Industry
Building & Construction
Pennellificio Bulova: 2 outdoor SILO² VLMs, 140 m² of production space recovered
- Building & Construction
- SILO²
- Finished products
Storage moves outside the facility, internal space returns to production
In a production facility, every square meter taken away from manufacturing has a direct cost. Internal space must be managed with the same care as the production process itself. Pennellificio Bulova manufactures brushes and tools for fine arts and decoration: products with delicate packaging that require proper protection during storage and fast, accurate picking to fulfill orders without damage.
To free up internal space for new machine tools, Pennellificio Bulova installed 2 SILO² automated vertical storage systems outside its Viadana facility, with the picking and refilling stations positioned indoors.
Product
SILO²
Key result
140 m² recovered for new machinery
Key feature
Outdoor installation with insulated panels and indoor picking and refilling stations
Pennellificio Bulova: over 60 years of Made-in-Italy brushes and rollers
Founded after World War II by Biacchi and now led by the third generation of the family, Pennellificio Bulova is a leading manufacturer and distributor of professional paint brushes and rollers, based in Viadana, near Mantua. As the official distributor in Italy for Owatrol, Baixens and Nela Tools, the company manages the entire value chain in-house, from design through to shipment, with a range of around 5,000 SKUs across raw materials and finished products.
Growing demand, accelerated by building renovation incentives and the DIY boom, had completely saturated the facility, making it impossible to install new machinery without first freeing up space.
Growing demand, accelerated by building renovation incentives and the DIY boom, had completely saturated the facility, making it impossible to install new machinery without first freeing up space.
The logistical challenges
Around 5,000 SKUs, including raw materials such as handles, rods and ferrules, as well as finished products, were stored on traditional three-level racking occupying around 130 m² of indoor space.
Expanding the building was not the answer. The solution had to free up space from inside the facility by moving storage outside.
The critical issues were clear:
- Saturated space: no room for new machine tools without dismantling the racking.
- Operators walked aisles several times a day, using reach trucks for higher levels.
- Delicate packaging exposed to dust and humidity on traditional racking.
- Manual inventory requiring hours of work.
- Mostly female staff depended on warehouse operators to pick items from higher levels.
2 side-by-side outdoor SILO² VLMs: insulated structure, indoor access openings and over 1,000 item codes in less than 45 m²
The 2 SILO² Vertical Lift Modules, identical to each other, are installed side by side outside the facility. Each SILO² is 15 meters high, with 3 storage columns and 2 side-by-side picking/refilling stations positioned inside the building.
The fully enclosed structure, clad with insulated panels, protects goods from dust, humidity and temperature fluctuations throughout the entire storage period. In less than 45 m² per system, the 2 VLMs store over 1,000 item codes, including raw materials, handles, rods and ferrules, as well as finished products ready for shipment.
The fully enclosed structure, clad with insulated panels, protects goods from dust, humidity and temperature fluctuations throughout the entire storage period. In less than 45 m² per system, the 2 VLMs store over 1,000 item codes, including raw materials, handles, rods and ferrules, as well as finished products ready for shipment.
ICON integrated with the company management system: batch picking, parallel tray handling and real-time inventory
Email orders generate picking lists directly on the PC, and trays are delivered to the picking and refilling station with one click. An average 10-line order is fulfilled in 15 minutes. Batch picking enables simultaneous order preparation, while raw materials split between the two storage systems allow parallel tray requests, cutting waiting times in half. ICON ensures full traceability and real-time inventory across all managed item codes.
ICON integration with the company management system ensures full traceability and real-time inventory across all managed item codes.
ICON integration with the company management system ensures full traceability and real-time inventory across all managed item codes.
Key results
More production space, greater protection, more autonomy for all personnel
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140 m² freed up
Traditional racking dismantled, with space freed up for new machine tools
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Goods protected
Insulated panels eliminate exposure to dust, humidity and external agents
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10-line order fulfilled in 15 minutes
Order fulfillment times drastically reduced compared with racking-based management
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Inventory in minutes
From hours of manual work to just a few minutes, with real-time ICON traceability
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Autonomy for all personnel
The goods-to-person principle allows anyone to pick items independently, without forklifts or reach trucks
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Optimized batch picking
Multiple orders prepared simultaneously with a single tray movement
We needed space for new machinery, but we had no room left to expand horizontally. SILO² allowed us to use vertical space, and the fact that these automated storage systems can be installed outside the building perimeter was an additional advantage we could not ignore. Today, we manage over 1,000 items in less than 45 m², across 15 meters of height, with fast, accurate storage that is fully protected from external agents thanks to the enclosed structure and insulated panels. ICAM turned a structural constraint into an opportunity for growth
Discover the product chosen by Pennellificio Bulova
SILO²: the Vertical Lift Module
With 2 to 7 storage columns, over 120 tray size configurations and specific tray load bearing capacity up to 1,000 kg/m², SILO² is ICAM’s answer for companies managing small and medium-sized items, even those with a very high specific weight.
Explore SILO²
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