Less packaging material and more production space
At our production site in Solothurn, two big silos have been installed in the beginning for October 2020. In these two giants, we store plastic granules. Before the installation of these silos, granules were delivered and stored on pallets. The silos have been installed for strategic reasons.
On our Solothurn site, we need a lot of plastic granules for the production of our injection devices. These granules are now no longer delivered and stored on pallets, but transported as bulk material in silo trucks and stored in our two newly built 16 m high standing silos. Both silos have a double chamber. Together, they hold a full 100 tons. This corresponds to the capacity of about four trucks.
Storage area becomes production area
From an economic point of view, the switch from pallets to silos is particularly worthwhile due to the fact that less space is needed. Thanks to the silos, an area of 250 m2 which had previously been used as storage space is now available for other uses. We will use this space for production on behalf of a major customer. The two big silos thus contribute to our strategic goal of expansion.
Savings in packaging and transport
From an ecological point of view, the silos also have their advantages. Large quantities of packaging material can be saved by transporting and storing the granules in silos. Wooden pallets, cardboard packaging and plastic foil are no longer necessary. By storing in silos, we save about 720 wooden pallets with a total weight of 10 800 kg, 8 784 kg of cardboard packaging, 1 008 kg of plastic foil and 288 kg of metal per year. Furthermore, when delivered as bulk material, more weight per trip can be delivered than when the granules are transported on pallets. This saves emissions caused by transportation.
The installation of these two big silos is a big step. The silos are not only of importance to our logistics, but they also contribute to two pillars of our strategy – expansion and sustainability.
Roland Seckler, VP Global Supply Chain Operations, Ypsomed
Advantages for occupational safety
The silos also have advantages in terms of occupational safety when compared to storage on pallets. Our logistics employees no longer have to transport pallets from the truck to the storage and from there to the filling stations, as the silo truck is unloaded directly into our silos using compressed air. From there, the granules are transported via pipes directly to the filling stations.
The storage of plastic granules in silos has economic, ecological and social advantages. It is therefore a sustainable decision, which is in line with the Ypsomed strategy.
