At first look, palletizing ice cream cone containers doesn’t sound like a high-risk job. However when these containers weigh 35 to 40 kilos and have to be stacked shoulder-high, shift after shift, 5 days every week—you begin to perceive the pressure it places on folks.
That’s precisely what one main U.S. meals producer realized. They produce a variety of cones—waffles, sugar, and cake. Regardless of their scale and attain, what actually stood out to us was one thing else: their tradition.
This firm operates as an ESOP—an Worker Inventory Possession Plan—which implies each individual on the ground has actual pores and skin within the sport. From the entrance workplace to the manufacturing line, all of them personal a chunk of the enterprise. And when that’s the case, security turns into greater than a coverage. It turns into private.
Why automate?
It wasn’t a labor scarcity that drove their resolution to automate palletizing. It wasn’t even about effectivity within the conventional sense. The spark got here from a really human place: too many shoulder accidents. Lifting heavy containers time and again, particularly to the highest of a pallet, was inflicting issues. The sort that takes folks out of labor and places long-term pressure on the staff. They didn’t need to look forward to the following damage. They wished to stop it.
So, they made a transfer. They selected to herald a robotic palletizing system—to not change somebody, however to take away the danger from a activity that simply didn’t make sense for folks to be doing anymore.
What made this a great match?
The technical aspect was easy. The containers are hefty, they’re nicely inside the payload vary of a cobot palletizer. The corporate already had Common Robots on-site, so integrating one other one with our PE20 was acquainted territory.
However the actual match wasn’t about velocity or specs. It was about care. They weren’t attempting to remove a job. The palletizing activity was simply one in all many dealt with by their staff. What they wished was to remove the damage danger. Plain and easy. Plus, the convenience of use of the programming interface allowed to upskill some operators who can now use the robotic.
A takeaway for meals producers
Automation usually will get evaluated via the lens of labor financial savings. However this story is a reminder: ergonomics matter. Employee security isn’t a delicate metric—it’s a robust purpose to rethink guide duties. Heavy lifting, repetitive motions, and awkward positions take a toll. And even in case you’ve received succesful folks in your staff, that doesn’t imply they need to be doing these jobs.
This isn’t about chasing buzzwords like “lights-out manufacturing.” It’s about fixing actual issues in actual crops, with sensible instruments that work.
And in case you’re working a facility the place your staff is your biggest asset—like this one—you may discover that the enterprise case for automation is stronger than you suppose. For in-depth insights on the toll guide palletizing can tackle an organization and the way automation can alleviate these strains, obtain our Handbook Palletizing Ergonomic Dangers book by business knowledgeable, Carla Silver.
