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Digitization on wheels – How the Ducal Bavarian Brewery Tegernsee makes its forklifts smarter
🚧 Initial situation and challenges
The contact between Herzoglich Bayerisches Brauhaus Tegernsee and
openthinclient was established in mid-2023. The local IT manager was looking for
a new thin client solution and described the following issues to us:
Machine control: Thin clients for RDP and VNC. A solution was sought that would
allow both RDP and VNC connections from various control computers to the
brewing technology. Ideally, existing hardware should be able to continue to be
used in order to avoid a costly replacement.
Wi-Fi challenge: When tablets make work more difficult. Another trigger for the
search for a better solution was the dissatisfaction of the forklift drivers.
The warehouse management system used on Panasonic ToughPads had problems
with the latencies caused by Wi-Fi roaming, which even resulted in damaged and
inconsistent database entries.
️ Solution for machine control
Existing ThinClient hardware could continue to be used,
which saves costs.
openthinclient OS boots over the network, which made installation and maintenance easier.
Fanless ThinClients are ideally suited for production environments,
as they are resistant to dust and moisture.
Thanks to openthinclient, both RDP and VNC sessions can be displayed simultaneously on a single ThinClient. This enables use in all required application scenarios.
In the event of unexpected hardware failures, for example an HMI touch display, openthinclient was able to supply replacement devices such as the PANEL.MAXI.24 within a short time, thereby minimizing downtime.
Solution for forklift terminals
The warehouse management software was migrated to virtual Windows machines, which significantly increased performance and stability.
The lightweight openthinclient OS was installed on the existing Panasonic ToughPads, making the purchase of new tablets unnecessary.
The operating system starts extremely quickly (within a few seconds), and the tablets immediately display a Windows RDP session to the terminal server in full-screen mode after boot.
For the forklift drivers, the transition went almost unnoticed, as they were able to continue operating their tablets as usual.
Since openthinclient now handles the WLAN connection, it is tolerant of latency. In the event of WLAN interruptions, automatic and very fast reconnect attempts are performed.
Conclusion and feedback
The IT department of the brewery worked closely with openthinclient and developed a flexible solution:
As part of a pilot project, Panasonic ToughPads were equipped with openthinclient and the warehouse management software was migrated to virtual Windows machines. For the forklift drivers, the transition was almost unnoticeable, as they were able to continue using their tablets as usual.
With the introduction of the openthinclient solution, the Herzoglich Bayerische Brauhaus Tegernsee was able to significantly increase the stability, efficiency, and sustainability of its IT systems.
Harald Zischg aptly summarized the project in the final meeting at the “Bräustüberl”:
“I have rarely worked with a supplier via such short communication channels and in such a collegial manner as with openthinclient. Many thanks, and please keep it up – cheers!”
Herzoglich Bayerische Brauhaus Tegernsee
The Herzoglich Bayerische Brauhaus Tegernsee, idyllically located on the eastern shore of Lake Tegernsee in the Upper Bavarian Alpine foothills, looks back on a long tradition. For centuries, beer has been brewed here according to time-honored tradition, with the brewery today offering eight different types of beer, including the well-known Tegernseer Hell and Tegernseer Spezial. The brewery is located in the north wing of the former Tegernsee Monastery and is owned by Maria Anna, Duchess in Bavaria, the youngest daughter of Max, Duke in Bavaria.
