Lean principles / Supermarket and FIFO
Supermarket and FIFO: first in, first out, without checks
The line-side supermarket is the minimum stock that decouples logistics from production: full containers flow down to the operator, empties go back, and the kanban says when to reorder. With gravity roller tracks and FIFO lanes, the picking order is enforced by the structure, not by discipline.
Gravity roller conveyors
Brakes, stops, singulators
Dollies and carts in a queue
Kanban on the container
Why the supermarket lowers stock
Without a supermarket, every workstation keeps its own "safety" stock and nobody knows how much there really is. With one flow rack per part number, stock has a fixed size: you can see when it is full and when it is running out.
FIFO prevents older material from sitting at the back of the shelf, where it ages, gets damaged or becomes obsolete. With inclined roller tracks, the first container loaded is necessarily the first to reach the operator.
How to spot it on the shop floor
Signal 1
Static shelving loaded and picked from the front: the back never empties.
Signal 2
Containers with different part numbers in the same lane, operators searching.
Signal 3
Replenishment entering the workstation and interrupting the people working there.
01
The flow rack: load at the back, pick at the front
Green Frame structures with inclined roller tracks: the logistics operator replenishes from the aisle, the operator picks without moving.
The problem
Loading and picking from the same side, replenishment entering the workstation.
The solution
Roller tracks cut to the depth of the lane, HD version for heavy containers, smooth-bottom containers that run evenly.
Roller track
Gravity lanes
Bar cut to size in grey, black or red for colour coding, also in an ESD version.
HD roller track
Heavy containers
Reinforced version for flow racks and FIFO shelving with high loads.
Friction roller
Controlled speed
Brakes containers by friction as they roll along the lane.
RL-KLT container
Smooth bottom
Runs evenly on roller tracks and is quieter; 2 kanban label holders.
See also: Gravity roller tracks · Green Frame · Green Frame quick guide
02
Flow under control, without motors
Brakes, stops and singulators make containers arrive one at a time and without impact.
The problem
Containers banging into the end of the lane, queues pushing on the first piece, boxes rolling back.
The solution
Mechanical accessories for roller tracks and the GF-N tube system: they slow down, hold back and release one container at a time.
Roller track brake
Smooth arrival
Slows down containers on the way down, even on long lanes or steep slopes.
Anti-return stop for roller tracks
One way only
Stops containers from rolling back from the loading side to the picking side.
Heavy-load singulator
One at a time
Holds back the queue and releases one container at a time: up to 100 kg in the queue, 20 kg per piece.
GF-N in-line anti-return
For chutes and lanes
The box passes in one direction and cannot come back; load capacity 300 N.
See also: Gravity roller tracks · Karakuri
03
Floor-level FIFO for dollies and carts
When the container is too big for the rack, the FIFO lane goes on the floor.
The problem
Dollies parked at random: the last one in is always picked first.
The solution
Rails that guide the wheels from the loading side to the picking side, and Park Stations that stop the cart at exactly the same spot every time.
FIFO Monorail 40 mm rail
Single-side guidance
Compact, straight lane even with constant traffic; wheels up to 40 mm.
FIFO Monorail rail 55 mm
Heavy traffic
Reinforced version on a galvanised steel base, for larger carts.
FIFO Station rail
Yellow PVC lane
Turns a stretch of floor into a FIFO lane; guidance on one or both sides.
Aluminium Park Station
Stopping point
Holds the cart's front wheels during loading and picking.
See also: Floor FIFO lanes · FIFO lane configurator
04
The signal that says when to reorder
The kanban card sits on the container and goes back when the container is empty.
The problem
Reorders based on eyeballing the rack, part numbers mixed up between lanes.
The solution
VDA 4902-compliant card holders for KLTs and colour-coded label holders to identify lanes and part numbers.
Magnetic label holder Color
Colour-coded lanes
Coloured edge and magnetic back to code lanes and racks.
See also: Kanban and pull · Card holders for containers
Tools to get started
Profiles, connectors and roller tracks
Build your rails and end pieces
Line-side and supermarket examples
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