"uvex is the name of ski goggles" - under this claim, UVEX WINTER HOLDING GmbH & Co. KG has become a brand name for winter sports enthusiasts. Since it was founded in 1926, the family-run company from Fürth in northern Bavaria has stood for high-quality, innovative products that protect people from head to toe in sport, leisure and work. The uvex group employs around 2,100 people internationally and generated a turnover of 331 million euros in 2011/2012.
uvex has been relying on KÜBLER's energy-saving hall heating technology since 2008, and since then the shipping department has been heated using infrared technology. Three years later, the second modernization project was also awarded to the infrared heating specialist. On September 8, 2011, the heating renovation for the pallet and high-bay warehouse in Fürth was commissioned. An ambitious project that was implemented in the middle of the seasonal business during ongoing operations and despite static problems within a very short time.
"With the new heating system, we have opted for a technology that has been tried and tested in our company since 2008."
Fritz Güllich, uvex
The project
Until 2008, the pallet and high-bay warehouse of the warehouse and logistics center in Fürth was heated exclusively by two large, oil-fired hot air heaters. Sufficient heat output was never achieved. Since 2008, the infrared heating system from KÜBLER has been convincing in the dispatch hall, which was able to win in a direct comparison of energy consumption with the previous system thanks to significantly better energy utilization. The almost 4,400 m2 area with a room height of 13 meters, including the office gallery, was equipped with seven energy-saving Optima 38 infrared heaters. The second modernization step was due in 2011: The warehouse buildings from 1973, which no longer complied with the applicable guidelines for workplaces, did not achieve the level of thermal comfort with the old heating system to enable good and efficient working in the intensive workplace.
The task
The warehouse and logistics center in Fürth delivers to retailers six days a week, 52 weeks a year with a 24-hour service. The well-being of the employees is very important to the family-run company uvex. The client's requirement was therefore to ensure an optimum heat supply and a good indoor climate in both halls at all times. And this at a constant room temperature of 15 °C in the high-bay warehouse and 18 °C in the dispatch area. In addition, uvex only considered extremely energy-efficient, resource-saving technology. Due to the positive experience with the energy-saving infrared heating systems from KÜBLER, the contract for the heating modernization of the halls with an area of almost 10,000 m2 was awarded to the Ludwigshafen hall heating specialist in cooperation with the heating construction company Peter Sendelbeck Haustechnik GmbH.
The challenges
At the start of the winter business, in October 2011, the go-ahead was given for the heating renovation of the pallet and high-bay warehouse in Fürth. The ambitious goal was to complete the work before the start of the heating season, during the Christmas delivery period. Within six weeks, 27 appliances, 500 meters of exhaust pipes and 1.2 km of gas pipes and power lines were to be installed. The installation was made more difficult by narrow warehouse aisles and heavy forklift traffic. Timely, joint pre-planning by all those involved in the project made it possible for the day's logistics to run almost smoothly.
However, the statics of the 40-year-old building, which was also burdened with a roof-mounted photovoltaic system, were put to the test again during installation. After checking and approving the fastening options, the equipment that had already been completed on the hall floor was installed in the appropriate positions using work platforms and cherry pickers. In the meantime, work could be carried out on the gas pipes and peripherals. The modular design of the infrared heaters from KÜBLER enabled the Sendelbeck technicians to react flexibly and quickly, thus keeping delays to a minimum.
"Good cooperation with the installers on site is a high priority for us."
Thomas Loße, KÜBLER GmbH"The order processing with KÜBLER was planned down to the last detail and precisely scheduled."
"Our employees are delighted. You can feel the warmth of the infrared heaters as soon as you switch them on."
Fritz Güllich, uvex
Measures: The heating system
The refurbishment concept for the heating system required the complete dismantling of the outdated oil-fired hot air heating system. A modern, energy-saving infrared heating system from KÜBLER was installed. Infrared heating technology is comparable to the effect of sunlight. It is not the ambient air that is heated, but the illuminated object. This means that the heat arrives directly where it is needed. Heating losses due to rising warm air are practically eliminated. This is one of the reasons for the special energy efficiency of this heating principle.
Eleven units from the high-performance OPTIMA plus 40 line were used in the pallet warehouse and nine NRV 38 units were used specifically for aisle heating in the high-bay warehouse. In addition, there were seven units from 2008, which were technically retrofitted by KÜBLER due to the guaranteed spare parts supply and could be used again in the modernization planning for 2011.
There was no need for additional heating of the shipping/picking area, as the radiation angle and the radiation efficiency of the high-performance units from a height of 12 meters were sufficient to supply the areas below the office gallery with heat. The total output is 1,048 kW. Although the modern infrared systems are extremely energy-efficient, the required room temperatures of 15 °C in the warehouse and 18 °C in the dispatch area were exceeded: After completion, the heating system is designed for an output of up to 20 °C.
"I can control each heating cable from my workstation, which is very convenient."
Fritz Güllich, uvex
Measures: The control system
uvex opted for R.O.S.S.Y.® II, the latest generation of the resource-optimizing control system from KÜBLER. The intelligent system optimizes the operation of the entire heating system and thus makes a decisive contribution to energy efficiency. A total of eight heating zones were created for the warehouse, dispatch/picking and storage areas between the outside of the building and the central zone, which can be regulated separately depending on the usage profile and current heating requirements. The individual control of the eight defined heating zones ensures optimum heating output with the best possible utilization of the energy supplied. Both halls are conveniently and efficiently controlled by the WinTec remote control from a PC workstation set up for this purpose. Requirements for rapid adjustment of the heating output can be met almost immediately. A large number of parameters allow highly individualized adjustment for every situation. R.O.S.S.Y.® II controls everything: from weekend and public holiday operation to independent optimization of heating times in relation to the outside temperature.
The results
After just eight weeks of planning and installation, the new integrated heating and control system was put into operation on schedule at the start of the heating season. And this despite the delay caused by the reassessment of the structural analysis. This is because the energy-efficient infrared heating system from KÜBLER is also characterized by an intelligent modular system that allows for quick, individual and flexible installation.
The refurbishment of the heating system in the 40-year-old halls in Fürth focused on the factors of thermal comfort and workplace quality. Requirements that were even exceeded by the infrared heating from KÜBLER. The extremely individual possibilities of the overall heating and control system ensure a pleasant, uniform atmosphere in the halls. The new heating system works completely without disturbing draughts or dust turbulence and can be quickly and efficiently adapted to specific employee requirements. Ideal conditions for the uvex warehouse and logistics center, which guarantees a 24-hour service around the clock.
"We are completely satisfied with the new heating system."
Fritz Güllich, UVEX WINTER HOLDING GmbH & Co. KG
About KÜBLER
With its innovative infrared systems, KÜBLER GmbH develops and sells cutting-edge technologies for energy-efficient hall heating. As a full-service provider of turnkey solutions, the company offers a comprehensive product range for a wide variety of hall types and room environments. KÜBLER has made a significant contribution to the breakthrough of modern infrared heating systems in Germany and has been an important driving force and trendsetter in this technology for over 20 years.
KÜBLER regularly receives awards for its innovative achievements. The national and international awards include the Federal Prize for Outstanding Innovative Achievements from the Ministry of Economic Affairs in 2004, the Bavarian State Prize in 2006, the Innovation Prize from the state of Rhineland-Palatinate in 2012 and the German Sustainability Award. KÜBLER received the highest German award for sustainable entrepreneurship in the category "Germany's most sustainable product" for the special energy efficiency of the H.Y.B.R.I.D. system. Founded in 1989, the company employs over 100 people and is one of the top companies in the industry in Europe with locations in Ludwigshafen, Dresden, Hagen, Hamburg, Ingolstadt, Prague (Czech Republic), Fegyvernek (Hungary), numerous foreign agencies and a nationwide service network.
