With the advent of Industry 4.0, it's important to review your current manufacturing processes to assess which manual processes can be automated or which technology can be optimised.

It's also important to identify which equipment can be networked and integrated. This can deliver significant efficiency and productivity gains.

Pallet wrapping is one such area on your packaging line. Automated pallet wrapping can improve efficiency, save money and make your production line safer.

Here's how these significant benefits are delivered:

1. Higher efficiency & productivity:

Automated pallet wrappers can wrap up to 200 pallets per hour to keep up with the fastest production lines. Even if your output is lower, automated wrapping can significantly reduce the time taken to wrap each pallet while using less film to wrap the pallet securely and professionally, saving you money. It also requires no operator intervention so your staff can be more productively deployed.

2. Improved safety:

Measures can be taken to isolate stretch wrap machine operation with proper guarding devices and enclosures such as fixed fencing and automated barrier doors. This makes it a safer working environment for employees as well as forklift drivers.  Also, when compared with manual pallet wrapping, back strains and other injuries are eliminated with automatic pallet wrapping.

3. Reporting:

Finally, and importantly, an automated solution can be networked to an integrated line control and/or warehouse management solution, and finished goods reporting can be completely automated for real-time reports. Furthermore, an automated SSCC pallet labelling solution can also be integrated with a fully-automatic pallet wrapper.

Now that we know the key benefits of pallet wrapping automation, how do companies decide if they are ready to automate?

Here are three factors that can build a case for an automated solution:

• Current and anticipated output: If you have over 10 pallets a day and are planning to increase production, you could potentially see return on investment in a year or so.
  
  
• Spend on consumables like film: You can achieve an average of 250% or more pre-stretch on your films with an automated wrapper, leading to significant saving on film costs alone.
  
  
• Cost of damaged goods: Hand wrapped pallets are inconsistent and can cause product damage costing you money. Monitoring how much damaged goods in loading and transport is costing can help build a case for automated pallet wrapping.

Not yet convinced automation is the way to go? Consider accuracy, repeatability, quality.

Exceptional business performance for most process manufacturers relates closely to achieving operational excellence (OpX). Achievement of true OpX requires continuous improvements through ongoing change. Automation can facilitate that change.

You might like to download our Pallet Wrapping Selection Guide eBook for more detail.

So are you ready to automate? Talk to experts from Foodmach to assist you in your automation journey.

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