Great Robot Installations…Pots, Tubs, Punnets

Ready Meals, Nets, PolybagsRetail Trays/Crates, Pallets

Boxes, Cases, Bulk Display Units (BDUs)

Case/Tray Loading and PalletisingThe UK’s widest selection of automation solutions

UK designer and manufacturer Semi and fully automated solutions

Compact systems Reduced waste and product giveaway

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These highly dexterous robots, typically 6 axis, can be wall, floor or invert mounted. Slower than delta robots, they have the largest work envelope and highest payload of all options - models can achieve up to 80 cycles/min, have a load capacity of 4-70kg and a reach of 550-3110mm. Often used to pick up larger items, such as finished/packed products, boxes or cartons in single or multiple formats from a conveyor, and place the goods into retail ready cases.

The UK’s widest selection of case loading and palletising systems

Articulated Style Loading & Palletising

Gantry hung, these linear robots have 2-3 principal axes of control (x-y-z): back and forth, in and out, and up and down, plus rotation if needed. A simple, economic and compact solution with high pick speeds (150 cycles/min max). The systems have a medium range payload (0.5kg-50kg max) and a vast working envelope of 8500x2500x1000mm max. An economical and simple off the shelf system which is only restricted by dexterity.

Cartesian Style Loading & Palletising

From the entire Pacepacker team, we hope you enjoy reading this selection of case loading and palletising application stories.

Common themes running through these automation stories include:• Waste reduction • Efficient and consistent product handling• Overcoming space restrictions• Boost in productivity and quality• Phasing-in automation: from manual, to semi, to fully automated lines.

Working with the bestUK-based, for 40+ years Pacepacker Services has designed, manufactured and built packing machinery for 1,000s of customers. And we’re the proud winners of 10 industry awards. E GRI@pacepacker.com T +44(0) 1371 811544

Welcome

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Although a 6 axis model is available, these systems are typically 4 axis (including rotation) and usually gantry hung above the line. These are fast robots (150 cycles/min) with a low payload (up to 12kg) and limited reach (850mm).

Delta Style Pick & Place

FlexaPac - A unique patented tray/crate loading system which handles netted or bagged fruits/veg/shellfish without waste or bruising at 60 bags/min. Winner of Food Processing’s 2014 top technology award, the FlexaPac can be interlocked into an existing line – a first for fruit packing!

Bespoke

The robot’s ‘hand’40+ different optionsavailable in clamp, vacuum, magnet orclam-shell format.

End-Effectors

Tray DeNester - Any size height or size tray/crate is automatically fed to the line/robot.

Ancillary

UK quality buildAs well as manufacturing our own-brand flagship systems, we integrate technology from the leading robotic, mechatronic, conveyor and weighing suppliers, including FANUC and Festo. With 80+ robots and 40+ end effectors available, we offer the widest selection of automated systems. All built in Essex.

1. Don’t be led by price alone. A well-engineered solution will provide low cost of ownership for many years at a fraction of the cost of manual labour. On the flipside, cheaply made, under-engineered solutions may cost you dearly long term.

2. Focus on your business priorities. A good integrator will scope out ‘user requirement specifications’ including products being handled, packaging sizes and variants, speeds, etc.

3. Question value of add-on features. Will a high-spec system really boost your production capacities? Is your current equipment compatible?

4. Ignore the myths that automation fast becomes obsolete. Many equipment solutions can be adapted or upgraded to suit future requirements and production floor layouts. Among the many bespoke projects, Pacepacker has created mobile systems on frames, installed palletisers in containers and designed modular conveyors for easy reconfigurations.

When it comes to getting more output for your money automation is the way to go. By making efficiency improvements you can more than double your production capacity as well as lower costs – here’s how...

Check-out our top tips on achieving a 12-month ROI!

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Vertical packing – how do you get the last pack in the tray? With today’s supermarket price wars showing no signs of easing, the need for speed and efficiency is driving packing plants towards new and innovative technology. To present products in an upright manner, this Shingle Tray Loader (STL) vertically packs fresh produce into retail crates.

Previously, operatives would work round a turntable to vertically load packs into trays. Now, this FANUC M-710iC/45M robot with bespoke shingle feed end-effector and tray denester, vertically packs fresh produce bags (e.g. salad, chopped vegetables, stir fry mixes and noodles), FMCG products (coffee, dried pasta, flour) and household cleaning products into retail trays at 90 packs/min.

Bespoke end-effector When loading packs vertically the challenge will always be ‘how do you get the last pack into the tray’? A bespoke design end-effector attached to the robot arm moves left and right and adjusts its position in graduated steps to catch each product as it shoots off the end of a conveyor until several packs are stacked one on top of the other. Once the end-effector is full, the robot arm tilts into a horizontal position above a waiting full or half-sized crate, releasing the entire collection of products uniformly into the tray... in one go.

✓ Vertical product stacking reduces waste and the risk of produce bags, like fresh noodles, bursting when trays are stacked

✓ Pack volumes are counted and indexed as they switch from a single to twin conveyor

✓ A tray denester separates crates for filling resulting in a seamless production flow.

Mixed shelf-ready trays the Cartesian wayPacepacker’s new offline, portable Mixed Tray Loader (MTL) quickly generates assorted trays of product and has been installed at a UK manufacturer of own-label dips.

✓ Creates shelf-ready mixed trays✓ 20 single layer trays of dips/min✓ Pots, jars, tubs, ready meals and more!

For smaller outlets, such as convenience supermarkets and inner-city delicatessens, these assorted product trays provide a creative way for retailers to offer a far wider product range on space restricted retail shelves.

The MTL uses pneumatic Cartesian pick-and-place technology positioned over twin lanes of filled trays. The picking heads remove one line of product from the first tray and places it into the second. The process is then reversed to swap items in both trays. The system handles plastic pots, jars and other rigid, flat-topped packs such as ready meals, since it relies on vacuum to grip and manipulate product. As well as being highly compact, the new MTL system is also mobile and can be located in the warehouse or in the production area to aid production workflow.

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Cooked to perfection✓ Loading & unloading✓ Layer pick-up✓ Multiple pack configurations✓ Food-grade system.

A UK based pet food manufacturer recently installed a super-sized pick and place solution to help streamline its operation before and after cooking.

Pacepacker designed and manufactured the colossal stainless steel line within a matter of months and incorporated a wide range of kit including: transfer chain conveyors, transfer cart, scissor lifts, air-knife, four axis articulate arm FANUC robot, vacuum end effector, bespoke mechanical devices, infeed/outfeed, wide indexing modular conveyor belts with specialist product grippers, magnetic detectors (for basket detection), motorised product pushers, mesh guarding.

Pots of uncooked pet food are delivered by conveyor lid down to the robot station. Once a row is indexed into the cell, the row is pushed over to a picking position and the cycle continues until a complete layer has been assembled (42 pots). The four axis robot with Vuototecnica vacuum end-effector tooling picks up the assembled layer and loads it into a stainless steel basket before placing a layer-pad separator on top of the products. The robot completes a full cycle, loading 12 layers of product into the cooking basket, before the basket is indexed to a holding area and an empty basket enters the cell ready for loading. Once six baskets have been filled, they are sent to a steam oven to cook the product − the layer pad separators ensure all products are cooked evenly.

Once cooked, water residue from the cooking process is removed with an air-knife. During the unloading operation the cycle is reversed – baskets arrive at the robot cell where it removes the separators and returns a layer of product onto a wide conveyor before packs are fed row by row to a sleeving machine in single file format.

This solution is ideal for:✓ Automating plastic and tinned food production facilities where

products are cooked in containers or pouches✓ Multiple size/shape pot/pack configurations✓ Food grade facilities requiring all stainless steel solutions.

Compact Cartesian palletiser 50% footprint reduction compared to a robot arm

Situated at the end of an existing product conveyor, Pacepacker’s Compact Cartesian Palletiser is ideal for handling retail and wholesale goods in clusters, such as blister packs of flour and trays of jam jars, as well as boxes, cartons, shrink-wrapped trays and many other retail goods.

A Cartesian mechanism supplied by Festo is built into the overhead area and an empty pallet is placed neatly on the floor within the structure. As product feeds along the conveyor, they are picked up and placed onto the pallet. The system which typically takes up just 4.3m2 of floor space delivers an impressive 50% reduction in floor footprint compared to a comparable robotic arm solution. Throughput is typically around 6 per minute for shrink-wrapped flexible packs like bundles of flour, and 10 per minute for ridged cardboard boxes – although these speeds could be increased if multi-picking is an option.

With access to dozens of different end-effectors, customers can feel confident that we offer the best solution for the task. Whatever the application, Pacepacker will engineer a bespoke solution to suit, improving product quality, reducing waste and boosting throughput.

“This is a practical and cost efficient palletising alternative – like many of our systems, a 12 month ROI is entirely feasible.” Dennis Allison, Managing Director, Pacepacker Services

Busting the

Robotic systems are more sophisticated and varied than ever. Long integrated into wider automation and production processes, many SME’s, particularly within the food and drink industry, remain deterred and cautious about applying this technology to their processing and packaging operations Why is this? Pacepacker’s Commercial & Information Systems Manager Paul Wilkinson tackles the most persistent myths.

Myth 1: ‘Robots are too expensive’Like any capital equipment, examine the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). Typically a ‘fit and forget’ device, robots require much less maintenance than a mechanical equivalent.

For those with seasonal business variations or automation newcomers, pre-owned could be the answer. Pacepacker regularly supplies Blu-Robots, pre-owned robot arms. Most originate from the automotive industry, still have two-thirds of their operating life ahead of them, and are typically half the cost of a new system.

HMRC offers an Annual Investment Allowance (AIA), which is now set permanently at £200,000. AIA provides a 100% deduction for the cost of most plant and machinery (not cars) purchased by a business, up to this limit p.a.

Myth 2: ‘We don’t have the in-house robotic expertise’ For engineering departments wary of unfamiliar technologies you can balance developing in-house expertise with out-of-house support and bespoke training. Remote diagnostics is also increasing, plus our support team resolves 90% of issues by telephone.

Furthermore, today’s palletising robots incorporate 20% fewer parts than predecessors. With less to go wrong, reliability exceeds 99.9% on robotic systems.

Blu-Robot

Myth 3: ‘Once installed, a robot is a one trick pony’Untrue − once payload, reach and operational speed are determined, reprogramming a robot to perform another task using a different end-effector is relatively straightforward. In fact, they are much more flexible than mechanical alternatives, with a longer lifespan and much better TCO.

For stability, robots are typically frame mounted or bolted to the floor. However, these can be easily moved and redeployed. We’ve done it, even customising a palletising robot within a transport frame for towing behind a tractor!

Myth 4: ‘Robots are complicated to set up and programme’Many new Pacepacker customers are surprised to learn that we handle all the set-up and robot programming. Once installed, this gives customers time to familiarise themselves with equipment under our team’s guidance. In-house knowledge can be extended later which can be valuable for troubleshooting production issues, or when adding new programmes and functionality.

Myth 5: ‘Robots are dangerous’Like any device or vehicle, the secret is to recognise potential dangers, manage and mitigate any risks, introduce appropriate safeguards and ensure operatives are fully trained.

Mechanical barriers include perimeter guarding, panelling or mesh. Points of access (e.g. for cleaning/changing pallets) need a requisite interlock safety switch, safety curtain or light guard. Experienced integrators can ensure safety measures interface with the robot system and use software, like FANUC’s Dual Check Safety, to pre-programme permissible areas of movement.

ROBOGUIDE software is a powerful simulation tool Customers and integrators can precisely visualise and pre-programme a robotic installation in a safe and convenient virtual 3D world, before putting plans into effect.

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Myth 6: ‘Bespoke robots take longer to install’This common misconception is rooted in the idea that robots are more complex and higher-value. In fact, installations are usually faster, largely because programming can be conducted off site. Individual sections of larger installations can also be pre-tested prior to installation.

Myth 7: ‘Integration with line equipment sourced from different manufacturers is difficult’Another falsehood − the physical versatility of a robot arm usually offers more options for line layout. Height and angle of a robotic infeed and outfeed can be adjusted, compensating for lack of flexibility in other production line sections. Doing it requires experience. Of course control systems can differ, but even situations where different architecture is used there’s usually a simple solution.

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Myth 8: ‘Vision systems are essential’Although vision has a place, most robot installations don’t warrant the investment. It can always be introduced later if required. For upstream handling where consistent orientation of products/packs is needed, a simple (cost-effective) sensor system makes sense. Costs can be kept down by combining a ‘product locating’ role with quality control functions.

Myth 9: ‘Robotics is more relevant in higher-margin engineering industries than food and drink’Lower margins in food and drink means we are observing a big impetus to invest in robotics. The way the export and import market is evolving, with an emphasis on quality and protecting brand reputation, more robots are being deployed. The growing range of end-effectors and handling techniques, from vacuum to finger-type gripping, means there is a solution for every item type.

Myth 10: ‘The payback time is too long’When costs are continuously under pressure and competition for shelf space is intense this is when companies opt to automate. Manufacturers benefit, as do retail consumers. That’s because automation enhances product quality and operational efficiency plus reduces waste. All of which helps to sustain existing supply contracts plus win new ones.

Customised systems can help you to stay within budget. Realistically, payback times will often be much shorter than anticipated, although this is application-dependent. There has never been a better time to improve on payback, especially with the recent increase announcement to the minimum living wage.

Finally, like all equipment, a robot remains an asset and will have a resale price.

Festo Tripod

Ask about our award winning Try Before You Buy facility – customers can trial packs and products on our bagging, case loading and palletising systems to overcome any concerns and de-risk the procurement process BEFORE making a commitment. To find out more email GRI@pacepacker.com or go to www.pacepacker.com

We’ve proudly won 10 awards in 24 months for innovative automation solutions and excellence in customer service.

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Milking the use of robots in the dairy industryA recent uplift in dairy specific pick and place applications can be attributed to a number of factors including the rise of smaller dairy snack foods, a larger number of pack variants (such as different flavoured yogurts in a shelf ready multi-pack) and the introduction of new generation robots offering a lighter payload at a lower cost.

Handling nets and trays fast and effectivelyThe new innovative and patented FlexaPac automatically loads up to 60 nets and polybags of packaged fruits and delicate vegetables per minute into supermarket/grocer trays, crates and cartons. The system is designed to:

✓ Appease the labour intensive operation whereby multiple packers sit at a rotary table picking up and placing by hand the netted goods into trays

✓ Reduce product waste due to high levels of repetition/human error from squashed, bruised or dropped packs of fruit

✓ Help fruit packers increase throughput and overcome packing bottlenecks during peak seasons.

The machine design is simple; two parallel conveyor belts transport the nets of fruit from the packing machine onto FlexaPac’s set of indexing stations. Once the system recognises the correct quantity of netted or

Working with strategic partners FANUC and Festo, Pacepacker is helping to plug the gap in automation efficiency for dairy producers. “In our experience, as soon as you begin to enter double figures for case packing rates per minute that’s when a single manual packer will struggle to keep pace. This output alone is a big draw for the dairy sector,” said Dennis Allison, Pacepacker’s Managing Director. Included within the robot portfolio is Festo’s Mechatronics ‘off the shelf’ range. Unlike many other mechanical pick and place solutions, which tend to be highly bespoke and custom built, this offers dairy producers quick and cost effective pick and place components that can be easily configured to the requirements of the end user.

The FANUC six axis articulated LR Mate 200 Series offers a low payload of between 4kg and 7kg. It is the smallest of all articulated arm robots, making it ideal for compact cells and direct machine installations, which are common place in dairy environments. Weighing just 25kg, it can be mounted on a floor, upside down, on a wall, or at an angle. Manufacturers can select a short, standard and long arm, with a reach of between 550mm to 911mm. “Generally speaking, the longer the reach the wider the scope of applications,” says Dennis.

Cartesian solution

bagged product, they are gently pushed onto a set of lowering plates, which smoothly lower the product into the waiting tray underneath – completely eliminating damage and waste. The system evenly distributes layers of fruit, below the level of the tray bale arms or carton lips, until the required quantity is met.

The recent surge in robotic uptake within food packing halls has resulted in improved line efficiency and speed. However, this can mean that other parts of packing process may struggle to match the pace, leading to production bottlenecks. One example is the speed at which retail trays are fed to the line and robot. To address this, Pacepacker’s new automated Tray DeNester delivers trays automatically to the conveyor.

The flexible solution can handle trays irrespective of size and height. “Although they all look the same, the construction of trays varies so much,” explains Pacepacker Technical Director Richard Gladwin. “Servo controls facilitate easy tray separation and a programmable height function reliably separates the trays at high speed.”

Trays enter the Tray DeNester on a low level infeed conveyor and are ejected at the height of the packing conveyor. For added flexibility, trays can enter in any dimension – front, side, right or left. Even half or full size trays can be accommodated in one unit. The system can handle up to 120kg with a varied stack height (dependent on tray weight).

FlexaPac – Pushers gently position fruit from parallel conveyors onto lowering plates. The nets gently slide into a retail tray under the machine.

Tray DeNester

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Trend for smaller pack sizes

Driven by convenience and single servings consumer demands, automation needs to be faster with greater connectivity.

Retailers themselves are seeking space-saving solutions, especially metro, convenience and local stores, with a shift towards assorted product trays, for example (see MTL system, p4).

Another emerging requirement is for multi-functional and flexible equipment that can easily be reconfigured. This too is being driven by ever-changing consumer tastes, product personalisation and customisations and multiple size variations from the same product category. Contract packing is also a growth area, and by nature these operations don’t see the same product or pack size over and over again. Packaging and palletising robots are getting faster and more cost-effective. They’re now easier to use with integrated controls and intuitive human machine interfaces. They’re smarter with advanced sensing and software, and more adept at handling product variations.

As a result, single use systems built for a specific application to perform a set task are being superseded by robotics, which can easily be reprogrammed and redeployed to do a different job. Being able to select interchangeable end-effectors adds to the flexibility, resulting in fewer tool changeovers.

This growing demand for packing smaller pack sizes at higher speeds carries an implication for automation failure. To overcome this, system integrators need to make careful selection of control and conveyor suppliers to ensure machinery is fully connected. Any production bottlenecks or machine downtime can impact profit margins.

Commentary by Ian Merchant, Automation Solution Team Manager

FANUC M-3iA Delta Style

Loading solution for polybags A FANUC M-710 articulate robot with gripper end-effector automates the loading of poly bags of fresh produce into trays/crates/BDUs in excess of 60 bags/min. Accurate product placement is an important feature when supplying retailers, due to the perceived quality this conveys to customers when produce packs are neatly presented.

The gripper, like many innovations from Pacepacker, is designed to be flexible. This means it can be bolted onto different robot arms and models depending on throughput speed, space limitations in the production facility and weight of the retail-ready packs being handled. Equally, it helps to eliminate one of the more tedious and labour intensive tasks in today’s food supply chain.

“When polybags or nets of fresh produce travel along the conveyor, the gripper moves over the top, closing and cradling products from underneath,” highlights Paul Wilkinson, Commercial & Information Systems Manager at Pacepacker Services. “The gripper’s design prevents bags from being pierced. Plus, the motion of enveloping products in a cradle style is also designed to ensure the fingers don’t penetrate bags.”

The number of packs the system can handle varies depending on each customer’s set-up. “Anything from 60+ packs upwards per minute is feasible, but this is entirely dependent on the weight of each bag,” says Paul. Bag weights of 1kg to 5kg can be accommodated, making the ‘dolly packer’, as some industry specialists have affectionately named it, ideal for agricultural and contract packers.

The motion of enveloping products in a cradle style helps prevent fingers penetrating bags. The gripper is angled to accommodate different tray depths, with bags gently sliding through the fingers.

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“Seamless installation - Pacepacker’s team worked closely with us to get our palletising system up and running with minimum fuss”

The installation of a pre-owned robotic system by Pacepacker has revolutionised the stacking of artisan loaves into palletisers for Speciality Breads. Previously, the supplier of breads and rolls to the London 2012 Olympics, performed this task manually.

Accommodating budget and space constraints, Pacepacker designed a single static 4 x 3.5m cell incorporating a pre-owned Blu-Robot.

Cases from the high care area enter the cell on a powered roller conveyor and are presented to the robot, narrow edge leading. The floor mounted six-axis FANUC S420 articulated robot arm picks the cardboard boxes and using a multi-cup vacuum gripper places them, in configuration, on the pallet. Once full, the pallet is removed from the cell on a motorised pallet truck.

The robot is easily keeping up with the bakery’s daily production of 100,000 individual loaves, equivalent to around 50 pallet loads. “The new system has cut palletising time in half so it’s already paying dividends and helping us to increase production and drive new business growth. The time saved on making up pallets, has enabled our bakers to spend more time on what they do best – baking the best bread,” said Peter.

Speciality Breads Former Managing Director Peter Millen

Blu-Robot Features✓ Typically half the cost of new robots✓ Heavy load palletising between 75kg to 185kg e.g. bulk bags,

crates, retail trays and boxes✓ Over 40+ end-effectors available to suit individual

applications, with pick-up speeds up to 30 cycles/min✓ Full servicing, spares and 12 month parts warranty (the same

as new robots)✓ Can be built into a portable container for mobility ✓ Simple HMI operation.

More info? E GRI@pacepacker.com

Chemical giant installs new-generation palletiserA chemical giant, manufacturing lanolin, required reliability, consistency and flexibility at its UK based end-of-line packing and palletising facility.

Having worked in partnership with FANUC since 1997, Pacepacker has a long track record of integrating the M-410 family of palletising robots. “The M-410 has always been about flexibility and reliability,” says Paul Wilkinson, Commercial & Information Systems Manager. “The new M-410iC/185 model (launched autumn 2013) offers increased speed, payload, reach and flexibility − it was the natural choice for our client who wanted to handle a variety of pack formats.”

The M-410iC/185 improvements:✓ 13% faster than the M-410iB/160✓ 20% fewer parts to ease maintenance routines✓ payload increased from 160kg to 185kg.

Bespoke end-effectorPacepacker designed a multifunctional end-effector which auto-adjusts to pick pallets and slip sheets before palletising commences, and then handle bags and boxes which arrive on different conveyors. The 60m2 line also incorporated two sack placers twinned with Pacepacker Total Bag Control (TBC) systems for filling, closing, controlled handling and heat sealing, sack kickers, a box-filling system and conveyoring.

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Snack stacking made simplePacepacker Services assisted a leading snacks manufacturer in increasing their output of packed crisp boxes with the installation of six FANUC four axis M-410 robotic palletising systems. Palletising over 5,000 boxes of crisps per hour, the robots have been integrated into ALL of the six packing lines within the company’s factory and enabled them to bring a previously outsourced packing operation in-house.

When it was no longer possible for manual stackers to accurately and safely palletise crisp boxes at speed, Pacepacker integrated a FANUC M-410 into one packaging line to receive an in-feed from two separate production lines - with a combined output of 1,000 boxes per hour. A key factor to the success of this original installation was the robots ability to handle multiple box sizes – up to 30 per production line – with the incorporation of vacuum technology.

The final installation was made on a line packing the company’s boxes of multi-pack crisps. With only enough space within the factory for one additional production line this product was previously being packed by a third party co-packer − a cost prohibitive task. To overcome this issue Pacepacker offered a solution by incorporating a double vacuum gripper on to a Fanuc M-410 which has the capability of lifting an entire pallet layer of boxes from a single feed. Each robot is pre-programmed with a

menu of different variations and recipes suited to the company’s needs, which requires very little manual interfacing.

✓ Robots handle up to 30 multiple box sizes using vacuum technology✓ Bespoke-designed gripper lifts an entire pallet layer to overcome

factory space constraints✓ 5000 boxes of crisps stacked per hour.

On the pulse at Askew & BarrettWithin three months of being installed, a complete bagging and palletising line from Pacepacker Services has boosted productivity by 15-20% at pulse processor Askew & Barrett.

Until very recently, the entire operation, from empty bag placement to palletising, was performed by up to five operators using independent pieces of equipment: a weigher, bag closer and stitcher. “It takes it out of you standing at the end of the line, stacking sacks onto a pallet. We wanted to take steps to ensure the physical wellbeing of our employees,” explains Production and Warehouse Manager Chris Askew.

Already a user of Pacepacker equipment, the firm invested in a new line consisting of a T22 automatic sack placer, ticket dispenser, Total Bag Control (TBC) system and FANUC dual cell robot palletiser. The faster line, with potential to handle 10 bags per minute, stacks bags onto pallets more consistently resulting in safer storage within the warehouse and easy loading of pallets onto containers.

“Currently, the line is producing 10 tonnes per hour, but it is definitely capable of much more. Our ultimate goal is 15-20 tonnes per hour, which would equate to a 100% increase on what we were producing just a few months ago. Pacepacker has been and will continue to be instrumental in achieving this ambition.”Chris Askew, Production and Warehouse Manager, Pacepacker Services

Educational events and programmesIf you’re a manufacturer, school, university or co-packer and want to understand more about robots, please contact us to see how we can help. E GRI@pacepacker.com T +44(0) 1371 811544 www.pacepacker.com

Dennis Allison, Managing Director, and Richard Gladwin, Technical Director

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We deliver every time… without fail. Experts in palletising, case loading and bagging systems, businesses of all types and sizes trust Pacepacker to:

• Meet 100% of their automation project objectives• Design systems that are built to last and flex to future production needs

• Deliver a surprisingly quick ROI.

Start your journey towards more profitable production today.E GRI@pacepacker.com T +44(0) 1371 811544 www.pacepacker.com

Working with SchoolsFourteen secondary students from two schools in Colchester use a FANUC M-710 to take a selfie!

The eager pupils, who made the 2015 VEX Robotics competition shortlist, were encouraged to investigate the exciting range of career opportunities that STEM study opens up to them. Held at Pacepacker’s manufacturing facility, the workshop style event with presentations from Festo and FANUC, helped the students understand robot design, build and application.

Open House EventsLeading food manufacturers and retailers see the latest innovations in case/tray loading robots.

Frederick Hiam, Huntapac Produce, Bakkavor and Produce World were some of the manufacturers to review eight new automation systems valued at over £1 million. The event raised awareness of the three main robot types (Cartesian, articulated arm and delta robot), how they perform and best match with application.

Working with UniversitiesPacepacker MD Dennis Allison shows Anglia Ruskin students the latest bulk bagging techniques.

A partnership between Anglia Ruskin and Pacepacker helps the university to find out exactly what engineering businesses need in terms of employee skill sets in a changing environment. “The employability of our students after graduation is important and arranging visits with local businesses is one way of doing this,” said Ahad Ramezanpour, a research fellow at Anglia Ruskin.