Automatic Glass Storage and Loading: The Buying Guide

What the system does and where it sits on the line

An automatic storage and loading system sits between the delivery door and the cutting table. Nothing else in the plant is upstream of it, which is why a failure here stops everything downstream.

The work splits into two jobs that are often bought together and sometimes bought separately. Storage holds the raw glass and records what sits in each position, by size, thickness and coating. Loading takes one sheet out of that store and lays it on the cutting table in the right orientation. Some systems add a third job: taking offcuts off the cutting line, storing them, and offering them back to the optimizer.

One machine collapses the chain into a single frame. Luoyang DISAI Mechanical Equipment Co., Ltd. Integrated Glass Cutting Table with Automatic Loading combines loading, cutting and breakout in one layout, which removes the repeated handling of semi-finished glass between separate machines.

• Upstream: the lorry, the unloading bay and the incoming glass rack.
• The store: fixed racks, mobile racks, compact L-racks or a shuttle store.
• The loader: floor rail, aerial or crane type, feeding one or more cutting tables.
• Downstream: the cutting table, the breakout table and the remnant or offcut store.
• Alongside: the optimization software that decides which sheet is picked next.

Types and configurations

The first choice is how the glass is held. Fixed racks are cheapest and use the most floor. Mobile racks close the aisles: Billco Manufacturing, Inc. Space Saver Storage System mounts racks on a rail system that expands and compresses to open one location at a time, and is stated to increase storage capacity by 30 percent. Concertina racking goes further. Officine Mistrello ML37/26-ML33/26 Storage uses a bellow-type closure stated to be up to four times more compact than traditional systems. HEGLA Compact Storage uses interleaved, motor-driven L-racks that shift to open a transport gap.

The second choice is whether the racks move or the loader moves. In a shuttle store the racks travel. Luoyang DISAI Mechanical Equipment Co., Ltd. Intelligent Shuttle-Type Glass Storage System moves racks on X and Y axes, keeps forklifts out of the storage area, and is stated to raise storage utilization by more than 40 percent. HEGLA Automatic Shuttle Storage System takes loaded racks to the transfer position and back, so the store can be restocked without interrupting the lines. Officine Mistrello CE Rack Shuttle System is the extractable-rack version for buildings too low for overhead loaders.

The third choice is the loader. Grupo Turomas LR Series is a floor-type loader in three sizes and two motor variants, and Grupo Turomas LA Series is the aerial version. HEGLA Compact Loader is built for confined storage and low ceilings. Billco Manufacturing, Inc. Crane Loading System is the crane-type answer, using rotating vacuum grabs, laser transducers for position feedback and pack-thickness sensors that cut retrieval time.

The fourth choice is whether you also automate offcuts. This is a separate machine, not a setting. Grupo Turomas SG (SaveGlass) Intelligent Storage stores remnants without damage and records location, size and glass type. Officine Mistrello Restore recovers remnant glass automatically and can also buffer jumbo or half-size sheets. Billco Manufacturing, Inc. Remnant Storage Solution holds up to three lites per slot and tracks the age of coated glass so older material is used first.

How it works, step by step

A modern store is a database with steel around it. The steel is the easy part.

Data is what separates an automatic store from a tidy rack. Luoyang DISAI Mechanical Equipment Co., Ltd. Intelligent Shuttle-Type Glass Storage System holds glass size, thickness and film data in its database, synchronizes it with the general control centre, and is stated to exchange data with Optima nesting and cutting-optimization software.

• Glass arrives on the lorry and is booked in. Size, thickness, coating and pack quantity go against a storage position.
• The rack or the loader moves so the pack is reachable. Mobile racks open the aisle, a shuttle brings the rack out, or the loader travels to the rack.
• The suction frame grips the sheet and peels it from the pack. Sensors read the pack face so the next pick starts closer.
• The frame lifts and tilts the sheet from vertical to the horizontal position the cutting table needs.
• The sheet is squared and laid on the table, timed so the table never waits.
• After cutting, the remnant goes to the offcut store with its size and type recorded, and stock levels update for the next optimization run.

The figures that decide the purchase

Maximum glass size is the first figure, and it should come from your supplier standard sheet. Systems here run from around 2600x2100mm up to 7100 x 3300 mm on the largest Grupo Turomas LR Series. Minimum size matters too, because a store built for jumbo cannot hold small stock: Grupo Turomas SG (SaveGlass) Intelligent Storage goes down to 1500 x 1000 mm and Officine Mistrello Restore accepts sheets from 1000x1000 mm.

Capacity is quoted per element or per rack, and the spread is wide. Officine Mistrello elements carry 8000 kg on the ML37/26-ML33/26 range, 15000 kg on CL74/33-CL66/33 and 25000 kg on CL60/33. Grupo Turomas SR Series covers 8 to 16 tonnes.

Cycle time decides whether the store keeps up with the table. Grupo Turomas SR Series is quoted at a 60 second minimum cycle and Grupo Turomas LA Series at 100 seconds. Handong Automatic Loading and Mechanical Unloading Tables run from 12 seconds on the smallest table. Compare that against your cutting time per sheet, not against a rival supplier. The rest are services and geometry, and they decide whether the system fits your building at all.

Choosing by what you produce

Product mix decides how many glass types you must hold, and that decides the store more than volume does.

• Insulating glass units. You hold many coated types in small quantities, so access matters more than tonnage. HEGLA Compact Storage keeps many glass types in minimal space, and ANHUI YINRUI INTELLIGENT TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD. Vertical Sorting System sorts and pairs semi-finished glass at 10 to 15 seconds per piece.
• Tempered glass and volume architectural work. You hold fewer types in jumbo sizes and need weight. Officine Mistrello CL60/33 Storage takes sheets up to 6000 x 3300 mm with element capacity up to 25 tons, and Grupo Turomas SR Series stores up to 16 tonnes.
• Laminated glass. Sheets are heavier for the same area, so read capacity per element rather than sheet count. Officine Mistrello CL74/33-CL66/33 Storage holds two sheets per element up to 15 tons.
• Shower doors, mirrors and small parts. Yield is the whole business, so offcut storage pays first. Grupo Turomas SG (SaveGlass) Intelligent Storage and Billco Manufacturing, Inc. Remnant Storage Solution both track offcuts by size and type.
• Mixed jobbing work in a small hall. Building limits decide. Officine Mistrello CE Rack Shuttle System is built for restricted-height buildings, and HEGLA Compact Loader for confined storage areas and low ceilings.
• Appliance and solar glass. Flow matters more than storage depth. Cugher Glass Solar Panel Stacker stores a defined number of modules at points on the line, with a conveyor that can match line speed.

What a quote should include

Storage and loading is a building project with machines in it. Half the risk is civil work and interfaces. Ask for every line below in writing.

Then ask the manufacturer these questions. How many storage positions does the price include, and can capacity be added later? HEGLA Compact Storage is stated to be extendable after installation, and that is worth confirming in your own quote. What corridor width, floor flatness and floor loading are required? Which cutting optimizer does the software talk to, and is the interface included? Can one loader serve a second cutting line later?

• Factory-direct price for the exact number of racks, positions and loader sizes.
• Crating, export packing and the number of containers or trailers.
• Freight with Incoterms stated, plus unloading and rigging at your plant.
• Civil requirements: foundation, floor flatness, anchoring and any rail beds.
• Mechanical installation and alignment to the cutting line.
• Electrical and pneumatic connection, and who supplies the compressor.
• Control software, licences, and the interface to your cutting optimizer or ERP.
• Commissioning with your own glass at your rated cycle.
• Operator and maintenance training, with days and language stated.
• Spare parts kit and warranty terms, including how parts ship under warranty.

Lead times, installation and running costs

Racking and standard tilting tables ship faster than engineered storage. A shuttle store or a compact store is designed around your hall, so drawing approval comes first and it is the stage that slips. Send hall dimensions, roof height, column positions, floor loading and the position of the cutting line with the enquiry.

Installation usually needs the area cleared and the floor checked. Rail-mounted and shuttle systems need a flat, level floor and correct anchoring. Plan for a stoppage window, because the store feeds everything downstream.

Running cost is low compared with the process machines. Officine Mistrello quotes 0,75 to 1,00 kW per rack element, and Grupo Turomas SR Series runs at 4,5 kW with 100 l/min air. Loaders draw more: Grupo Turomas LA Series at 9 kW and 300 l/min, and the M variants of Grupo Turomas LR Series at 21 kW. The bigger running cost is breakage, and that is where a good store pays back. Maintenance is cups, seals, chains, guides and sensors. Officine Mistrello CE Rack Shuttle System keeps serviceable components reachable from floor level, which is worth asking about on any tall system.

Mistakes buyers make

Five errors show up in most storage projects. All are cheaper to fix on paper.

• Sizing the store for today stock list. Glass types multiply faster than volume does. Ask whether positions can be added later before you fix the layout.
• Buying capacity in kilograms and forgetting positions. A rack that carries 15000 kg in one position does not help if you need thirty coated types available at once.
• Ignoring the building. Roof height, column spacing, floor flatness and corridor width kill more layouts than glass size does.
• Leaving offcuts manual. If remnants go back to a leaning stack by hand, the optimizer cannot use them and the yield gain never appears.
• Treating the software interface as a detail. If the store cannot exchange data with the cutting optimizer, an operator has to tell it what to pick, and you have bought an expensive rack.

Machines on GlassMachines.net

The category covers 24 machines from 9 manufacturers. Eight of them show the range, grouped by the job they do.

• Dense racking. Officine Mistrello CL60/33 Storage is the jumbo concertina rack, handling sheets up to 6000 x 3300 mm with element capacity up to 25 tons. Billco Manufacturing, Inc. Space Saver Storage System takes the rail-mounted route, with structural-steel racks moved hydraulically and fail-safe pneumatic locking.
• Shuttle stores. Grupo Turomas SR Series is an automatic shuttle warehouse in three sizes, from 8 to 16 tonnes, running at 30 m/min on 4,5 kW. Luoyang DISAI Mechanical Equipment Co., Ltd. Intelligent Shuttle-Type Glass Storage System moves racks at 45 m/min, holds up to 10000 kg per rack, and can supply more than one cutting line.
• Loaders. Grupo Turomas LR Series comes in three sizes and F or M motor variants, handling 1,8 to 25 mm glass up to 7100 x 3300 mm with loads of 600 kg to 1500 kg. HEGLA Compact Loader is the low-ceiling answer, with a travelling infeed tilt table that lets one loader supply several cutting lines.
• Offcut storage. Grupo Turomas SG (SaveGlass) Intelligent Storage records location, size and type for the optimizer, and works stand-alone or inside a Grupo Turomas SR Series or Grupo Turomas LA Series loader. Billco Manufacturing, Inc. Remnant Storage Solution adds coated-glass aging tracking so older material is used first.

Specs to compare, in one list

Maximum glass size

It fixes the rack geometry and the loader frame, and it should match your supplier standard sheet.

Minimum glass size

A store built only for jumbo cannot hold half-size stock or offcuts, so small work stays manual.

Number of storage positions

Positions decide how many glass types you can hold, which is what a fabricator runs out of first.

Capacity per element or rack

Laminated glass reaches the weight limit long before it reaches the space limit.

Load per pick

The loader limit is lower than the rack limit, and it is the one that stops a jumbo sheet.

Cycle time

If the store cannot deliver a sheet faster than the table cuts one, the line still waits.

Corridor width, roof height and floor loading

Building limits rule out more layouts than glass specifications do.

Software and data interface

Without a live link to the cutting optimizer, the store cannot pick the right sheet on its own.

Questions buyers ask