Cork, Sothern Ireland

Heineken

For Heineken International, the reliability and efficiency of its distribution chain are of the utmost importance and Hyster® lift trucks are in use within many of the 70 Heineken sites around the world, including Italy, France, Poland, Slovakia, Russia, Cork in Southern Ireland, and also Ghana, Nigeria and Egypt.

Background

For Heineken International, the reliability and efficiency of its distribution chain
are of the utmost importance and Hyster® lift trucks are in use within many
of the 70 Heineken sites around the world, including Italy, France, Poland,
Slovakia, Russia, Cork in Southern Ireland, and also Ghana, Nigeria and Egypt.

Heineken Ireland is a wholly owned subsidiary of Heineken International whose portfolio of brands includes Heineken, the best-selling beer in Ireland, Murphy’s, Amstel and Coors Light.

The Cork site founded in 1856, now employs 485 people and ships 2 million kegs
per year to pubs, hotels, restaurants, supermarkets and wholesalers.

The brewery’s yard operations are intense, loading and unloading on average
20 lorries each day.

HOW DID HYSTER HELP?

Helped to increase productivity thanks to the multi-pallet handling capabilities delivered by some of the trucks
Provided a range of tough, durable materials handling equipment to reduce maintenance costs and improve reliability in the intensive stop-start operation
Supplied equipment on a 5 year full-maintenance contract
Helped Plzensky Prazdroj effectively manage operations during seasonal peaks with additional standby and seasonal rental trucks

How did Hyster help?

To overcome specific challenges, the Hyster Special Truck Engineering Department developed a J3.5XN with a raised operator compartment for improved vision featuring side battery extraction.
Briggs Equipment, the exclusive Irish distributor, is located close to the Heineken brewery and provides a full service contract which includes a total battery management service, removing the need for drivers to be involved in any battery maintenance

EQUIPMENT SUMMARY

Six Hyster® electric trucks are in operation with a specially designed raised operator compartment and side battery extraction, Kaup Keg clamps, Blue Pedestrian Awareness Lights (PAL) front and rear, red side PAL’s, mud flaps to protect the attachment from road debris, reverse camera, auto park brake, cab heater, UV protection overhead guard glass, high backed suspension seat and mini levers. Two Hyster® LPG forklift trucks and one Reach truck are also used within the goods in area. Briggs Equipment, the exclusive Irish distributor, is located close to the Heineken brewery and provides a full service contract which includes a total battery management service, removing the need for drivers to touch the batteries.

4 wheel electric counterbalance trucks, pneumatic tires

MEDIUM TO HEAVY-DUTY APPLICATIONS

J2.2-3.5 XN

Reach Truck with Moving Mast

MEDIUM TO HEAVY-DUTY APPLICATIONS

R1.4-2.5

BENEFITS

Designed for Productivity

Resource optimisation. For Heineken, the combination of good
training aligned to the Heineken standard, and the Hyster® trucks
have contributed to very high levels of operator productivity.
unloading operations and has reduced both product and truck damage
Design. Hyster® lift trucks operate in tight spaces with up to six
trucks working continually over two shifts between 7am and 7pm.
Hyster® trucks provide the ability to manoeuvre in tight spaces,
allowing operators to complete the job safely.
Reporting. Hyster Tracker™ is the fleet reporting tool installed to
monitor truck utilisation and battery life. This ensures optimum
management of the fleet to reduce costs.

Efficiency and Reliability

The reliability of the Hyster® lift trucks is essential to keep the
operation flowing. Empty kegs arrive every day and have to be
unloaded and placed on a conveyor to take them to the production
area. At the same time, full kegs are collected and stacked in the
storage area ready for despatch.
Maintenance and daily check downtime is minimal and the batteries
are charged at the end of the shift ensuring maximum uptime during
busy periods maximising efficiency.

Innovation and Operation

Specialised clamp attachment. This enables efficient lifting
of non-palletised kegs of multiple sizes and quantities without
changing attachments. Critical to the operation when lifting either
18 x 50L kegs or 24 x 30L kegs at a time.
Raised Operator Cab Benefit. The raised cab design provides
excellent all-round and upward visibility. With a tall load, the
operator in a standard truck could not see past the load and
had to work in reverse with limited visibility and considerable
discomfort over long periods.

Environmental and Sustainability Impact

CO2 reduction. By switching from diesel to electric lift trucks,
Heineken have reduced their site CO2 emissions by 112 tons per year.
Reduced noise pollution. As the site is based in the centre of the
town, the electric trucks are better for the environment with noise
no longer an issue, allowing the site to run longer shifts at night if
required to increase production. This also benefits operators and site
staff in their working environment.