In the past decade, businesses have focused firmly on logistics automation – mostly looking to improve efficiency. But while robots and other high-tech machinery have become the norm, another of their benefits has gone almost unnoticed - the decreased environmental impact. Here we show how our automated solutions can help businesses achieve sustainable, eco-friendly decarbonisation.
The warehouses’ polluting role
When it comes to decarbonisation efforts, businesses usually put their focus on sustainable manufacturing/production, transportation, and recycling. But the impact within warehousing is often overlooked. In fact, carbon emissions caused by material handling activities within warehouses account for a significant 13% share of overall supply chain CO2 emissions (World Economic Forum, 2009).1
Above view of warehouse workers moving goods and counting stock in the aisle between rows of tall shelves full of packed boxes
How automation can help
The largest contributor to such greenhouse gas emissions is by far, energy usage. Warehouses that are heavily reliant on manual picking need more electricity to light, cool, and ventilate the facility. The implementation of Jungheinrich automated solutions allows for a reduced footprint in three main ways:
Reduced light use: our arculees are equipped with Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) sensors, which allow the robots to navigate even in dark corners of the warehouse, thus leading to less reliance on bright lighting. With studies2 showing that 65% of energy use goes towards lighting, this means a significant reduction in power consumption.
Less space: automated warehouses are able to feature vertical stacking of goods. These high-bay solutions require less physical space and can provide the same storage capacity as conventional warehouses twice as large.
Less fuel: while older warehouses still rely on combustion-driven vehicles, one of the most important developments in intralogistics is the move towards an electrically operated fleet. By electrifying and automating their facilities, businesses can leave the combustion-based era behind, while counting on silent and sustainable machines.
Product picking with the arculee and a Jungheinrich AGV
Further benefits towards decarbonisation
Waste reduction: the high precision of our arculees ensures less damage to products and pallets, which decreases the amount of scrap. Furthermore, the certainty that the fleet of AMR will transport goods safely means that less plastic wrapping is needed for protection.
Fewer picking errors: automated warehouses also feature little to no picking errors. This keeps unnecessary repeat tasks to a minimum, which significantly reduces emissions related to transportation.
Sustainable efforts are often delayed or stopped by concerns about how profitability will be affected. When it comes to automation, however, profitability and sustainability go hand in hand, and actually benefit each other. While initial investments might be substantial, the long-term results can be observed in operational costs, efficiency, and of course, the commitment to a greener future.
Interested in using automation to decarbonise your warehouse? We can help: learn more about our combined solutions with Jungheinrich right here.
1 Peterson, T., & Gonzalez, M. G. (2022). Quantifying Warehouse Automation and Sustainability (Doctoral dissertation).
2 Fichtinger, J., Ries, J. M., Grosse, E. H., & Baker, P. (2015). Assessing the environmental impact of integrated inventory and warehouse management. International Journal of Production Economics, 170, 717-729.
Martin started his journey in the Commercial Team last year as a working student. He puts his expertise in customer acquisition, market research, and simulation implementations for software toolchains to good use. Now, he is writing his Master’s thesis at arculus. This article will give you a glimpse of Martin’s experience with us, both as a working and thesis student.
Hi Martin! Since you started at arculus as a working student, would you tell us a little about your educational background?
Martin: “I have always been passionate about engineering. Therefore, after high school, I applied for the Bachelor in Industrial Engineering at the University of Applied Sciences in Karlsruhe. I was also fortunate enough to do a semester abroad at the Glasgow Caledonian University in the UK, where I completed my major in Computer-Aided Mechanical Engineering.
While applying for the Master’s, the Engineering and Management program caught my attention, and I went for it. Now I’m in the final year of my studies and writing a thesis related to Autonomous Mobile Robots. arculus couldn’t be a better option for the topic I chose!”
Sounds cool! And can you tell us about the work-study balance at arculus?
Martin: “According to my contract as a working student, I was supposed to work 20hrs/week. However, as a full-time student, these work hours were tough to handle. I had a good communication with my manager from the beginning, and we often exchanged how my workload was. He always assured me that my studies come first, and throughout the semester, he respected the lecture hours and university deadlines. Not once did I feel the pressure to choose between my studies and the job.
As a thesis student, I have more flexibility now than before. It’s my project, and I can choose to work whenever I have the time.”
How would you describe your experience so far in your team?
Martin: “So far, I have loved working with my team. They are great people to work with, and you can learn a lot from them. Also, I get critical evaluation from my colleagues during the feedback sessions. I would say it’s a perfect mix of support and challenging tasks.”
Martin socializing with his colleagues in Munich
And what makes your work experience at arculus different from your previous student jobs/internships?
Martin: “Tasks during my student job at arculus were more conceptual and had to be solved in a team. They indeed proved to be crucial for my development. My internship at another company was the opposite of this. I had to do predefined assignments, more like standard processes. Therefore, my knowledge was limited to those tasks, and opportunities to learn beyond were unfortunately blocked.”
How do you think these conceptual tasks contribute to your learning process?
Martin: “Conceptual tasks are incomplete without experimentation, in my opinion. Hence, the trial and error process plays a huge role in learning. Even if the experiment fails, there are so many new things you learn during the course. Also, the informal discussions with colleagues regarding tasks are helpful. One can always take lessons from those conversations."
Martin working on one of his projects
What is the most important thing you have learned so far?
Martin: “I have two things to mention, and I think they go hand in hand. The first is to take the initiative even if you don’t feel comfortable with the topic. One needs to come out of their comfort zone, gain knowledge and create something, even if it means creating something to hate at first. It is better to have a first draft and iterate to get better solutions than to have nothing at all. Second, as mentioned before, the trial and error process. Do not be afraid to try out new things.”
To wrap up our interview, do you have any tips for future job applicants?
Martin: “Do not hesitate to gather information while you are at arculus. You’ll always get to learn something new every day. Also, use the networking opportunity.”
If you want to write your thesis with us, reach out here!
VDA5050 is a standardized interface for the communication between AMRs/ AGVs and fleet management software. While it does make logistics automation much easier, its implementation can be challenging. With that in mind, one of arculus software specialists created a free toolchain to help other developers run the standard. Here is what you should know:
What is VDA5050?
VDA5050 is an open protocol created by the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) and the VDMA Materials handling and Intralogistics Association. The goal was to standardise the communication between autonomous robots and fleet management software.
In layman’s terms: if every single AMR and AGV on the market could only communicate with their own master control, the implementation of solutions from two or more suppliers could result in interoperability issues. And with the growth in Industry 4.0 bringing increasingly more automation options to the market, customers want to make sure they can count on multiple suppliers for a large and diverse fleet of AMRs and AGVs.
“So basically, VDA5050 is supposed to be a common language between robots and fleet managers, so that customers can interchange robots and fleet software from different providers without any compatibility issues. This not only offers greater interoperability, but also protects them from vendor lock-in”, explains Alexandr, arculus Software Developer supporting with VDA5050 topics.
Needles in a haystack
According to Alexandr, implementing the standard is rather simple: “you read the open document, then you implement it”, but it does come with a few challenges. For instance, the complexity of troubleshooting. To understand that, let’s have a look at how VDA5050 uses Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT) to transmit JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) data:
VDA 5050 raw JSON payloads
The blue screen contains the message that the fleet manager sends to the robot. In a real-life situation, with dozens of robots running at the same time, a high volume of similar messages is sent every second. Now, if a human has to manually inspect this information, finding an error would be like “finding a needle in a haystack”, as Alexandr describes it.
An example of this would be a fleet manager sending an order to the AMR expecting it to stop at a certain position, but the robot stopped sooner than it should. A series of hypotheses could explain the failure, but to test them, the developer would need to analyse every single position coordinate in the log.
“In practice, I would usually need to scroll to the right point in the log and copy/paste the payload to a text editor that ‘prettifies’ it, so that the indented structure is more readable. This is not only time consuming, but also extremely error-prone”, explains Alexandr.
VDA5050 order example
A bright solution for all
When confronted with this “boring, monotonous task”, as Alexandr himself describes it, he decided to look into ways of simplifying it. And as any good software developer would do, his solution was to create a digital tool: the arculus VDA 5050 Visualizer. What the mechanism does, is illustrate the data exchange between the AMR or AGV and the fleet manager in the form of a chat. It allows the user to scroll through the history of messages, while the alignment of "bubbles" indicates who sent each message.
VDA5050 payload visualizer
Just like a car display, the tool also comes with a set of symbols that the AGV sends with each message to indicate different aspects of its work, e.g.: Is it driving? Is it charging? Is it carrying loads? And so on:
VDA5050 status symbols
Further benefits of the visualiser also include compatibility with the latest version of the standard (VDA 5050 v1.1), easy operation via desktop or mobile browser, seamless integration, and no interference by design – meaning that the visualizer is a passive listener, it cannot break or otherwise affect the communication between the AGV and the fleet manager. Developers can also count on privacy assurance: arculus has no access to any information uploaded into the tool.
“This payload visualizer is a tool I wish I had at hand when I was implementing VDA 5050, as it would have saved me a lot of time and mental effort. It transforms boring and error-prone problems into purely visual issues that can be solved much easier”, concludes Alexandr.
Successfully navigating an obstacle course
Once the communication stream between robot and fleet manager is debugged using the visualiser, it is time to prove the implementation of VDA5050 with the performance of real-life tasks. For that, the arculus software team came up with a series of challenges to test the AMR. In the beginning, every single task had to be observed by a human, who would then be able to tell if the robot passed or failed the test.
After manually taking notes on countless trials, Alexandr decided to also come up with a way to automate this part of the VDA5050 implementation. And this is how the second instrument in the arculus toolkit was born: the VDA 5050 compliance test suite.
The tool consists of scenarios that are described in notation that reads like plain English. This makes it easy for every stakeholder to get on board and follow the logic of the test, even if they don’t have a technical background. Here is an example of a test produced for Audi:
AGV must drive to n90 without actions
[Documentation] Ensure that the AGV is capable of
... executing an order, by sending it a
... predefined one to drive from n82 to n90
... without any actions
Send VDA5050 go n82->n90
Wait until AGV starts moving
${data} Get one state message
The flag must be set in data driving ${data}
Wait for AGV to report reaching node 90
Wait until AGV stops moving
Wait until AGV reports it is not moving
${data} Get one state message
The flag must NOT be set in data driving ${data}
Tests such as the one above are then arranged in a sequence, forming an “obstacle course” that the AGV should go through. As the tests are executed, the live results can be observed in the console, providing a one-line summary for each test. Once the robot completes the whole course, users can also view the test results in a graphical form:
Each entry can also be inspected to get even more detailed information, down to the level of “what was the value of this particular attribute at that time?”. Here is what that looks like:
Of course, the next logical step is to understand how each task failed. For that, users can use the tool to get information about what request was sent to the AGV, how it replied, and which part of that reply was different from the expected result. Such feedback enables the team of software engineers who develop the software running on the AMR or AGV, to iterate rapidly because the exact error is pointed out.
With this automation tool, developers can rely on a facilitated ‘inclusion of compliance test’ in a continuous integration (CI) infrastructure. The mechanism also allows for total replicability, which ensures that tests are run in exactly the same way, no matter how many times or on how many devices.
“What I find interesting is that it only took me a couple of weeks to come up with the tests and get the tool running. But now that it’s ready, myself and other users can run it as many times as necessary, with little to no effort required. That for me, sums up my job: solving problems using software”, concludes Alexandr.
Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) sensors play an important role in safely navigating Autonomous Mobile Robots in the warehouse. How do these sensors work in our AMR, the arculee? How can they be optimised for better results, and what benefits does Intralogistics 4.0 gain from their use? Here are some interesting insights.
Over the past few years, Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) have become an integral part of Intralogistics 4.0. The industry has leveraged technology to increase productivity and reduce errors through the adoption of warehouse robots. Vital for making AMRs so effective are the onboard sensors, which enable the robot to autonomously transport materials from point A to point B without the need for physical guides. Indeed, that’s why most industries today require the use of automation with intelligence in their logistics processes.
These onboard sensors act as the eyes of AMRs. At arculus, our developers chose LiDAR sensors that can detect any obstacles and find the best path to the destination point. In layman's terms, LiDAR works as a remote sensing technology that repeatedly emits laser beams, enabling our software to measure distance, position and speed of the targets between the robot and any objects in its path. The time each laser beam takes to reflect into the sensor creates a dot or a point, these points when combined create a point cloud. These point clouds are able to depict a complete image of the environment or room, which is called a map.
LiDAR sensor in our arculee
How does LiDAR work in the arculee?
The arculee has two mounted 270° Scanner LiDAR Sensors and has the capability to produce a 360° view around the robot. When the arculee moves around within the environment, each sensor collects 1081 points (2162 points in total) in each scanning cycle, at the frequency of 33 Hz to reproduce a 3D geological mapping of the landscape.
The office map built with LiDAR data
During the mapping process, the arculee also estimates its exact position in relation to the current and previously collected points within the environment. This process is generally known as “Localisation”. When done together with mapping, it is called Simultaneous Localisation and Mapping (SLAM), which can generate dynamic maps in challenging environments. This is essential for accurate robot movement within the work premises.
Once the map is built, the arculee is ready to navigate. What gives it an edge is its ability to identify objects that were not present during the mapping process. These objects can now be found in the safety field around the robot. “The arculee gets one of its three warning signs from the safety moderator, and it stops or changes its path immediately”, explains our Software Engineer, Iuri.
Iuri working on the arculee
What is the role of ROS here?
The Robot Operating System (ROS) is a set of software libraries and tools used to build robotic applications. In general, the collected data or point cloud from LiDAR sensors can be merged into the system. arculus however uses ROS only for the simulations to avoid building flaws in the arculee. It is certainly not run on the robot and has very little to do with the sensors.
What benefits does this technology offer to Intralogistics 4.0?
LiDAR sensors, unlike cameras, actively emit light signals. This means that they do not rely on external sources of light. Hence, the arculee can function even in dark corners of the warehouse.
With the safety field and data, accidents can be prevented at the premises, since the arculee is able to timely stop itself if any human or obstacle gets in its way.
Most importantly, due to its high resolution, the LiDAR is highly sensitive to even small obstacles. This makes this type of sensor a better choice than other tech options.
Is LiDAR a good investment?
Most definitely, yes! LiDAR has proven to be one of the best technologies for navigation and for avoiding collisions. Instead of modifying warehouses, the sensors help the arculee adapt to the shifting environments. This not only improves productivity and delivers better results at a reduced cost, but they are crucial for the safety of the objects and instruments in modern smart factories. LiDAR sensors allow the robot to operate at high speed, without causing damage to any objects in the environment.
After a two-year break due to the pandemic, one of Europe’s biggest logistics trade fairs, LogiMAT, finally happened again in the first week of June. As the largest of 1,500 exhibitors, Jungheinrich presented everything the warehouse of the future needs on its stand, including our arculee. And for those who couldn’t attend, the yellow giant also held an exclusive virtual event. Here are some of our highlights from the digital LogiMAT experience:
Stepping into a new universe with the virtual LogiMAT
Jungheinrich’s main goal during the virtual LogiMAT experience was to offer a look at what the warehouse of the future can look like, featuring four new dimensions of innovation: e-mobility, efficiency, automation, and digitalisation. Once online, the experience website welcomed customers into a virtual stand, where they could explore the history of Jungheinrich, the sustainability efforts, and of course, take a closer look at the product portfolio.
Jungheinrich’s virtual innovation hub
Why arculus?
While the virtual space offered numerous opportunities to learn more about Jungheinrich’s innovative efforts, the true highlight of the event was the online sessions. That’s where arculus, and, of course, especially the arculee, were presented as the stars of the new dimension in automation.
For that, participants were first introduced to some of the reasons behind the two companies' merger, beginning with AGV Strategy Director, Magdalena Finsterhölzl. According to her, “the agreement with arculus is an important milestone in the implementation of our strategy AGV 2025+”. Richard Brandstetter, Managing Director for Automated Systems, proceeded “we have defined AGVs and AMRs as one of the absolute core topics. And with the arculus acquisition, we are heading forward by years in our development in this important segment.”
Sabine Neuss, Board Member for Technics, dove deeper into the use cases: “We (Jungheinrich) can already cover wide aisle and high applications, arculus is focusing on low applications. That is exactly what we can add to each other”. Max Stähr, the arculus CTO for Robotics complemented – “arculus can provide a good robotics technology stack to enable Jungheinrich a fast growth in the AMR market”.
The cooperation between startup and corporate was also in focus, with Jungheinrich’s Board Member for Sales asking: “what could be better than the great combination of the forces and the strength of Jungheinrich and this creative start-up?”. As for arculus CTO for Software, Frank Hempel, “we (both companies) have a very different history. But that is a chance to put all the good things from both worlds into one and just go for a very shiny future.”
A new dimension in automation
Kind messages aside, a deep dive into the arculee’s features and functions was also a part of the program. For that, product managers and experts Manuela Schmidbauer and Lukas Wohlschläger brought some insights directly from Jungheinrich’s LogiMAT booth in Stuttgart.
View of Jungheinrich’s booth at LogiMAT from above
Lukas started by presenting the arculee as the latest addition to Jungheinrich’s Mobile Robots portfolio. “The arculee s is the perfect fitting for use cases wherever you find underload or floor-to-floor transports in your warehouse or production area”. He also introduced some of the arculee’s main features, such as the 1000kg payload, the 360 degrees safety system, the lithium-ion technology, and the standardized VDA5050 interface.
The cooperation between the arculee and other Jungheinrich AGVs was also in focus: “Here in our showcase, the EKS 215a is picking up load units from a rack and bringing them to a handover station. Then the arculee takes over from the end of a station or takes the pallet, or the transport table, and brings it, for example, to a production environment. So, in a nutshell, with our whole portfolio of mobile vehicles and robots, we are able to fulfil all the requirements of the customers”, explains Wohlschläger.
arculee s at work at Jungheinrich’s LogiMAT booth
Manuela, in turn, talked about Jungheinrich’s customer support when it comes to finding the right automated solution. As she explains, “it’s very important for us is really to be able to cooperate with our consumers in order to find the right solution for their requirements, since we offer different solutions for different environments.”
Curious to see more? Check out some of Jungheinrich’s booth highlights in the video below:
Tena joined our Content Team in September last year as a working student. So far, she has left no stone unturned to show us her talent in producing content for arculus. This blog will shed light on her work experience at arculus, its impact on studies, and some useful tips for future applicants. Let’s walk through Tena’s journey in her own words.
Tena, please tell us a bit about yourself first.
Tena: “I am 23 years old and originally come from Croatia. Currently, I am enrolled at Hochschule Fresenius pursuing a Bachelor in Media & Communication Management. It’s my sixth semester, and I intend to do my major in Moving Picture Management. It goes hand in hand with my job at arculus, where I create high-quality content for our online platforms. For example, Instagram Reels, social media banners, etc.”
Do you remember your onboarding process? What did you think of it?
Tena: “Although my onboarding process is long gone, I still vividly remember those days. Some companies I had worked with earlier had no concept of onboarding. Meanwhile, everyone at arculus was so thoughtful and welcoming even if we weren’t on the same team.
My managers ensured that I had all the necessary information, support and tools needed to start doing my job. Although I am quite inquisitive, nobody ever felt irritated with my never-ending questions. I always received more instructions than I would ask for. I actually hope to stay with the company in the long run, too.”
Tena working at the arculus office
Can you tell us about the work-study life balance at arculus?
Tena: “Being a student myself, I know how difficult the university can get. Deadlines, submissions, presentations, exams, etc. Sometimes there is too much on our plates.
However, I am super excited to work for a company that prioritizes and values my education more than my work. I not only have flexible hours but also the choice to work from anywhere. Unless it’s not a production day, for which I need the camera and equipment, I can choose to work from home, university, or even another city/country. That takes so much weight off my shoulders!”
How would you describe your experience so far in your team?
Tena: “I look forward to my work days just because of the connection I have with my team on so many levels. I mean, how often do you hear from your manager “how was your weekend”? I do, every Monday morning!”
What makes your work experience at arculus different from your previous student jobs/internships?
Tena: “This job gives me enough space to be more creative and think outside the box. For example, I am currently working on a campaign with another working student, that we can proudly call our baby. We are leading it just like a normal full-time employee would do. As far as my memory serves, I never had an opportunity like this before.
Always happy with a camera in her hand
You just mentioned that you are leading a campaign. That sounds amazing. How do you feel your job at arculus contributes to your learning process?
Tena: “My learning and development at work are making me stand out in my studies. I now participate more in class or group discussions because I have a practical understanding of the concepts and theories. I have also learned from my team that mistakes and failures are inevitable… so I now know that I should not fear them, but make an extra effort to learn from them. No doubt, it has proven to be crucially important for my growth and development.”
What is the most important thing you have learned so far?
Tena: “As mentioned earlier, I am constantly learning something new in my field. Since my work requires regular contact with my colleagues irrespective of their departments, I have been able to get insights and an overview of internal communications within the company. It is improving my soft skills. Besides, I have also learned that everything is constantly changing. Therefore, I should always be prepared for the challenges that may come my way.”
A quick coffee break at the office
Last but not the least, any recommendations for students who want to apply for a job at arculus?
Tena: “Soft skills like communication, teamwork and/or critical thinking are equally important as hard skills. You need to possess both to be successful.”
You too can experience the best of work and university life together. Apply at arculus now!
If you have been paying attention to recent arculus and Jungheinrich updates, you will have seen that together, we are building a new, state-of-the-art logistics centre for the Dutch company, Prodrive Technologies. What makes this new facility so special is the combination of AGVs and AMRs working together to create a holistic logistics solution. But what exactly are the differences between these two popular products? What do the acronyms actually stand for and how do they work together?
Automated Guided Vehicles, or AGVs, are well-known pieces of advanced equipment used for repetitive material transportation inside large warehouses, and until recently they were the only option for automating intralogistics tasks consistently. Now, with the evolution of industry 4.0, and the higher standards for efficiency, AGVs have a new, more sophisticated counterpart: Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs). While both technologies can theoretically perform the same tasks, there are many intrinsic differences between them.
Cars, trains, and GPS routes
The AGV era began in the 1950s, through the need to automate the transport of goods1. The technology was quite simple, with vehicles using what is called inductive track guidance, i.e.: an electrically conductive strip that was mounted on the floor. Today, the principle hasn’t changed much, and modern AGVs still rely on similar basic navigation technologies.
While the original method has proven itself inexpensive and reliable over the years, limitations were also observed as logistics processes became more complex. The absence of over-the-air updates, for example, means that any small software fixes or improvements need to be manually programmed into the machines. Another key downside to these classic vehicles is that any route changes demand a fair amount of effort and resources since orientation strips need to be manually moved - just like train tracks.
The operation of AMRs, on the other hand, can be compared to that of a car with GPS. Users can easily define departure and destination points, and the fleet software is then able to chart the best route between them. The AMR then uses the route information to drive between the two points, and will create a situation based trajectory. Additionally, the AMR is able to use data from its past journeys to improve usability, allowing for ever-increasing adaptability and performance for new applications in goods transportation.
The way the fleet management software can chart intelligent routes (e.g., based on the current traffic situation) comes from AMRs not relying on manually programmed routes, but on global maps, in which real-time localisation enables the robots to adapt to any new route information. Thus, since deployed AMRs of one fleet can rely on the same map - which needs to be created only once - it’s a lot easier to deploy bigger fleets or make changes to the number of operating robots. This localisation and navigation system offers a clear advantage over the inflexibility of the orientation strips used by AGVs.
EKX in use in a warehouse
Better Together
Although AMRs are a technological evolution of traditional AGVs, they do not fully replace them. In fact, optimal intralogistics solutions often include a combination of multiple technologies, leveraging both the advantages of established guided vehicles and the flexible navigation capabilities of mobile robots. In this combination model, AGVs such as the Jungheinrich EKX 516ka, can for example be used to perform vertical lifting manoeuvres, while AMRs can be deployed for the transport of loads across the logistics facility. In this way, AMRs act as a connecting element to order picking AGVs, which are in their turn responsible for placing or removing the loads from the robots’ top surface.
With this combination, warehouse managers can count on an increased flow of goods through the deployment of multiple AMRs simultaneously; and with minimal software programming. The result is an optimised intralogistics process, which ultimately leads to a better return on investment (ROI).
Are you interested in adopting AMRs and AGVs in your facility? We can help! Contact one of Jungheinrich's sales managers right here.
1 Ullrich, Günter. (2015). The History of Automated Guided Vehicle Systems. 10.1007/978-3-662-44814-4_1.
Work-life balance, “the great resignation”, and stress awareness are all trending terms in the post-pandemic world. But how exactly do they relate? In this article, we explore how the arculus people team encourages employees to set healthy work boundaries in order to avoid stress and increase talent retention.
The tech stress epidemic
While work-related stress turns into a more discussed topic, more and more employers have become active when it comes to establishing ways of fostering mental health. Still, a significant cause of the worldwide “stress epidemic” comes from work. A study conducted by Yerbo with 36,200 IT professionals across 33 counties found that two in five workers are at a high risk of burnout.
The result is evidenced in another report, published by HR software provider Personio: the top reason why employees choose to leave a small or medium company in Europe is a stressful work environment. "The pressure of working against the clock to feed the global tech frenzy often forces employees to work late hours, leaving little time for personal life and creating work-life conflicts," say the Yerbo researchers.
What’s the role of work-life balance?
As a result, employees are also re-evaluating their careers, which is, in turn, causing them to rethink their current professional position. The same study by Personio revealed that 71% of the 5000 interviewees from seven European countries consider work-life balance as the most important factor when choosing an employer. As a comparison, salary ranked in third place, with a score of 68%.
How do we tackle the issue at arculus?
At arculus, we recognize that as an employer, it is our responsibility to help employees balance their work and home life. The result is employees that are more able to focus on their work and motivated to develop their careers, not to mention an increased loyalty and commitment to the company. And you don’t have to take our word for it: the acas guide on Flexible working and work-life balance emphasizes it, too.
In daily business, this translates to a few practical measures, which are reinforced as part of the arculus culture. First and foremost is the full flexibility in regards to work hours. Yannick, our Employee Experience Partner, explains that “we have such a purpose-driven mentality at arculus, that it’s easy for us to give people the space to take care of themselves while also being sure that they will reach their work goals”.
Another important aspect, however, is to assure that employees also find well-being inside the workplace, and not just in their personal lives. For that, we encourage our staff to organise themselves into sports clubs, while also providing them with the budget they need for these activities. “We currently have hiking, bouldering, cycling, and triathlon groups, not to mention the monthly exercise session organised by one of our team members”, he highlights.
“Once a month I offer to join me at the After-Work-Workout. Especially after a full day spent at the desk, it’s so incredibly good to move. And, of course, it’s even more fun together, both in person, at the office, or via video call with all the other arculus locations.”
Lisa, content creator and unofficial workout specialist at arculus
Some members of the arculus hiking club on a day trip to the bavarian alps, in 2021
The practical results
“We definitely see these measures (positively) affecting the overall performance”, says the employee experience specialist. Assuring employees’ needs are fulfilled leads to higher motivation and, consequently, better results. “This is what makes the arculus culture”, he concludes.
The people team currently expects that the purpose-driven mindset combined with our flexible working policy will also allow for fully remote team members to join.
“We are currently working more on recruiting internationally, which, for now, still means relocation, for which we offer full support. But, in the future, we hope that it won’t matter where colleagues are located. If we want you to join the team, we will do everything in our power to make it work."
Yannick, Employee Experience partner.
Curious to learn more about the arculus culture? Check out our career page.
A bunny lover, a dessert enthusiast, and an erratic walker: that’s how our brand new Test Engineer, Luciana, defines herself. The 24-year-old Brazilian just moved to Munich after a job offer at arculus, but her relocation journey to Germany was full of unexpected challenges. In this interview, Luciana shares with us a bit about her recent relocation experience, her tasks at arculus, and her expectations for the future.
First of all, what is your mission at arculus? Can you tell us a little bit about your tasks?
Luciana: “I am a test engineer. That means my job is to create a test strategy to ensure the quality of the products we deliver. My tasks include creating procedures, analyzing test scopes, and implementing quality metrics. For that, I must understand how we can improve our development flow in terms of testing, especially through automation so that we can reduce the time needed.
Can you explain what these tests are exactly?
Luciana: “The robot has several types of testing: mechanical, software, electronics, integration, user interface, and so on. Part of my job is to first organize and coordinate all of these tests. After that, for the software tryouts, I need to check which tests need to be performed manually and which can be automated, and how. I can even go beyond that and test anything related to electronics and the software, as well as define test procedures. So I would say that I’m basically a test coordinator, and I work together with whoever implements a new feature.”
And what’s your favourite thing about this job so far?
Luciana: “Well, from a more professional standpoint, I like the fact that my position requires a general view of every aspect of our arculee. So that means that I don’t specifically work for mechanics or electronics. I need to interact with all of the teams within robotics because there are tests happening in all of them. So having a deep understanding of the product and how I can contribute to improving it is definitely my favourite thing.
Now, from a more personal perspective, I truly like my coworkers. They have all been so friendly and helped me a lot to adapt to a new work environment in a new country.”
Speaking of a new work environment, why did you choose to come to Germany?
Luciana: “I actually never thought that I would end up in Germany. I wanted to work in Europe, but I wasn’t sure which country would be best. Also, when I applied for the position, I thought I was going to be working from Ingolstadt. Only at the end was I told that things had changed and I would be needed in the headquarters, in Munich. But I love that because it’s such a beautiful international city. And since I don’t speak German yet, it’s much easier for me to communicate in English here. So yeah, I’m really fascinated by the city so far.”
Luciana at the Werksviertel, in Munich
And what would you say is your favourite thing about Munich thus far?
Luciana: “My favourite thing is everything (laughs). But if I had to choose one, I would say multiculturalism. For example, you can find so many different types of restaurants from different nationalities. And I love this cosmopolitan vibe.”
And how was your journey to Munich? Can you share a bit about the relocation experience?
Luciana: “Everything happened really fast. First of all, I needed to fulfil a notice period in my previous job, in Brazil, for 30 days. And in the meantime, I was also working on the visa bureaucracy. I had to travel to another city in Brazil, called Recife, to visit the German consulate and get my visa. But that was surprisingly fast, I had my travel permission approved within two hours after my interview.
Unfortunately, not everything was this easy. One of the biggest problems I had was related to bringing my bunny with me. I had to take legal action in the Brazilian court because the flight companies usually only allow dogs and cats on the plane. I was also really worried about the journey, especially because I had a connecting flight in Lisbon, and so I was afraid that I would have some issues there. But, thankfully, everything worked out in the end.”
Can you tell us some more about your bunny?
Luciana: “My bunny’s name is Boo, and he is almost two years old. He hasn’t really seen Germany that much yet since he was just inside my apartment so far. One thing he does like in the new country is the food! There’s a much bigger variety of products for bunnies here than in Brazil, so he’s been having fun with that (laughs).
Truly, though, Boo is much more than just a pet for me. He is my family in Germany and I would not have been able to take such a huge step without him. I’m thankful every day to have him waiting for me when I get home after work.”
Boo, Luciana's beloved bunny
Now, back to arculus: how did the company help you with relocation?
Luciana: “I had support from arculus during the whole process, especially from my colleague Iuri, who is also Brazilian. He contacted me on LinkedIn as soon as he found out I was moving here. But he was not the only one; I really had support from my whole team because they knew relocation is a hard process. HR was also always available to answer my questions. And, of course, there was also support with the more bureaucratic things, like my visa and financial aid.”
What is one piece of advice you would give to someone considering relocating with arculus?
Luciana: “The person should analyze every aspect of the decision. In my case, it was always my dream to work and live abroad. It was something that I had always wanted, no matter what. But that doesn’t mean it was an easy decision. I had to leave my family in Brazil to be here. But although it wasn’t easy, I knew it was what I had to do to fulfil my dream. So my advice for anyone considering relocating is to keep in mind that living abroad is not always as perfect as some people might believe, especially Brazilians. But it’s worth it. There are always pros and cons, and the best tip is to balance them out.”
So, after all the challenges, would you say the relocation was worth it?
Luciana: “For sure. I really love what I do at my job, and also really love the city. So I feel like I truly belong in Germany now.”
You can be the next to relocate with arculus! Have a look at our open positions and come join us in Germany.
With a great acquisition comes great responsibility. That’s why we didn’t spare any effort for our first project with Jungheinrich: a new, state-of-the-art logistics center for the Dutch company Prodrive Technologies. The new building with over 20.000 square meters of warehouse space is currently under construction near Eindhoven, Netherlands, and will be fully operational by autumn 2022. At the heart of the warehouse will be a holistic logistics solution with a fleet of 14 arculees, our Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR), and eight EKX 516ka automated narrow-aisle Jungheinrich trucks.
A great synergy
The combination of arculus technology and Jungheinrich expertise in the new warehouse sets the perfect precedent for what we can achieve together. All trucks are connected via the Jungheinrich Logistics Interface to the Jungheinrich Warehouse Control System (WCS), which runs the transport movements within the automated interface. By combining AMRs in the pre-zone as a connecting element to order picking and Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) in the racking area, we raise the material flow at Prodrive to a new level of automation. Here, the arculee will supply and remove pallets from the two automated storage areas and transport them in the goods-to-person principle to picking stations, where they are then collected manually.
"With the project at Prodrive, we are underlining our expertise in the field of automation solutions. We are particularly pleased that we can rely on the arculee S model of our new Jungheinrich family member arculus for mobile robots," says Dr. Markus Heinecker, Vice President Automated Systems AGV at Jungheinrich.
The benefits
Prodrive Technologies, founded in 1993, is one of the fastest-growing technology companies in Europe. The Dutch company, which designs and manufactures electronics, software, and mechanics, has had Jungheinrich as a support partner in intralogistics for many years. Therefore, the new warehouse project was a logical step in the long-standing relationship. Another important criterion in the decision in favor of arculus’s and Jungheinrich’s expertise is the versatility of the system solution. Mark Menting, Prodrive’s Global Process Owner Logistics points out that:
“Today, flexibility in the supply chain is a decisive criterion for economic success. For us, this means: we have to pick goods faster, more efficiently, and without errors. Jungheinrich's automation concept with its mix of innovative robotics and classic AGVs meets all these requirements. It also enables further optimization at a later date."
New arculee use case
The innovative pallet use case for the arculees allows for a streamlined and automated pallet flow. With 14 of our AMRs operating at the new warehouse, Prodrive will be able to count on an optimized infrastructure through automatic stacking of EPAL standard pallets with a size of 800X1200mm. The result: a safer and more efficient workflow that increases productivity.
