Solving Labor Shortages in Palletizing
|
Solving Labor Shortages in PalletizingSee all Off-the-Shelf Solutions As part of their ongoing efforts to improve production processes, Sano-Bruno’s Enterprises Ltd, sought to optimize their palletizing operations. Traditionally, palletizing had been carried out by manual labor, but the company was increasingly aware of the limitations. The shortage of available workers, coupled with the continuous demand for a non-stop production line, meant that automation was the logical step forward for Sano.
Challenge: As production demands increased, Sano struggled with two main issues; the growing necessity to find workers willing to palletize and space constraints in their factory where traditional solutions were not fitting. “Palletizing is a repetitive task, and in the last years it has been harder and harder to find workers for it. Sometimes you don’t even find them, so your production is at risk,” explained Guy Sameach, Plant Engineer at Sano. Sano heard about collaborative applications and decided to explore their integration into their production processes to increase their efficiency in different parts of the lines. Before deciding for collaborative palletizing, the process was manually done. “In the last years we have been facing more and more problems finding operators. There is a lack of workforce that sometimes makes it impossible to cover the open positions we need. That was the main reason why we decided to install the collaborative palletizing stations,” explains Guy. The challenge for SANO this time was to find a palletizing solution that could work safely with workers while minimizing the footprint. “Our factory already housed large industrial robots that require dedicated fencing, safety systems and large space. With space limitation in the packaging and palletizing area, automating our palletizing processes needed a different approach,” explains Guy Sameach. Or Levy, Assatec Robotics General Manager and responsible for this project, proposed a collaborative solution consisting of a 2FGP20 electric Gripper on a Fanuc CRX collaborative robot mounted on an OnRobot Lift100.
Solution: In their pursuit of the ideal palletizing solution, Sano evaluated different alternatives. “We were positively impressed by the expertise OnRobot’s partner, ASSATEC, offered us. They perfectly understood our needs and they proposed us a simple solution, easy to integrate and fulfilling all our technical needs,” said Guy. Assatec's proposal was to install 2 palletizing stations formed by Collaborative Fanuc CRX mounted on an OnRobot Lift100 and equipped with a fully electrical 2FGP20 OnRobot gripper. “Sano needed a versatile gripper to palletize and place interlayers. The main challenge was to build 1.9 m. high pallets, but this was easily solved with OnRobot Lift100,” explained Or. The solution implemented worked smoothly, enabling easy pallet handling. With 11 different box types to be palletized, the 2FGP20 gripper from OnRobot proved to be a perfect solution. The 2FGP20's high total stroke (260 mm) allowed it to handle all box variations efficiently, making it a 100% electric, cost-effective choice. Sano was particularly impressed with the small footprint of the solution and the fast implementation. OnRobot Lift100 was efficient and compact with a quick integration process which further impressed Sano. “Compared with the experience we had with industrial robots this solution was extremely fast to implement,” said Guy Sameach. The remarkable ROI of less than 1.5 years further solidified their decision. “We found OnRobot solution an efficient and safe solution. Being an off-the-shelf product, OnRobot provides us with a sense of safety. In case anything happens, we can quickly obtain a replacement without stopping our production or causing any risk. Our palletizing is now more efficient, and we solved the big problem of not finding workforce to do this job,” concludes Guy.
About Sano: Sano, founded in 1960, is a leading company in the manufacturing of various household and cleaning products. With over 500 different products, including detergents, insecticides, laundry products, and cleaning solutions, Sano has established itself as a global player, exporting its goods worldwide. The company boasts a workforce of 1,700 employees. To maintain its position as an industry leader, Sano continuously seeks innovative solutions to enhance efficiency and productivity. For further information, please visit their website.
About Assatec Robotics: Assatec Robotics is the most experienced robotics company, founded in 1997 by Mr. Samy Levy. As a pioneer in the field of robotics integration and machine automation, Assatec Robotics has successfully integrated hundreds of robots in complex applications, both domestically and internationally. Some of our applications have achieved global recognition for their uniqueness. For further information, please visit their website. |
Watch the video
Solving Labor Shortages in Palletizing
As part of their ongoing efforts to improve production processes, Sano-Bruno’s Enterprises Ltd, sought to optimize their palletizing operations. Traditionally, palletizing had been carried out by manual labor, but the company was increasingly aware of the limitations. The shortage of available workers, coupled with the continuous demand for a non-stop production line, meant that automation was the logical step forward for Sano.
Challenge:
As production demands increased, Sano struggled with two main issues; the growing necessity to find workers willing to palletize and space constraints in their factory where traditional solutions were not fitting.
“Palletizing is a repetitive task, and in the last years it has been harder and harder to find workers for it. Sometimes you don’t even find them, so your production is at risk,” explained Guy Sameach, Plant Engineer at Sano.
Sano heard about collaborative applications and decided to explore their integration into their production processes to increase their efficiency in different parts of the lines.
Before deciding for collaborative palletizing, the process was manually done.
“In the last years we have been facing more and more problems finding operators. There is a lack of workforce that sometimes makes it impossible to cover the open positions we need. That was the main reason why we decided to install the collaborative palletizing stations,” explains Guy.
The challenge for SANO this time was to find a palletizing solution that could work safely with workers while minimizing the footprint.
“Our factory already housed large industrial robots that require dedicated fencing, safety systems and large space. With space limitation in the packaging and palletizing area, automating our palletizing processes needed a different approach,” explains Guy Sameach.
Or Levy, Assatec Robotics General Manager and responsible for this project, proposed a collaborative solution consisting of a 2FGP20 electric Gripper on a Fanuc CRX collaborative robot mounted on an OnRobot Lift100.
Solution:
In their pursuit of the ideal palletizing solution, Sano evaluated different alternatives.
“We were positively impressed by the expertise OnRobot’s partner, ASSATEC, offered us. They perfectly understood our needs and they proposed us a simple solution, easy to integrate and fulfilling all our technical needs,” said Guy.
Assatec's proposal was to install 2 palletizing stations formed by Collaborative Fanuc CRX mounted on an OnRobot Lift100 and equipped with a fully electrical 2FGP20 OnRobot gripper.
“Sano needed a versatile gripper to palletize and place interlayers. The main challenge was to build 1.9 m. high pallets, but this was easily solved with OnRobot Lift100,” explained Or.
The solution implemented worked smoothly, enabling easy pallet handling. With 11 different box types to be palletized, the 2FGP20 gripper from OnRobot proved to be a perfect solution. The 2FGP20's high total stroke (260 mm) allowed it to handle all box variations efficiently, making it a 100% electric, cost-effective choice.
Sano was particularly impressed with the small footprint of the solution and the fast implementation. OnRobot Lift100 was efficient and compact with a quick integration process which further impressed Sano.
“Compared with the experience we had with industrial robots this solution was extremely fast to implement,” said Guy Sameach.
The remarkable ROI of less than 1.5 years further solidified their decision.
“We found OnRobot solution an efficient and safe solution. Being an off-the-shelf product, OnRobot provides us with a sense of safety. In case anything happens, we can quickly obtain a replacement without stopping our production or causing any risk. Our palletizing is now more efficient, and we solved the big problem of not finding workforce to do this job,” concludes Guy.
About Sano:
Sano, founded in 1960, is a leading company in the manufacturing of various household and cleaning products. With over 500 different products, including detergents, insecticides, laundry products, and cleaning solutions, Sano has established itself as a global player, exporting its goods worldwide.
The company boasts a workforce of 1,700 employees. To maintain its position as an industry leader, Sano continuously seeks innovative solutions to enhance efficiency and productivity.
For further information, please visit their website.
About Assatec Robotics:
Assatec Robotics is the most experienced robotics company, founded in 1997 by Mr. Samy Levy.
As a pioneer in the field of robotics integration and machine automation, Assatec Robotics has successfully integrated hundreds of robots in complex applications, both domestically and internationally. Some of our applications have achieved global recognition for their uniqueness.
For further information, please visit their website.
