Gantry handling modules for packaging systems

Corrugated box plant and conveyor equipment specialist Avanti turned to Gudel UK to provide high speed, precision positioning equipment for its Impress packaging and handling system

The ability to get the right product to the right place at the right time has always been a recipe for success.

But today, more than ever, time has become the key differentiator between leaders and 'also-rans'.

Nowhere is this more true than in the grocery and food packaging sectors, where the need for speed is compounded by consistent growth in product diversity.

It is an environment driving major changes throughout the handling field.

To help meet these challenges, Manchester-based corrugated box plant and conveyor equipment specialist Avanti has turned to Gudel UK to provide high speed, precision positioning equipment as an integral element of its new generation 'Impress' packaging and handling solutions.

With a customer base spanning the food and grocery sectors, as well as some of the country's leading packaging container manufacturers, Avanti specialises in developing solutions that give customers the edge in today's 'Just-in-Time' working environment.

According to the company's Managing Director, Simon Mander: "Significant changes in the food and supermarket trade have taken place over the past 10 years.

There has been a marked reduction in the number of cartons loaded on individual pallets.

However, this has been more than offset by the increases in throughput customers now require.

Typically, our equipment must be capable of operating at more than 100 pallets per hour.

Not so long ago, 35 to 40 per hour was the norm." Levels of automation have also increased dramatically as operations run round the clock, five days a week - or in some cases non-stop - to meet demands to reduce costs in the supply chain.

"With millions of pounds worth of goods handled by our lines on a weekly basis, the capabilities of our systems are nothing short of mission-critical for many of our customers," adds Mander.

"So when we came to select a partner to provide mechanical positioning equipment for use at the heart of our latest systems, we knew that performance and reliability were fundamental selection criteria." Avanti went to great lengths to evaluate alternative suppliers - not just in the UK and Europe, but as far afield as Canada and the USA - before opting for the solution based on Gudel's proven gantry handling modules.

"We were impressed by the company's track record of providing custom engineered systems to meet the most aggressive operating conditions," notes Mander.

Gudel handling systems are used extensively throughout the automotive and metal cutting sectors, as well as in foundry, nuclear, pharmaceutical, aerospace, defence and electronics industry applications.

Many operate as part of continuous production processes - demonstrating that their performance is matched by exceptional in-service reliability.

Experience of providing solutions for food industry applications was a further bonus, giving Avanti the confidence that Gudel would be well able to meet required hygiene regulations.

"During our discussions it also became clear that Gudel's products were backed by excellent applications engineering and support," Mander continues.

"This was borne out by Gudel's ability to engineer a gripper system that would accommodate sophisticated component and positioning sensing equipment, as well as a wide variety of pallet sizes.

The modular nature of Gudel equipment has also enabled us to specify our preferred control systems," he adds.

"But just as importantly, the company's flexible approach has helped to cement an excellent working relationship between our two organisations." This close collaboration is underlined by the very first installation for Avanti's new Impress system, where the roof of the customer's site imposed severe height limitations.

To overcome this, Gudel specified a 1.8 metre stroke telescopic module from its custom-engineered automation equipment range in place of a standard, rigid z-axis unit.

The first Impress installation also features sophisticated Avanti-designed controls, which integrated with the customer's in-house business systems to correlate barcode information with the specification of each pallet and its load.

In operation, the system picks the required products and assembles them on a conveyor system, while the Gudel twin-axis gantry unit traverses to a pre-determined position in one of eight storage bays - where it locates and grips a correctly sized wooden or plastic pallet.

The pallet is then returned to the central area, where it is subsequently transferred under the waiting products.

After a banding or shrink-wrapping operation, the loaded pallet is then conveyed away to the appropriate despatch station.

"The installation is rated at 120 pallets per hour," says Mr Mander, "This, in itself, is a 50 per cent improvement over the customer's previous system.

However, since its commissioning, the new Impress equipment has consistently performed at 135 pallets per hour without a hitch." The success of the initial project underlines the close working relationship that has developed between Avanti and Gudel.

It also reinforces the potential for collaboration between the two companies on future packaging solutions designed to meet the needs of the highly competitive food and grocery retail sector.

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