IFOY Audit
Finalists undergo the three-stage IFOY Audit as part of the IFOY Audit, which takes place during the TEST CAMP INTRALOGISTICS. This consists of the scientific IFOY Innovation Check, the IFOY Test and the jury test.
EK-X
STILL
Product name and company
EK-X – STILL
Category
Warehouse Truck „highlifter“
Description
The EK-X vertical order-picker is bulit for more performance, reach height, residual load-bearing capacity, functionality and ergonomics. It reaches driving speeds of up to 13 km/h and lifting speeds of up to 0.4 m/s. Thanks to the OPTISPEED system, this compact warehouse assistant is always on the move at maximum possible speed – but without endangering safe driving.
Additional features include an exceptionally good field of view, a reach height of 12 metres – outstanding in the truest sense of the word – and a roomy, shock-absorbing driver’s cab with unprecedented freedom of movement and numerous equipment options. The EK-X makes every order-picking warehouse management efficient and user-friendly and the modular system allows the optimum EK-X to be custom-built for every warehouse.
Innovations
The OPTISPEED system guarantees an optimum balance between speed, goods handling performance and safety at all times: it ensures situation-dependent control of the driving speed depending on the height and load weight. Thus the driver is always on the move with maximum possible speed and safety. A clever touch: thanks to a semi-automatic approach to the unit and shelf, the EK-X moves automatically at the touch of a button to a defined position in the rack aisle.
At the same time availability is reliable: the new EK-X machines recover energy during braking and lowering operations – so multi-shift deployments are possible with only a single battery.
With numerous equipment options, for example an inclining gate, the driver’s cab pays great attention to ergonomic working. The vehicle’s external dimensions turn out to be extremely small in spite of the roomy, individually customisable cab. This means the EK-X can be used even in narrow confined warehouse situations. Its compact construction allows a minimum turning radius of 1,732 mm.
Market relevance
The aim when developing the new EK-X was to create a future-proof generation of order pickers. State-of-the-art proportional valve technology enables particularly sensitive operation and stepless control of the lifting speed. This allows even complex warehouses with delicate goods to be served in an optimum way.
Future-proof also means taking demographic change into account – a megatrend in all industrialised countries. That’s why a ground-breaking driver’s cab was developed, individually customisable through numerous alternative equipment options. Not only is it roomy and reduces the transmission of vibrations to the spinal column; it also has an intuitive control concept and highly developed sensor technology.
Hard factors such as optimum goods handling performance and cost-effectiveness, and soft factors such as the conservation of resources and occupational safety, form an ideal symbiosis in the EK-X.
Customer benefits
The driver is always on the move as quickly and safely as possible, because due to the OPTISPEED system, the EK-X achieves a balance between speed, goods handling performance and safety.
A ground-breaking driver’s cab, individually customisable through numerous alternative equipment options, ensures ergonomic, fatigue-free working, even in confined warehouse situations. It is not only extremely roomy and minimises the transmission of vibrations to the spinal column, but also has an intuitive control concept and highly developed sensor technology. The vehicle’s external dimensions turn out to be small in spite of the roomy, individually configurable cab.
The new EK-X machines guarantee a high level of availability by recovering energy during braking and lowering operations – which makes multi-shift deployments possible with only a single battery.
Other information
| This is a | Vollständig neues Modell |
| Date of market launch | 10/01/2013 |
| Competitive products | Jungheinrich EKS 312 Crown SP 3522 Linde OME 100H |
| Special equipment IFOY test device | OPTISPEED |
Technical data
| Drive type | Elektro |
| Lifting weight max. | 1200 kg |
| Truck weight | 2948 kg |
| Driving speed without load | km/h |
| Lifting speed without load | m/s |
| Lifting height max. | 10400 mm |
Test report
Still brought the EK-X series onto the market at the end of 2013. According to the Hamburg-based manufacturer, this new generation of vertical order pickers with capacities from 1.0 to 1.2 tons combines productivity with precision, safety, compact design, ergonomic layout and low energy consumption.
With its grab height of 12 metres, the Still EK-X not only outperforms its predecessor by 10 percent but is also one of the highest-reach order pickers on the market.
The as-standard Blue-Q energy-saving system in the Still EK-X ensures extremely low energy consumption. The system achieves energy savings of up to 10 percent, literally at the push of a button. Energy recovery during braking and lowering saves additional energy. The use of lightweight yet extremely impact-proof ABS plastic components also cuts energy consumption, although the interior finish in the test truck still leaves room for improvement. One major benefit is that the order picker can also be used in multi-shift operation with just one battery charge.
The workplace is spacious and accessible via a low entry (240 mm). One feature that immediately strikes the eye is the large – but not very sturdy – contact plate of the floor panel which ensures ample legroom and a comfortable working position for the driver. The truck is extremely compact despite the generous cabin, and the turning radius of just 1,732 mm permits effortless manoeuvring in tight spaces.
Another big plus of the order picker is the excellent view of the surrounding area and the load. The energy-efficient LED lights in particular ensure that the working environment is always well lit and easily visible.
The driver can operate the truck using just one hand. The operating console on the fork side of the cabin is 30 mm lower than on the predecessor model. This permits an even better view of the load, and it is easier for the order picker to reach goods stored lower on the pallet. The control console is also available in a height-adjustable version, which is certainly recommended and more convenient for taller operators.
The control electronics are extremely precise and react with reassuring sensitivity. The straight-ahead motion in particular is impressively stable. The Still EK-X is equipped with quiet lifting and traction motors as well as a cabin that reduces vibrations to a minimum. The interior of the cabin has some angular surfaces, however.
The protective grating on the side of the cabin can be moved outwards as an optional extra, making it easier to pick goods that are lower down in the rack. Other optional extras like the comfort cabin with additional storage area, a 12-volt charger and the OPTISPEED system were not fitted to the test truck, however. The latter ensures a balance between speed, performance and safety. The system automatically adjusts the speeds to the lifting heights and loads. This permits high order picking performance with a maximum speed of 13 kmh, without compromising the safety of the driver or the surrounding area. When equipped with OPTISPEED 4.0, the truck additional computes the ideal diagonal between the order picking points in the rack aisle with the help of RFID tags or barcodes.
Summary
With the revamped EK-X, Still now offers a vertical order picker for higher grab heights. The key benefits are visibility of surroundings and load as well as jolt-free retraction and extension of the mast. The full-option version was not available for the IFOY test days and would have in all probability offered numerous advantages as well as a higher quality of design.
| Hard facts | Test Truck IFOY Test | Average other trucks | Value 1 to 10 | |
| Productivity Max mode | no test possible | no test possible | Picks p. 8 hrs | 7.5 |
| Productivity Eco mode | no test possible | no test possible | Picks p. 8 hrs | 7.5 |
| Energy level Max mode | no test possible | no test possible | kwh 100 picks | 7.5 |
| Energy level Eco mode | no test possible | no test possible | kwh 100 picks | 7.5 |
| Driving speed stand on | no test possible | no test possible | km/hr | |
| Driving speed Remote | no test possible | no test possible | km/hr | |
| Lifting speed | no test possible | no test possible | mts/sec | |
| Acceleration speed | no test possible | no test possible | time 15 mtrs | |
| Acceleration speed remote | no test possible | no test possible | time 15 mtrs | |
| Averages soft facts | IFOY Test | |||
| First impression | 7.00 | |||
| Load Safety | 7.00 | |||
| Entry / exit truck | 7.25 | |||
| Working position | 7.33 | |||
| Activate truck | 7.00 | |||
| Hydraulics | 7.57 | |||
| Steering | 7.43 | |||
| Sight | 9.00 | |||
| Driving & Turning | 7.00 | |||
| Parking truck | 7.17 | |||
| Safety elements | 7.50 | |||
| General after test | 7.38 | |||
| Sustainability | 8.00 | |||
| Totals | ||||
| Total average soft facts | 7.43 | |||
| Total productivity | 7.50 | |||
| Total Energy consumption | 7.50 | |||
| Total result all facts | 7.47 | |||
IFOY Innovation Check
The Still EK-X is equipped with a system that automatically controls the approach to the next withdrawal point. The driving and lifting speeds are adjusted to suit the load weight on the fork. This means that the machine can always travel at the maximum possible speed, thereby further enhancing the performance capability of the order picker. The braking energy is fed back into the battery, significantly extending the operating time of the truck.
Assessment of innovation
The automatic approach control and maximum speed adjustment features underline the systematic optimisation of this truck category to achieve the maximum performance that already exists in other truck classes
Recovery of braking energy, a concept that has already been successfully implemented in other vehicle categories such as stacker cranes, is a targeted development that meets the market requirements in this equipment segment. Overall, the Still EK-X is a well-designed machine with a number of smaller innovative features that are certain to become as-standard in other trucks in this class in years to come.
| Functionality / type of implementation | ++ |
| Novelty / Innovation | ++ |
| Customer benefits | ++ |
| Market relevance | ++ |
| ++ very good / + good / Ø balanced / – less / — not available | |
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Image/video credits: STILL GmbH
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Statutes
In den Statuten sind die Grundwerte und die Standards des IFOY AWARD festgelegt, nach denen die Organisation handelt. Dazu gehören unter anderem Gremien, Wahlomodus, Bewertungskriterien sowie der Code of Conduct.
Committees
The International Intralogistics and Forklift Truck of the Year has three bodies: Jury, sponsors, and advisory board.