The Ziegler Group headquartered in Bavaria operates Europe's largest sawmill. The family-run company also leads the industry with its forward-thinking innovations, including a state-of-the-art log yard which opened in the past year. With a total of 12 machines in operation, SENNEBOGEN has been a constant and reliable resource to the Ziegler Group for many years.
Founded in 1948 as a sawmill and with over 1,000 employees around the globe, The Ziegler Group has recorded impressive growth in recent years. This includes more than 500 at Europe's largest sawmill located in the northern Upper Palatinate region of Germany.
Here the company processes an impressive 1.8 million cubic meters of lumber every year. The challenge for them today is logistics. According to Ziegler, they have their own state-of-the-art container and handling terminal at the rail station in nearby Wiesau. With a fleet of 120 trucks and an additional 70 subcontractors, Ziegler Logistik GmbH transports wood and other goods from the terminal to locations all over the world. Efficient handling solutions are critical. To achieve their goals Ziegler has been using SENNEBOGEN material handlers for log handling for almost 15 years.
At the terminal, a pair of SENNEBOGEN 818s are up to the task. Ziegler handles approximately 25,000 containers at the terminal every year; this number continues to grow annually. Every day, a freight train traveling between Wiesau and Hamburg takes containers of lumber for export and brings back logs for the mill to process.
Two new SENNEBOGEN 818 E material handlers unload the stake cars on arrival and load trucks that transport the logs to the mill some 12 miles (20 km) away. The two 818 E rubber tired machines with a 30 ft. (9 m) reach, are equipped with a 1.5 cubic yard (1.25 m²) log grab. Powered by a tier 4 132 hp (97 kW) diesel engine, the material handler is designed for demanding, continuous operation.
According to the Ziegler team, due to the central location of the station, they needed machines that were eco-friendly and quiet. Despite the requirement of continuous operation and heavy loads, its noise emission values are significantly below the legal limits set in the Noise Emission Directive 2000/14/EC. The SENNEBOGEN 818 proved to be the right machine.
Another deciding feature was the visibility from the SENNEBOGEN 818 E Maxcab. It can be elevated to a height of 19 ft. (5.80 m) and provides the operator with an ideal overview of the working and loading areas at all times.
The Green Log Yard
Back at the yard, it is impossible to miss the booms of the green Pick & Carry 735 E Series machines in the log yard. They take care of box removal, transportation, and sorting of the logs into the various woodpiles next to the three conveyors. The machines are also required to assist with unloading some of the 350 trucks that arrive at the sawmill every day.
These reliable 735 material handlers work in a two-shift operation. Some have already clocked up as many as 40,000 operating hours. Ziegler credits the service and support they get from the factory and their local dealer.
In 2017, two new 735 machines from the current E series were added to the fleet. They are powered by a 300 hp (224 kW) diesel engine with variable all-wheel drive. They have a reach of 36 ft. (11 m) and are equipped with a 2.5 yd2 or 3 yd2 (2.0 m² or 2.5 m²) log grab.
"It is no coincidence that we have been working with SENNEBOGEN for so many years. The provision of purpose-built products to meet our timber handling requirements is of course important. The fact that the machines are so reliable and easy to maintain is also vital for our volume. Processes that work in perfect harmony are indispensable if we are to continue to develop and expand our product offering and services as a multinational family-run company. SENNEBOGEN machines help to optimize our logistics processes every single day," said Fabian Hummel of the Ziegler Group.
