maintenance and control room teams always know the position of every bale thanks to real-time tracking.
Technologies & interfaces
Siemens S7-414F / 317F / 314FWinCC visualisationek robotics AGVSick CLV barcode scannersProfiNet / ProfiBus / S7 communication
Project FAQs
- What was Prybisch Automation's responsibility?
- Lead automation engineer. Implemented a failsafe Siemens S7-414F/317F architecture with a central FIFO data store and priority logic.
- Which technologies were integrated?
- Siemens S7-414F / 317F / 314F, WinCC visualisation, ek robotics AGV, Sick CLV barcode scanners, ProfiNet / ProfiBus / S7 communication.
- Where was the project delivered?
- Germany (DACH).
- How does the AGV system integrate with warehouse management?
- The core objective was automating material flow planning between halls 8 and 2. We implemented a central warehouse management control that captures all inventory in real-time and guarantees RECON line availability through continuous stock monitoring.
- What role does the WCS interface play?
- The Warehouse Control System (WCS) interface provides real-time connectivity between the ek robotics AGV fleet and the WinCC supervisory system. Every material transport order, priority level and system status is visualized live for complete operational transparency.
- What availability targets did the system achieve?
- The system operates at 95% uptime with full fault tolerance. The redundant architecture and PROFISAFE communication ensure safe material transport operations even if individual components fail.
Client takeaway
The project team praised the precise interface description – it simplifies future extensions and service work.
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