The new 330 BE AGV electric platform has entered operation at the Luni facility. Developed by OMG Industry, it automates the transfer of marble slabs weighing up to 19 tonnes between the different processing stages, integrating material handling, safety and digital flow management.

In the natural stone industry, handling marble means managing extremely heavy and bulky loads that are, at the same time, delicate and highly valuable. When this activity is part of an increasingly automated production process, precision, continuity and control become increasingly important. These priorities formed the basis of the project developed by ST Segagione e Trasporti at its Luni facility, near Carrara, together with special machinery manufacturer OMG Industry.

ST Segagione operates a production facility covering approximately 12,500 m², where all the main processing stages are concentrated, from the raw block to the finished slab. Its activities focus particularly on Carrara marbles, including Bianco, Statuario and Calacatta, as well as materials sourced from different parts of the world.

In this context, material handling is as important as it is delicate: every transfer must preserve the integrity of the material, reduce interaction between operators and loads, and fit seamlessly between one processing stage and the next. Previously, movements were mainly carried out using overhead cranes, gantry cranes and mobile cranes, resulting in a greater number of handling operations and closer proximity of operators to the loads.

“Marble is a heavy and bulky material, while at the same time being extremely delicate and highly valuable. Our primary objective was to find partners capable of supplying robust, reliable and customised equipment able to guarantee maximum control during material transport,” explains Jacopo Dei, Technical Engineer at ST Segagione.

The collaboration with OMG began several years ago, when two radio-controlled vehicles were introduced. These significantly improved visibility during manoeuvres and allowed the operator to work from a greater safety distance. The positive results achieved led ST Segagione to take the next step: moving from assisted handling to autonomous handling.

The new 330 BE AGV platform receives instructions directly from the production management system, autonomously reaches the slab A-frame, positions itself underneath the load, lifts it and follows the planned route to its destination. Once unloading is complete, the machine becomes available for a new assignment.

“Our main requirement was to automate material handling within our facility, minimising waiting times and the risks associated with moving slabs between one processing stage and another. Automation also enables us to further develop our internal production system, managing customer orders comprehensively and providing more reliable forecasts of delivery dates,” Dei points out.

The project is therefore aimed at making flows more standardised and predictable, improving continuity in material handling and integrating transport into the production process. Production lines can call the vehicle whenever a transfer is required and, in the future, the system will be able to anticipate certain requests in order to further reduce waiting times.

An AGV developed for loads of up to 19 tonnes

From a technical standpoint, the 330 BE AGV is an electric platform designed to handle loads of up to 19,000 kg. The platform, featuring 120 mm hydraulic lift, measures 3,650 x 1,300 mm, while the chassis has been reinforced to support the high loads required by the application. Improvements designed around the required load capacity also involved the entire hydraulic system, the four load wheels, the drive wheel and the braking system, which features an additional electromagnetic brake.

The machine uses a 6 kW motor, power electronics compatible with lithium battery operation and a two-level speed management system. The maximum speed of 0.5 m/s can be reduced to 0.3 m/s according to the applicable safety limits.

One of the key elements of the project is the integration between physical material handling and digital material management. The AGV performs handling operations according to the production requirements defined by the management system, keeping it constantly updated in real time and integrating with the facility's semi-automated, technologically advanced production lines.

Navigation is based on permanent magnetic markers installed in the floor, with positioning accuracy of up to ±50 mm and angular accuracy of up to ±2°. The vehicle is designed to operate both indoors and outdoors, under the conditions defined by the system, and is equipped with a load/A-frame centring system.

Particular attention has been paid to safety. The machine uses advanced detection systems that generate protective areas whose size varies according to vehicle speed, with the aim of preventing collisions with people or obstacles.

For ST Segagione, the value of the project goes beyond the introduction of a new vehicle. “The most significant aspect is having demonstrated that advanced AGV automation can also be successfully applied to a ‘heavy-duty’ industry characterised by unique loads such as natural marble.”

The system is currently undergoing testing, and the project already includes its extension to the facility's various indoor and outdoor operating areas. This development marks another step forward in the collaboration between ST Segagione and OMG Industry, which began with the supply of special radio-controlled vehicles and has evolved into the development of automated engineering solutions.