At Moosmann & Co, MACH2 print labels in every orientation of assembly

Fast device driver decisive for purchase

In packaging wholesale, time is precious. Providers of parcel services and forwarding expect to be served on time, while delivery has to coincide with the date agreed with the customer. Reliable, fast and clear label printing is a precondition for the correct distribution of parcels by the wholesaler.

Moosmann & Co at its logistics centre thoroughly counts on the printer model MACH2 by cab. Until autumn 2017, devices of a cab competitor had been in use in Ravensburg. cab has been noticed on the Internet. "We spent two years searching and comparing until we found again a label printer to be accessed on our server as fast as we demand it", says the Head of Purchasing and IT, Harald Heine. In the sectors incoming goods, warehouse and goods dispatch, the printers move to the packages, instead of the other way round: label printing "on the fly" on forklift trucks and trolleys at South Germany’s leading wholesaler of packagings made of paper and cardboard.

: Exception for Moosmann & Co: desktop use of MACH2
In case of major orders, sometimes 100 labels have to be printed at once.

Clear instructions in the matter of demand

Mr. Heine relies on IT standards to optimize process reliability in the logistics centre. For label printing, he demands a device driver that on the server converts the print job to a PDF very rapidly and generates the appropriate label using the Windows driver. One and the same printer type should be provided at each workstation. Unique configuration should enable printer use at different workstations and quick replacement in case of a defect. User operation should be limited to the exchange of the consumables.

cab evaluated all the needs and transferred them to the specifications of the cab devices and accessories. As a printer solution, the model MACH2 has been suggested to the customer.

: Mobile full-fledged workstation
The printer moves to the package, instead of the other way round.

Successful testing

Moosmann & Co uses labels to identify load carriers such as pallets or steel boxes, as well as for address labeling and shipping. In close consultation with Mr. Heine, the key user Eugen Schiller examined printer models from various manufacturers. In his tests he focused on the speed of the printer driver as well as on the print quality. The cab printer was the most convincing. "After the printing has been initiated, the MACH2 quickly prints the label," says Mr. Schiller: "The print image is a clear one, even better than with the predecessor. The information printed on the label is perfectly identifiable during scanning." On the large forklift trucks in the block warehouse, the printers are screwed to a metal plate and assembled in vertical or suspended orientation in the operator‘s platform. Even in suspended assembly, the label and ribbon rolls despite inclined position remain firmly anchored and do not fall to the ground when the cover of the device has been opened.

Small, but very useful printers

21 cm wide and less than 19 cm high, the MACH2 is the smallest of all cab label printers. The materials are inserted in a centered position from the front of the device. By this, this printer needs no space on its left and right when the cover of the device opens. Its design fits for use wherever little or no footprint is available - just like the assembly in suspended orientation on a forklift truck. Paper and plastic labels up to 112 mm in width can be printed. Depending on the label material and the application, maximum print speeds of 177 mm/s are possible.

The MACH2 is operated intuitively via a color display and the proven cab navigator pad. With these, all necessary settings can be regulated: for example the print speed, heating energy, a label‘s print position, and options to connect external devices and functions for self-diagnostics of the printer, such as checking the print head.

Best overview with integrated processes

Moosmann & Co aims in offering faster than the competition. Correspondent to this, the infrastructure is set up. From the packing table in the warehouse to the field staff, all company processes are controlled via an ERP system. Workflows from order entry to delivery notes are paperless. There is WLAN all over in the logistics centre. Besides forklift trucks, PCs and MACH2 printers are also integrated in trolleys, allowing mobile registry of incoming goods.

At Moosmann & Co, several dozen MACH2 printers are in use for dynamic label printing. "As for the warehouse, I prefer using a large number of small printers rather than one large printer, on which everything concentrates and which implies dependencies," says Mr. Heine. He always keeps two or three additional devices in reserve - ready configured for immediate use in case a printer needs to be replaced.

Moosmann & Co in brief

Packaging services since 1949
Headquarters in Ravensburg, with further sites in Tettnang (manufacture of foam packaging) and Singen (additional warehouse)
5,000 types of paper and cardboard on stock, added by special packagings
Customers are from industries, retail, fruit growing and bakery

Pictured left: Harald Heine; right: Eugen Schiller