Within a aggregate quarry, managing the flow of delivery trucks is a major challenge. Fortunately, the evolution of information and communication technologies has given rise to essential tools such as input terminal. This tool makes it possible to gain fluidity and security.
But how does that work? What are its advantages? Find out everything you need to know about this essential solution to optimize your distribution process.
What is an input terminal?
Before considering the advantages of a gateway, let's look at the problems it answers and how it proposes to solve them.
A problem: the management of flows on the site
Flow management refers to the management of materials, components and products throughout the manufacturing and distribution chain. In a aggregate quarry, it mainly concerns the flow of delivery trucks.
Today, the quarry industry is facing two major problems in their flow management strategy.
First, delivery trucks spend too much time on site, especially when dipping and loading. Let's imagine: you welcome 10 trucks on your site every day. You spend 3 minutes welcoming them. For their part, they lose 2 minutes to find their way around, 10 minutes to load and 5 minutes to validate the delivery. In the end, these are 200 minutes (3 hours 20) that you could save every day, and that could be used for missions with higher added value.
Second, the trips of drivers and employees are multiple and represent a risk for their safety: percussion with a machine, exposure to dust, back problems... In addition, soliciting two people (the driver and the switching agent) represents a waste of time.
Better flow management allows you to deliver your customer more quickly, to ensure the safety of employees and to maintain the production rate.
A solution: the input terminal
La input terminal welcomes the vehicles to the quarry, directs them to the correct loading docks and validates their departure from the site. Technically, it is a waterproof metal cabinet (the “hardware”) combined with software (the “software”).
Technical specifications may vary by model. However, an entry terminal generally includes some essentials:
- Capacity: 2000 tickets
- Industrial microprocessor motherboard
- Backlit 7-inch TFT color display
- Steel body with anti-corrosion treatment
- Vehicle presence detector
- Illuminated button when the vehicle arrives
- Thermoventilated heating element
Some options may also be added, for example:
- Integrated IP camera
- RAL color to choose
- Raised base for PL use
- Mifare proximity reader or digicode for subscribers
- Digital or IP intercom system
- License plate recognition
- Technical alert transmission by SMS
3 reasons to adopt the entry terminal in your career
A control terminal makes it possible to stabilize distribution and boost your business. Focus on the advantages of this type of installation.
1. Optimizing the supply chain
Good supply chain management (Supply chain in English) is a real competitive advantage for your aggregates career. It helps you to guarantee the performance of your production chain, to optimize your profitability... but also to improve the image of your company, since you can deliver faster!
Traffic management is precisely a key element in this logistics chain. Drivers spend precious time interacting with the various employees in the quarry throughout the site.
This interaction time becomes compressible thanks to the entry terminals, because they manage the arrivals and exits of the site, as well as the traffic in the quarry and the seesaw.
For example, upon arrival: the terminal automatically captures the license plate, the switching agent validates the entry on site with a click from his computer, a charging note is published on the terminal for the driver.
So you are reducing:
- The movements of people on the site
- Manual actions
- Duplicate information
2. Reducing its impact on the environment
Imagine the carbon impact of dozens of truck engines that are switched on all the time.
The installation of a service station is an effective solution and fits perfectly into a project. CSR (corporate social responsibility).
Since trucks no longer have to wait in line, they reduce the time it takes for their engines to turn on.
There are two advantages to this:
- The fall in CO2 emissions
- The reduction of noise pollution, for residents and employees
3. Offer better working conditions
Thanks to the entrance terminal, the driver no longer has to get off the truck to physically meet the tipping agent. He goes directly to the terminal to take stock of the place of delivery, the customer's needs and the quantity of materials to be recovered.
As it limits flows and trips on foot, the checkpoint improves the safety of people on site.
Since the exchange of information is reliable, even automated, employees free up time to devote themselves to more relevant tasks... for example, oriented towards increasing skills !
How does an input terminal work? The example of Synaxis
The input and output terminal is a major asset for your aggregates quarry. But how does it work in practice? Without further ado, discover the solution Synaxe.
Synaxe's Dune Borne solution
The priority objective of Synaxe's customers is to automate and optimize the logistics chain as much as possible between the arrival of empty trucks in the quarry and their departure loaded.
Synaxe has therefore designed a complete solution of Business intelligence dedicated to production sites such as quarries:” Dune ”.
The latter is divided into 5 modules:
- Dune Production, which makes it possible to manage the production of aggregates in an intelligent way.
- Dune Loading, which transmits the information to the extractors in order to carry out an accurate load.
- Dune Efficiency, which collects data and analyzes performance and productivity indicators.
- Dune Borne, which manages truck flows.
- SX Delivery, which sends a digitized delivery note to the driver's smartphone.
If we go back to the main subject, the entry terminals...
Synaxe proposes an installation of terminals for monitoring, transmitting and collecting information in real time. Here is an example of how it works step-by-step:
- Using a camera, the terminal detects the vehicle's license plate when it arrives in the quarry.
- It then broadcasts an automatic message, which allows the switching agent to validate the arrival of the truck.
- If he wants, the driver can print out the career plan to find his way around.
- He then goes to the loading area.
- The reception officer in the stock areas receives the information on a digital tablet.
- The truck is loaded.
- Once back at the weighing point, the plate and the weight are read automatically.
- A message is sent to the Bascule agent and the driver can print the delivery note.
This solution is tailor-made for each customer and can in particular be connected to an ERP.
An example: the Gennevilliers logistics area
What if we told you that the Synaxe terminal participated in JO 2024 ? The objective: to automate and ensure the fluidity of traffic in the Gennevilliers logistics area. Located in the Hauts-de-Seine department, the latter will host Olympic and Paralympic infrastructures in 2024.
In collaboration with Colas, Aximum and Clauss Pesage, Synaxe is setting up a system for regulating the flow of heavy goods vehicles including:
- Tactile access control terminals
- A software developed by Synaxe
- ANPR cameras for license plate recognition
- A reservation system via QR code
- A giant screen designed to inform users
A real recognition for our innovative solution!
If you want to understand how terminals can be an asset for your site or simply receive a quote, contact us here !