ProMach: Performance, Packaged Performance, Packaged

Case Forming & Sealing

Case & Tray Automation

When it Comes to Automatic Tray Forming – Bet the Over

The over/under number is 100,000.

If you are producing more than 100,000 trays per year, automating that process makes sense. That’s because when you find yourself over that number, automating your packaging operations with tray forming machinery gives you a solid ROI when calculating labor and corrugated savings.

First, let’s look at labor. Most manufacturing sectors are feeling the labor crunch in trying to find enough people to fill openings. Of course, some of those jobs are more desirable than others. Manually forming trays all day falls into that less desirable category. Automating this process solves your labor challenge. Automation gives you peace of mind as the machine works every day, never calling in sick or needing breaks, while reliably producing trays to meet your production needs.

Second, automation saves you money by reducing the amount of corrugated required for the same sized tray. Using an automatic tray former means you are using less paper per blank, which overall delivers a 10-40% reduction in corrugated costs. In comparison. a self-locking tray formed by hand requires extra rollover flaps. While those flaps may seem insignificant, it does add cost. Over the long haul, that increase begins to build – all of which impacts your bottom line. 

When you are ready to automate your tray forming operations, the IPAK TF100 and IPAK TF385 automatic tray formers are two of the industry’s most popular solutions. These machines utilize reliable horizontal blank advance and active compression to form a perfectly shaped tray, ensuring a consistent aesthetic look and proven product protection. The compact TF-100 is an ideal solution for those manufacturers who are looking to add automation of their roll over trays to a machine formed 4 corner glued tray.

Wexxar Bel’s IPAK launched the new TF385 in 2021, which can run several tray styles such as triangulated corner retail-ready display, clamshell, and all agriculture style trays; some of the most popular styles for grocery and big-box stores. 

Another advantage automating the forming of your trays is that it gives you more options/flexibility for display openings than hand-formed blanks. This level of automation provides newfound versatility by opening up additional retail display opportunities with your customers. Wexxar Bel’s packaging specialists will work with your team to develop the machine formed tray style that showcases your product to set it apart from your competition, with the added benefit of reducing consumable and labor costs.

Automating your tray forming operations will reduce your labor, save you money and give you a more consistent, better-looking tray for your products. Finally, since automatic tray forming uses less paper, it fits in nicely with your sustainability goals. 

If you take the over – Wexxar Bel can make you a winner!

Paul Watmough is the Business Development Manager, Canada, for Wexxar Bel (https://www.wexxar.com/). He can be reached at Paul.Watmough@promachbuilt.com.

Is a Fully Automatic Case Erector Right for You?

Remember that scene from I Love Lucy where the chocolates are coming too fast for Lucy and Ethel to wrap? Their solution was to shove some candies in their mouths, others in their hats, and a very small amount actually made it into the wrappers.

Oppenheimer, J. (producer). Asher, W. (director). (1952). I Love Lucy: Job Switching [motion picture]. Desilu Productions. Screenshot by author.

This hilarious clip can hit close to home for employees at the end of packaging lines. If the line has a high expected throughput, product may be flying through at too high a rate for the case formers and packers. Just like in I Love Lucy, this can result in rushed, low quality packaging or completely unpackaged goods.

With staffing shortages continuing to make reliable labor difficult to find, the support these workers need can often be found in a fully automatic case erector. This machine assembles boxes to match the rate of the items coming through to be packaged.

A fully automatic case erector has a high return on investment while increasing both reliability and throughput, but how do you know if your facility would benefit from one of these machines?

This checklist of conditions is a great place to start:

  • Three or more people packing eight or more hours per day
    • If your setup demands this level of staffing, automation can be a huge support. A fully automated case erector frees up the time they would spend making boxes for other, more meaningful tasks. It is also a reliable member of the team no matter what the job market looks like.
  • 1,500 or more cases packed per day
    • A high enough throughput produces a quick return on the investment on the machine purchase.
  • Pre-erected boxes stacked on the floor
    • Space is money. If your employees have to pre-assemble massive amounts of boxes to keep nearby for packing, that takes up space you can’t use for other goods. Fully automatic case erectors have a low footprint, and the boxes themselves take up a fraction of the space.
  • New packaging lines
    • New lines are a great indication of growth. Sustaining that growth and ensuring your line can seamlessly take on new business is a strength of automation.
  • Large corrugated accounts
    • When customers require a lot of boxes, case forming manually is a massive time suck and can cost business.
  • Need to increase production
    • No matter why production is increasing, higher expected throughput means an upgrade to the packaging system. In these situations, the reasons above make automation a terrific option to consider.

If your company fits into any of these boxes, consider adding a fully automatic case erector to the end of your line.

Three Heads Aren’t Always Better Than One (If You Can Find Three Heads at All)

End-of-line packagers are the unsung heroes of commerce. They are the ones with the final eye on the product before it goes into a case, and form that case to make a solid first impression on the recipient. Many companies will assign multiple people to end-of-line packaging, often dividing the work into three stations: case forming, case sealing and a packer and sealer. However, even this most efficient method plays against our strengths as humans and leaves opportunities for error. These are some common problems found in the former, packer, sealer system:

  • Excessive case handling
    • With at least three sets of hands on every box, the possibility for stains, rips, dents and any other forms of damage increases.
  • Stacked cases on the floor
    • The case former generally works faster than the case packer, meaning that completed boxes will pile up on the floor. This takes up valuable space and increases the potential for damage to the boxes or a hazard for the people working around them.
  • Poorly formed cases
    • Even if someone builds boxes every day, there are bound to be errors. Damaged or unprofessional cases may result in customers demanding returns and costing the company more money.
  • Too much tape
    • Without the ability to automatically measure and distribute the exact amount of tape required for each package, workers will often use too much tape to ensure the package is properly sealed. Over time, the excess tape adds up to major costs for the company.

Incorporating automated case forming, packing and sealing into these jobs can radically reduce these issues. Semi-automatic systems provide the workers on the line with roles that better play to their strengths, including supervisory, operation and management roles. The machine takes on the more repetitive tasks, reducing the chances of encountering the issues listed above.

Automation can also be the answer to staffing shortages. No matter how many people the line requires, packaging roles are largely unfilled. Swapping in automation not only makes the jobs more attractive for candidates, but also makes the line easier to run with fewer people.

Comparing the cost of the machine with saved wages plus the additional benefits of increased throughput and fewer wasted materials makes automation a wise investment for many packagers. If your operation is dealing with any of the issues listed above, consider adding automation to the end of your line.

Adapting to an Ever-Increasing E-Commerce World

If the last several years has taught us anything, it is that people have wholeheartedly embraced online shopping. According to Forbes, global e-commerce retail sales were expected to top 20.4 percent in 2022, up from 10 percent only five years ago. 

Certainly, COVID was a main driver of that jump, but also the work-from-home trend and the overall convenience that online shopping has become have all contributed to this shift in buying preferences. 

The push to e-commerce has also posed a challenge for some retailers big and small to keep up with the packaging and shipping demands of this rising trend. One way retailers can trim costs, stay competitive, and deliver value to their customers is through form, pack and seal machines such as the BEL 5150E. Our first semi-automatic case forming, packing and sealing solution with auto adjust case size changeover, the BEL 5150E is an ideal solution for low to mid-speed e-commerce applications. Here’s why…  

Newfound Efficiencies

By having a machine that integrates with a customer’s ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) System, the machine is able to communicate with other parts of the overall process, most critically, being able to identify the items on each order. With this information the BEL 5150E with Smart Select is able to analyze the dimensions of each item in the order and determine the most efficient case size. This removes the decision making from the packer/operator allowing them to focus on packing while always ensuring the most efficient case is always utilized. 

Value

A variety of indirect (but significant) cost savings can be had by utilizing the most efficient case in every order. One of the most obvious and significant savings come in the form of reduced courier costs. Courier fees often account for one of the largest costs for e-commerce companies and by using the most efficient box each time, the courier fees are also minimized. Other savings include lower corrugated and dunnage costs by consistently using smaller boxes and less dunnage. 

Less Waste, Greater Protection

When pack and seal machines accurately determine the correct box and packaging material, there is no waste. A machine that minimizes waste reduces the amount of dunnage needed to package products. This added value and cost savings is why a smarter, fully integrated pack and seal machines have been in such demand.

Another benefit of proper case selection and packaging material is product safety. Accurate materials assessment adds value because well-packaged items increase successful deliveries. Products getting damaged during transportation are not only costly, but also harmful to the company’s reputation. 

Total Solution

The BEL 5150E gives e-commerce operations the means to greatly reduce costs and improve efficiencies. In the world of e-commerce, operators are dealing with different sized products coming down to the packing stations. We looked at our system to find ways to create efficiencies for operators. Although many e-commerce applications seem to use between eight to 15 different box sizes, the BEL 5150E has the capacity of up to 30 different box sizes with the ability to expand if necessary.  

E-commerce has grown rapidly and will continue to grow. Suppliers and manufactures will have more and more items to package. For a company to grow, they need a machine that seamlessly integrates with their ERP, packages products accurately and efficiently and assures that more products reach their destination safely. 

The only all-in-one pack and seal machine on the market, Wexxar Bel’s BEL 5150E, delivers on all these critical functions. Customers see the BEL 5150E’s ROI (Return on Investment), ease of use and increased productivity a necessity for a well-rounded and efficient packaging line. Now more than ever, savvy e-commerce customers are demanding an all-in-one solution.

How Wexxar Bel is Addressing the Skills Gap

If you’re looking for a job with great opportunities for advancement, consider a career in manufacturing … because the industry is looking for you.

A sizable skills gap currently exists within the manufacturing industry. According to Deloitte and the Manufacturing Institute, they are forecasting up to 2.4 million jobs could remain unfilled through 2028.

[Read more…] about How Wexxar Bel is Addressing the Skills Gap