Logistics center „Zeche Gustav“ sets benchmark as the most innovative and safest Li-ion/dangerous goods warehouse

BMZ GmbH started as a small business in 1994 “Am Sportplatz” in Karlstein am Main. After a total loss through fire, new buildings were constructed with administration, logistics, test facilities and production. Sven Bauer, CEO and founder of BMZ GmbH, still leads the group with almost 3,000 employees at 6 further international locations through the world of Li-ion storage systems as managing director.

With the expansion at "Zeche Gustav", 3 production units were created in less than 5 years, each with a production area of 3,000 m². "We have reached a size where we had to think about a centralized logistics system. The next step was to create a logistics center in which the goods are brought from the warehouse to the picking area and from the picking area to the line in the shortest possible time, as automated as possible. Planning began in 2017/2018 and today we are looking at one of the most modern logistics concepts with almost 12,000 pallet spaces, supermarket and fully automated small parts warehouse. The requirements of the insurance company and the environmental authorities were precisely met, we have a fire water tank with a water supply of 754 m³, a fire alarm and sprinkler system that locates the source of the fire, reports it intelligently and extinguishes it effectively, a fire water retention system that automatically retains contaminated fire water in the case of a fire and prevents it from entering the groundwater," reports Press Spokesman Christian Adamczyk.

The insurance broker and risk consultant Marsh, together with Axa XL as lead insurer, designed the fire protection of the 7,000 m² logistics center, so that the details could be directly coordinated with the VDS as independent inspector of the extinguishing systems. After the BMZ GmbH had implemented the extensive conditions and requirements, the extinguishing system was accepted by the VDS after completion, so that the insurance cover was confirmed. "With the size and type of the logistics center, BMZ GmbH has placed an extraordinary demand on fire protection and thus also on the insurance companies. Li-Ion cells are considered a very high risk in the insurance market due to their chemical and electrical nature. Since there is no generally valid set of guidelines for this type of storage, a fire extinguishing concept had to be defined that is suitable for the size and type of logistics center. This concept was approved by the independent testing authority of the VDS and is therefore recognized in the insurance market. The BMZ logistics center is thus probably the only extinguishing system in Germany for a high-bay warehouse with Li-ion batteries of different types and sizes that has been approved by the VDS and fully accepted by the insurer. BMZ can be proud to have solved this challenge including the strict requirements in all points. Thus, high safety standards can be maintained for people and environmental protection is also taken into account accordingly", says Martin Käufer, Head of Property Risk Consulting at Marsh.

BMZ can thus offer the most modern security concept in Bavaria, close to the metropolis of Frankfurt am Main, taking into account the high environmental protection requirements in combination with professional logistics handling.