OIL, CHEMICAL & PACKAGING
Material Handling Automation
CASE STUDY | OIL, CHEMICAL & PACKAGING
Inter-Floor Packaging Transfer Automation — Inclined Belt & Radius Roller Conveyor System
A wall- and beam-supported conveyor solution delivered for Ultra Plus Lubes Pvt. Ltd., enabling direct two-way transfer of empty cans, boxes and buckets between the 1st floor and ground-floor truck loading area — eliminating manual inter-floor handling and reducing labour dependency at the dispatch interface.
2-Way
1st Floor ↔ Ground Floor Transfer
3 Types
Cans, Boxes & Buckets Handled
2 Systems
Inclined Belt + Radius Roller
Zero
New Civil Works Required
Project Overview
Client | Ultra Plus Lubes Pvt. Ltd. |
Industry | Oil, Chemical & Packaging |
Material Handled | Empty cans, boxes and buckets |
Systems Supplied | Inclined Belt Conveyor + Radius Roller Conveyor |
Scope | Design, Supply, Fabrication, Erection & Commissioning |
Transfer Route | 1st floor storage/filling ↔ Ground floor truck loading dock |
Key Constraint | Wall- and beam-mounted; no new civil foundation; no disruption to existing plant operations |
The Challenge
Challenge 1 — Labour-Intensive Inter-Floor Handling
- Empty packaging — cans, boxes and buckets — moved between 1st floor and ground-floor trucks entirely by manual stairway carry throughout each production shift.
- High operator fatigue, slow transfer rates and persistent injury risk from repeated stairway carrying of bulky empty containers.
- During peak dispatch periods, manual capacity became the bottleneck — extending truck turnaround and increasing labour cost.
Challenge 2 — Structural & Space Constraints
- Available floor space at both levels was restricted by existing machinery and active movement paths — no room for a freestanding conveyor structure.
- System had to mount to existing building walls and beams without structural modification or new civil works.
- Conveyor route designed to avoid blocking forklift access, existing material flows and emergency egress.
Challenge 3 — Bidirectional Transfer Requirement
- Flow required in both directions: packaging down to trucks (outbound) and returns/restocking up to 1st floor (inbound).
- A unidirectional system would leave one direction still dependent on manual labour. Full benefit required a two-way integrated solution
The Engineered Solution
System 1 — Inclined Belt Conveyor (Wall & Beam Supported)
- Designed as a wall- and beam-supported inclined belt conveyor — transferring material vertically between floors without any new civil foundation.
- Structure load path engineered through existing building beams and wall anchor points.
- Cleated belt profile prevents load slippage on the incline for upward and downward movement of all three packaging types.
- Drive system sized for loaded and empty return conditions across the full packaging range.
System 2 — Radius Roller Conveyor
- A radius roller conveyor at the ground-floor truck interface provides directional change, accumulation and smooth presentation to/from the truck dock.
- Gravity-assisted roller sections used where layout allows — minimising power and mechanical complexity.
- Curved radius negotiates the plant floor layout without sharp transfers that could tip or jam empty containers.
Layout & Integration
- Full system engineered within available headroom and floor clearances at both levels.
- Smooth chute interfaces at all transfer points — jam-free handoff of all three packaging types.
- Footprint preserves all forklift paths, material movement corridors and emergency exits.
Results & Delivered Benefits
THROUGHPUT & OPERATIONAL SPEED
- Loading and unloading cycle times significantly reduced — continuous conveyor flow replaces slow manual batch carrying between floors.
- Both flow directions served by one integrated system — no separate manual operation in either direction.
- Conveyor runs continuously during the shift; throughput scales with volume without increasing headcount.
- All three packaging formats handled without changeover or adjustment between product types.
ROI & LABOUR COST REDUCTION
- Direct reduction in manual inter-floor carrying labour — workers redeployed to higher-value production tasks.
- Fewer operators required at truck dock: one person manages conveyor feed and dispatch vs. multiple workers previously needed.
- Reduced fatigue at peak dispatch directly improves shift productivity and reduces packaging handling errors.
- Wall-mounted design required no civil construction or structural modification — fast installation with minimal production disruption.
SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS
- Eliminated repetitive manual stairway carrying of bulky empty packaging — primary cause of strain injury and fall risk in this operation.
- Workers no longer navigate loaded stairways during peak dispatch — slip and fall exposure removed.
- Controlled conveyor transfer eliminates unpredictable manual handling — no dropped loads or containers tipping on stairs.
- All existing movement aisles preserved — emergency egress and forklift paths remain fully clear.
SPACE & OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY
- Wall-mounted minimal footprint design does not consume production floor area at either level.
- Existing machinery and plant operations continued uninterrupted during installation.
- One integrated system replaces two separate manual operations (up and down) — simplifying dispatch and reducing coordination effort.
A wall- and beam-supported conveyor engineered within an existing operating plant — without new civil works or production disruption — demonstrates Dhanvanthri Engineers’ core capability: practical automation designed around your site, your process and your budget. |
Why This Matters For Plant & Operations Leaders
In oil, chemical and packaging plants, inter-floor material movement is one of the most persistent sources of labour cost and safety risk — and one of the last areas considered for automation. Manual stairway handling is slow, fatiguing and difficult to scale at peak periods.
This project demonstrates that practical conveyor automation in a constrained existing plant — with no civil modification, no production stoppage and no complex integration — can deliver measurable impact from day one. The solution is directly applicable to any multi-floor packaging, filling or dispatch operation handling unit loads.
For plants running similar operations with cans, bottles, carboys, pails or cartons across multiple floors, Dhanvanthri Engineers can assess, design and commission a comparable system: fit to your building, fit to your process, fit to your budget.
Delivered Benefits At A Glance
Faster Operations | Labour Reduction | Safer Workplace | Space-Efficient Design |
Continuous 2-way inter-floor transfer replaces manual batch stairway carrying | Fewer workers at truck dock; staff redeployed to higher-value tasks | Stairway carrying eliminated; fall, strain and drop risk removed | Wall & beam mounted; zero civil works; plant operations uninterrupted |