Patent ID: 8544159

Claim:
A method of manufacturing parts using a manufacturing cell comprises: storing components to be used during manufacture on cell containers; storing said cell containers in storage units that are located along a main aisle in cooperation with a plurality of stations arranged in two rows such that said main aisle passes between said two rows, wherein each of said plurality of stations has a station-aisle interface that provides an interaction area to said main aisle and is configured such that a corresponding station operator is capable of performing a predefined function associated with said manufacturing cell; receiving an order to manufacture a part; using a guided forklift truck to traverse said main aisle without requiring steering control of a stock handler operating said forklift truck to relocate said cell containers from said storage units to designated ones of said plurality of station-aisle interfaces to trigger inbound workflows to at least one of said plurality of stations according to said order; and removing containers from said designated ones of said plurality of station-aisle interfaces when work is completed at said corresponding ones of said plurality of stations, wherein at least one of said plurality of stations comprises: two conveyors, each having an end proximate to said station-aisle interface, wherein each conveyor has a platform that is tiltable such that when said conveyor is tilted in a first position, a container delivered by said forklift truck from said aisle to said platform is biased by gravity to move toward said station work area; and when said conveyor is tilted to a second position, a container delivered from said station work area to said platform is biased by gravity to move toward said aisle for pickup by said forklift truck so that each of said two conveyors can be used to receive and return containers between said station work area and the station-aisle interface.