How Automation Benefits Your Manufacturing Business
Some companies can be hesitant to adopt automated solutions due to the upfront prices of new equipment and personnel training. Nevertheless, automated packaging can have essential benefits, and new technology is making automation of more parts of the process simpler.
For product manufacturers, automated packaging lines can be pretty helpful. These innovations can reduce the risk of ergonomic injuries by taking on a load of repetitive and tiresome operations, freeing up personnel for higher-value work where they are more urgently needed. Here are the top three benefits of automation:
Improved Quality Control
Automation systems in the past weren’t always reliable enough to fully automate the task of managing packing line quality control. The lengthy and repetitive task of examining every item was left to human workers. This is changing as new technology is developed, particularly machine vision employing artificial intelligence (AI), which enables computers to “see” mistakes as human workers do.
The capacity of automated quality assurance (QA) systems to detect defects doesn’t fluctuate throughout a shift because of their constant activity.
Improved Production Speed
Businesses may significantly increase production efficiency and product throughput by implementing the proper automation solution. Additionally, automated packaging systems can multitask and incorporate several components of the packing procedure into a single step, such as when you need to apply labels and seal containers. By doing this, these solutions may free up more than one staff.
Therefore, these technologies can both boost performance and maximize people to concentrate on work like shipping, receiving, and selecting that require human labor or just benefitting from it.
Reduced Labor Costs
Packaging companies are already feeling the effects of a more competitive labor market as the US unemployment rate has reached record lows and consumer demand has continued to climb.
Automation is one potential answer to this issue. Businesses may ensure that workers are only hired when needed by automating as much of the packaging line as feasible.
Examples of Automated Equipment
Labeling Machines
Various goods, products, containers, or packages can be labeled using a labeling machine to dispense or apply labels. Some labeling devices consist of printing capabilities and dispensing or applying tags. Numerous labeling machines are available on the market, from high-production equipment that enables total print automation and uses the process to manual devices that provide straightforward label dispensing.
Filling Machines
Fillers (or filling machines) are used for packaging, mainly for food and beverage, but sometimes for other goods. Depending on the product, a bottle or a pouch can be filled with them.
Packaging companies like Pack Leader use a variety of filters. The type of food or beverage filling equipment to be used is frequently decided by the kind of product to be filled, speed requirements, expectations for quality and shelf life, resource availability, technological viability, and numerous other factors.
Capping Machines
Bottle capper machines that are entirely and semi-automatic operate faster and more effectively. For example, a bottle capper that automatically closes bottles in line might produce up to 350 caps per minute. As a result, more items are on the market, leading to increased sales. There are fewer supply chain constraints due to a simplified production process.
Wrap Around Labeling Machine
Wrap-around labeling machine applies labels by rolling them onto the container’s surface. This application technique is more straightforward than pick-and-place techniques and produces outcomes comparable to shrink-wrap. Although wrap-around labels rule the marketplace for round bottles, they may be applied to almost any container.
The label’s printing area is optimized by covering it around the container’s perimeter (it sticks to plastic, glass, metal, and cardboard). This method lets you include all relevant brand information on a single label when packaging drinks.
Final Thought
Employees often experience occupational musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), also referred to as ergonomic injuries, in the manufacturing and packaging industries. It is typical for employees to do highly repetitive activities throughout long shifts.
Employees’ natural risk of MSDs can be reduced by reducing the number of repetitive tasks they must carry out. Process automation solutions are already an excellent fit for repetitive or tedious operations, which often benefit from consistency. It is possible to improve productivity and lower the risk of employee damage by replacing automation for workers in process steps that require a great deal of repetitive motion.
