Beck Automation: Efficient packaging automation improves IML processes

To make the process of packaging production for containers and buckets as efficient as possible, further automation steps are necessary in addition to the plastic injection moulding process and in-mould labeling (IML), especially for the transport and cartoning of the manufactured buckets, cups and other containers. For this reason, Beck Automation offers customer-specific solutions for the further handling of these packages, also known as ‘downstream’.

Nino Zehnder, Chief Sales Officer of Beck Automation AG, said: "The automation of further process steps, such as packaging in cardboard boxes, is primarily about increasing cost-effectiveness. Simple, repetitive, as well as often physically strenuous and not entirely harmless work can be taken over by robots in the future, massively increasing the efficiency of a plant.”

However, this automatic packaging requires that the parts undergo a full inspection beforehand. Only if it can be ensured that no bad part is packed, Beck Automation can automate the downstream work steps. For this reason, the company has been integrating the IMLWatcher from Intravis GmbH, whose camera systems are tailored to the requirements in the IML packaging market.

The packaging automation is connected directly downstream to the IML system. Products are stacked automatically and placed in packaging cartons by a robot. In the process, the finished stacks are placed horizontally into the boxes with special grippers. Slight tilting of the boxes ensures that the stacks are placed in a controlled manner. The entire packaging process takes place in a safety cell.

The systems can be operated via an intuitive HMI and are characterised by their simplicity in both operation and maintenance. During the design phase of a process line, the product dimensions and stack lengths are defined alongside the customer. To summarise, the solutions around packaging automation are tailored in such a way that the space conditions, the cycle times and packaging types are optimised.

"An automatic packaging solution can provide great economic benefit,” Zehnder concluded. “Our downstream packaging automation should not only complement our IML process, but also provide a long-term, efficient solution for the customer."