UW–Stout seniors design a safer, efficient pallet-stacking solution ready for employer deployment
- Business Need: Improve efficiency for heavy, nonstandard pallet stacking
- UW Solution: Custom engineered stacker built through applied capstone design
- Impact: ~60% cost reduction; scalable design for six additional units
Employer & Market Need
Ashley Furniture needed an efficient, single-operator system for lifting and stacking 6-foot, 100-pound nonstandard pallets, replacing an underperforming third-party machine. This reflects broader automation and throughput needs in manufacturing.
What the University Delivered
UW–Stout’s senior engineering team reverse-engineered existing equipment, conducted site visits, and designed a custom steel stacker supporting 1,800 pounds—exceeding requirements. The solution lifts and holds pallets until 12 are collected, then lowers them for removal via electric pallet jack, with a maximum 40-second cycle time.
Results & Evidence
- ~60% cost reduction (approx. $25,000 final build).
- 125% load-capacity increase above requested spec.
- Replicable design enables creation of six more stackers.
- Single-operator workflow improves efficiency and usability.
- Employer quote: ‘The UW–Stout team built a better system, a better product for us.’
Why It Matters
The project demonstrates how applied engineering talent delivers measurable operational benefits while preparing students with hands-on, industry-relevant experience. It provides Ashley with a scalable automation tool supporting manufacturing competitiveness in the region.
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