A new robotic packing arm designed to present packs of fresh product into retail crates will be showcased by Brillopak at this year’s PPMA Total Show.
According to the company, the P180 Spider Arm Robot Cell can handle any type of fruit, salad or vegetable product packed in VFFS, tray sealed or flow wrapped bags weighing up to 1kg.
The unit is already in use at three of Morrisons’ packing sites and can be ‘easily adapted to handle reusable and renewable packaging formats.’ It features a four-axis Delta style robot with a glove-like end effector to remove the risk of packs being pierced by the unit. Another design feature to prevent product damage is the fact that once packed at high speed, the crates pass over a vibration panel to settle the packs so they are not caught when the bale arms close. Any crates with damaged bale arms are rejected.
Jason Kelly, head of operations for Morrisons Manufacturing has led the automation strategy across their fresh produce business, and commented, “Brillopak clearly understands the manufacturing environment and how critical production schedules are to getting fresh produce packed and looking good on the retail shelves.”
Photo caption: The P180, with unique patented glove gripper, handles all types of fruit, salads and packs of vegetables
Photo Credit: Brillopak