A large manufacturing company

The company faced inefficiencies in managing its battery-operated forklifts, with frequent collisions causing product damage and battery usage being suboptimal. These issues led to reduced operational time, increased downtime for recharging, and safety concerns in the warehouse. The challenge was to implement a solution that would monitor forklift usage, optimize battery health, and reduce collisions using IoT sensors, predictive maintenance, and real-time tracking of forklift movements and proximity to obstacles.

Kaara developed an IoT-powered solution on Microsoft Azure, using MQTT 3.1 for seamless device communication. Key Azure services, including IoT Hub, Protocol Gateway, Event Hub, and Stream Analytics, were employed to monitor forklift performance, battery health, and proximity to obstacles in real-time. Zone restriction management was enabled through a web portal, with automated alerts triggered if a forklift left its designated area. Data was stored in Cosmos DB and Azure SQL for predictive maintenance, enhancing forklift longevity and safety.

The solution reduced forklift collisions by 53%, significantly lowering damage to goods and improving warehouse safety. Battery utilization increased by approximately 35%, reducing downtime and improving operational efficiency. The combination of better safety measures and optimized forklift usage had a direct positive impact on the warehouse's overall productivity, leading to cost savings and improved resource management.