IFOY AWARD 2016 - Jungheinrich captures two prizes

Jungheinrich the recipient of two “intralogistics Oscars”: one for EKX Series 5 narrow-aisle stacker, the other for special-build solution for changing ICE railcar wheelsets
Jury praises innovativeness and customer benefits
Dr Oliver Lücke, Jungheinrich Board member in charge of Engineering: “Both awards serve as confirmation of our outstanding solutions competence in intralogistics.”
At an evening ceremony for the IFOY Awards 2016 held on the first day of CeMAT, Jungheinrich was announced as the winner in two different categories. The company was the only one among leading intralogistics providers to get two of the coveted trophies. This year the 24-member international jury presented the “International Forklift Truck of the Year” awards for the first time in five categories. After an extensive testing week consisting of a scientific innovations check by experts from the Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics (IML) and subsequent intensive jury consultations, Jungheinrich emerged as a dual winner in the final round of adjudication for the world’s best stacker and the world’s best intralogistics solution.

EKX receives award as best “Warehouse Truck highlifter”

Jungheinrich received its first IFOY Award in the category of “Warehouse Truck highlifter” for its EKX 516 electric order picker and tri-lateral, high rack forklift. This man-up vehicle is able to lift loads of up to 1,600 kg and reach heights of up to 17.5 m. The high level of innovation was cited as the main motivation for the judges’ decision. “By introducing the new EKX 5 series Jungheinrich has set a new benchmark in the high rack stacker segment,” said the jury in its statement. The modular platform concept, lightweight design, passive vibration damping system - a first for narrow-aisle forklifts - plus the equally singular synchronous reluctance motor technology are all unique on the market. The new technology saves energy and, thanks to Floor Pro, the narrow-aisle forklift can also be used efficiently on uneven warehouse floors. The EKX achieves maximum efficiency in combination with the Jungheinrich warehouseNAVIGATION assistance system, which drives the narrow-aisle forklift to the next storage position semi-automatically. The Fraunhofer IML Institute emphasized: “All in all, the customer benefits can be rated as very high because the functions for performance fulfilment on the one hand and energy efficiency on the other, not to mention the safety features, are all very well implemented in this industrial truck.”

Dr Oliver Lücke, Jungheinrich Board of Management member in charge of Engineering, was delighted to accept the award along with the development team and several staff members from the Degernpoint plant: “I am particularly pleased that we have won this award with our flagship product - the EKX Series 5. We have implemented a host of innovations in this truck and have set a new benchmark. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for the dedicated team effort that went into developing this highly innovative product, confirming our status as a comprehensive solutions supplier.“

EJQ wins in “Special Vehicle” category

The EJQ 325 was the winner in the “Special Vehicle” category, which was included in the competition for the first time in 2016. This custom product from the Jungheinrich special-build vehicle line in the Luneburg plant was specially developed for Deutsche Bahn to accommodate ICE railcar wheelsets and the wheelset changer. Standard Jungheinrich components served as the basis for the solution. The experts on the jury emphasized the precision in particular: “A combination like this exhibits the use of extremely sophisticated technology and has never before been realized for industrial trucks in this way. What’s really special is the option of being able to operate the truck from two opposite positions.” Once again, the experts from the Fraunhofer IML Institute rated the customer benefits of the Jungheinrich solution as very high in the innovations check because the vehicle is specifically tailored to individual complex requirements and operating conditions. The all-wheel drive enables outstanding vehicle manoeuvrability so that the operator can safely transport the 2.5-tonne ICE wheelsets even in confined spaces. The mast used to raise and lower the load offers forward reach, tilting, sideshift with large shift path and tine adjustment to enable the precise positioning required for assembly and disassembly purposes. “In special vehicle construction, Jungheinrich has been successful in producing a truck which accommodates customer requirements for absolute precision and does its work with millimetre accuracy. What makes this truck so special is the use of tried-and-trusted standard components in such a way that the whole is more than the sum of the parts,” concluded the panel of experts.

The Jungheinrich team was thrilled to win the award. In the words of Dr Lücke: “We are proud to have won the award for this special-build truck - a batch size of 1 for a very specific customer application. The Luneburg plant has more than 25 years of experience in the development of such product solutions. This award is a confirmation of Jungheinrich’s outstanding solutions competence on the market.”

Background information

The International Forklift Truck of the Year (IFOY) Award has proven itself an indicator of economic efficiency and innovation since 2013. Thanks to its technical expertise, it is considered the leading intralogistics innovations award. The winners are selected every year by an independent jury of leading trade journalists. The decision is based on an objective test and a scientific innovations check. The two test series compare the competing products submitted by finalists. The IFOY Award is sponsored by the Materials Handling and Intralogistics Association within the German Engineering Federation (VDMA), under the auspices of the German Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy.

About Jungheinrich

Jungheinrich ranks among the world’s leading companies in the material handling equipment, warehousing and material flow engineering sectors. The company is an intralogistics service and solution provider with manufacturing operations, which offers its customers a comprehensive range of forklift trucks, logistics systems, services and advice. Jungheinrich shares are traded on all German stock exchanges.