Towing a train of trolleys through a store

A large department store wanted a solution for restocking shelves more efficiently.

Their current process was time consuming as it involved a staff member taking a roll cage from the storeroom to a designated aisle in the store, opening and unpacking boxes of stock, filling the shelves, and then returning the roll cage full of empty boxes back to the storeroom. This process was repeated many times across many aisles until all the shelves were stocked.

Apart from being an eyesore, the roll cages also presented a potential injury risk to shoppers if restocking wasn’t completed before the store opened. To avoid this situation, staff continually moved roll cages around the store as quickly as possible, increasing the risk of push/pull injuries to themselves.

Needing a more efficient and safer way to deliver stock to the aisles, management decided that they wanted trolleys that could be connected into a train. The train had to be able to easily negotiate the tight corners and passageways throughout store, as well as being easy to hitch and unhitch.

A highly manoeuvrable flatbed trolley

To address their need, we developed the Follow-Me Trolley—a highly manoeuvrable flatbed trolley with an articulation system inspired by B-Double trailers and road trains.

Designed with a quick hitching mechanism, each trolley can be easily hitched into a train where it mimics the movement of the object directly in front, giving the whole train a very tight turn circle and allowing it to negotiate tight corners and S-bends.

One person can tow up to 10 trolleys at once

Combined with an Electrodrive powered tug, up to ten fully loaded Follow-Me Trolleys could be towed safely by one person through the tight confines of the store and delivered at the end of a series of aisles where waiting staff can fill the shelves.

Customisable for your application

The Follow-Me Trolley can also be customised to suit any application. The articulation system can even be retrofitted to your existing fleet of trolleys.

Features and benefits

High manoeuvrability of trolley trains through tight corners and S-bends.
Quick release levers for easy hitching and unhitching.
Stay in ‘front of load’, preventing push-pull injuries and the risk of collisions with pedestrians or objects.
Suitable for retail or industrial environments.
Articulation system can be retrofitted to your existing fleet of trolleys.