un spécialiste de la robotique s’installe dans la technopole Bordeaux Montesquieu
In this sprawling group that is Fives and its 8,200 employees worldwide, Fives Syleps specializes in the manufacture of robotic arms for mass distribution and the food industry. “This site specializes in the palletizing and de-palletizing of our customers’ products,” explains Thierry Boisnard, founder of Synapses Robotique, which became Fives Syleps when it was taken over by the Fives group in 2017.
800 parcels per hour
At the back of the warehouse, two robotic bras simulate the work carried out by Fives Syleps customers. Among the latter, we can find System U, Intermarché or even the order picker for McDonald’s in Bordeaux. The arms are then carried out with a disconcerting speed of going and returning to simulate the taking of a product and the placement on a pallet. “A robotic arm platform can process 800 packages per hour. We are gaining a lot in efficiency and we can reduce the hardship of our customers’ employees,” says Damien Couzinet, employee at Fives Syleps.
Behind the robotic arms hides an important software part to optimize the design and routing of the pallets. “For example, this allows us to model the pallet in 3D and predict which product will be where to ensure overall stability,” explains Thierry Boisnard.
“A robotic arm platform can process 800 packages per hour”
The group took the opportunity to unveil a prototype robotic arm capable of opening the pallets and eliminating them alone. “This arm can remove products up to 35 kg. Above all, it adapts in three dimensions and can recover parcels that are not flat, for example,” says Vincent Poupard, employee at Fives Syleps.
Take advantage of the e-commerce boom
If Fives Syleps is setting up and investing more in this sector, it is in particular to take advantage of the growth in the volume of trade in goods thanks to e-commerce. “Companies need to increase productivity and we must be present,” adds Thierry Boisnard. Platforms whose cost is counted in millions of euros and whose return on investment can take several years according to him. “But these technologies can last for decades. Companies can afford to wait for their return on investment. »