Mobile IT in warehouse and logistics

Recording data at the rack instead of at a desk

Goods receipt, picking and stocktaking all produce data where the goods are. If the workstation is a desk in the corner of the hall, every entry costs a walk there and back, and the note written in between is a second source of error. A mobile workstation with a scanner and a label printer removes those walks: the pallet is booked in, labelled and put away in one pass. The same applies to stocktaking, where a cart that follows the counting team keeps the list and the shelf in the same place. Height adjustment matters here too — counting at a rack is standing work, booking in a delivery is often sitting work, and the same cart has to do both.

Cabinet carts with room for printer and labels

For warehouse work the cabinet carts are usually the better fit, because printer, label stock and paperwork travel with the workstation. BaseCart is available in widths from 50 to 90 cm on a welded aluminium tube frame with an ABS body, with suspension files, drawers at the heights you specify and a worktop with a raised edge. AluCart on a ZARGES chassis is light and can be reconfigured without tools when the process changes, with mounting rails, drawers and ISO module compartments; it comes in three sizes: 5055A, 7055A and 9055A. A printer shelf, a keyboard drawer with mouse tray, a pull-out drawer, a fold-out side table and a tray holder are available as accessories for both.

Scanner holders and cable management

A hand scanner that has a holder gets used; one that lives loose on the worktop ends up on the floor. Barcode scanner holders are part of the accessory range, alongside mounting rails, shelves, USB hubs and docking, USB and network extensions; 2D and 3D hand scanners are supplied with the cart. Cables are the other half of the job. ProCart routes data and power lines separately in an integrated cable chain inside the column, behind a rubber lip and a cover whose access can be locked, so a service technician gets in quickly and nobody else does. VexioCart hides its cable chain in the column as well. On cabinet carts, a USB hub on the worktop keeps scanner and printer plugs off the floor.

Power and clients for a full shift

The lean LFP power supply was developed for mobile IT carts: 720 Wh, more than 12 hours of runtime depending on the connected devices, a 5–48 V DC output at 200 W and optionally 230 V pure sine at 400 W for a label printer that needs mains voltage. The integrated fast charger is fanless and brings the pack back to full in under 3 hours, and the LiFePO4 cells take up to 5,000 charging cycles. Deep-discharge protection, passive cooling and a dust- and splash-proof housing suit a hall environment. On the client side, thin clients with IGEL OS are managed centrally through IGEL UMS with encrypted communication — IGEL OS turns any 64-bit x86 device with 2 GB of RAM into a managed thin client, which also covers hardware you already own.

Robust chassis and castors

Warehouse floors are harder on a cart than a ward corridor, so the chassis is the part to look at. BaseCart uses a welded aluminium tube frame with an all-round bumper, AluCart anodised and powder-coated aluminium profiles, ProCart a die-cast aluminium chassis with a load capacity up to 80 kg. NovoCart runs on a robust Novocal chassis with a cabinet made of E1 panels in a resistant melamine coating and smooth surfaces that are quick to wipe down. Castors on these models are twin-wheel with brakes at Ø 125 mm, which is the size to choose where thresholds, ramps and cable ducts are part of the route. A push handle is available where carts are moved over longer distances.

What to clarify before a rollout

Three questions decide whether a fleet works from day one. First, WLAN: check coverage along the actual routes, including the aisles between high racks and the goods receipt doors, because a thin client is only as good as its connection. Second, charging: decide where the carts stand between shifts and whether a charge of under 3 hours fits into that gap. Third, cart count: count workstations per shift and per zone, not per employee. From there, take a trial unit from our demo pool onto a real shift, have your clients pre-installed and commissioned together with your IT department, and consider retrofitting carts you already own instead of replacing them. On-site service covers Germany, Austria and Switzerland; for other countries, talk to us.

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