INTERNATIONAL

High-throughput RoboPacker reduces dependency on labor

Packing poultry products such as chicken breast fillets, drumsticks and tenders often requires significant labor, which is currently scarce. RoboPacker addresses this challenge by robotically picking and packing products into various tray formats such as MAP, PE and flatboards. With its small footprint, gripper technology and flexibility, RoboPacker automates and improves catch-weight tray packing operations, increases line throughput and saves considerable manual labor.

Posted on Sep 09 ,00:05

Supermarkets worldwide are selling catch-weight poultry packs such as fillets on trays. The price of each tray is determined by its final weight, resulting in varying prices for similar products on the supermarket shelf. 

Why need a RoboPacker?

Traditionally, fillets, tenderloins or drumsticks on trays are packed by hand. There are, however, too many labor challenges in today’s processing plant to have staff doing simple operations like packing catch-weight products in a tray. This job can easily be robotized and that is what RoboPacker does. 

Labor-saving

The RoboPacker can save 2 to 3 persons, making the process less dependent on manual labor. It can operate 24/7 and doesn’t get tired. Because fewer people touch the meat now, RoboPacker also contributes to food safety. It can handle up to 180 pieces and 80 catch-weight trays per minute. In terms of labor, automating a packing line with RoboPacker will quickly yield a return on investment, while also reducing staff workload and ensuring greater production continuity. 

How does it work?

RoboPacker with its intelligent technology, rapid production setup and user-friendly HMI touchscreen can boost product throughput. Entering a packing job on the screen is all that’s needed to put RoboPacker to work. The products pass underneath a laser vision unit that detects the dimensions and position of each product and also estimates its weight. RoboPacker’s software processes the data and determines the precise placing of each product in trays on an adjacent synchronized conveyor belt. 

Minimum target weight

Unlike the RoboBatcher family, the RoboPacker cannot produce fixed-weight trays. In principle, it composes fixed-count trays with the same number of products. The system can, however, also ‘weigh’. The vision unit can determine the weight of each piece of meat by calculating its volume. Therefore, RoboPacker can also pack by ‘minimum weight’. If a 3-piece packing job has reached its minimum target weight with only two pieces, RoboPacker recognizes this and produces a tray with only two pieces. The system is set to accept a weight significantly above the target but will not accept any underweight packs. 

Tray styling

Catch-weight trays in supermarkets worldwide are always styled. RoboPacker offers various styling patterns, including yinyang, fishbone, and woven designs. By adapting to the needs of product presentation, RoboPacker ensures visual appeal. 

Gripper technology

RoboPacker’s portfolio of grippers, including a vacuum gripper, allows for easy and quick product changeovers from chicken breast fillets to drumsticks, for example. To change grippers takes just minutes. Gripper technology ensures that poultry products will always be handled with precisely the right pressure. The grippers make for perfect styling of the trays, as they prevent parts of the meat from hanging over the tray’s edges, at the same time saving staff for rework. 

Versatile packing in a compact housing

The RoboPacker is the perfect companion for feeding a packing machine. Whether it’s MAP (Modified Atmosphere Packaging), polystyrene or flatboards, the versatile RoboPacker can handle it. A de-nester system for trays comes standard with the RoboPacker. All these features fit in a surprisingly small, newly designed housing, which makes the best use of space without compromising performance. Depending on production volume, either a single-cell or dual-cell RoboPacker will be required. 

Software

SmartBase internal machine health monitoring software offers real-time performance data, accessible via the HMI touchscreen for easy analysis and control. RoboPacker’s advantages can be further enhanced through seamless integration with other Marel machines working together with overarching Marel software. Modules such as Inventory, Packing or Traceability add even more value to the packing process.

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