Dairy Processing - June 2021 - 49

" As the industry grows more
technologically advanced job
positions are opening for workers,
which are more appealing to
the current generation. "
Erik Grinnell, vice president of Automation at Quest
allows the user to modify robotic motions in real time to
account for new product types or variance that isn't handled
by the vision system. "
Dealing with a product that is notorious for high
volumes of waste, dairy processors can also use automation
technologies to reduce product waste. In a milk processing
environment, production data can be used to manage
processing execution, tracking the transformation of products
from raw materials to finished product. This can help
processors determine the appropriate changes to make the
process less wasteful.
PACKAGING IMPROVEMENTS
robotics and self-driving vehicles, " said Erik Grinnell, vice
president of automation at Quest, a subsidary of ProMach,
Covington, Ky., which manufactures industrial automation
equipment focusing on robotics and vision guidance. " These
methods reduce human interaction, address labor challenges,
and reduce repetitive motion injuries for employees. As the
industry grows more technologically advanced job positions
are opening for workers, which are more appealing to the
current generation. "
One of the largest challenges for material handling is
the variation of consumables, such as pallets and cartons,
Grinnell said. These pallets or cartons are often far from spec,
and once automating, can pose repeated challenges.
" We utilize vision in around 95% of our robotics and selfdriving
vehicles, which allows us to handle the variations in
product quite easily, " he said. " In addition, our Q tool software
The simplest way in which automation can help down the
line can be packaging savings. Often packaging designed for
a manual loading operation is not the most efficient way to
ship products, said to Robbie Quinlin, marketing manager for
Blueprint Automation (BPA), South Chesterfield, Va.
" Redesigning packaging for automatic forming and loading
can use less corrugate and lead to significant dollars saved, "
he said. " Often automation will complete the process at a
faster rate, too. Likewise, it is not uncommon for automation
to create more efficient packs, which allows for more product
to be shipped in the same packaging. "
BPA offers vision-guided robotic solutions and automatic
case packers, providing flexible end-of-line packaging
solutions to help get the most out of operations while
reducing the amount of labor needed at pack-out.
To remain competitive, processors have to ensure timely
and uninterrupted flow of raw materials and end-products,
along with flexibility, across the production process and
supply chain. Opportunities abound for the deployment of
new, cutting-edge material handling equipment to keep pace
with the growing demand for certain dairy products. Investing
in automation and robotic technologies are the key to having
a competitive advantage for dairy processors.
" If you're a dairy processor, it's probably going to be a
plant automation using that technology, " Baum said. " Maybe
it's going to be a more efficient route finding and distribution
and transportation technology as well, but all of it has
implications for the future of work. "
DAIRYPROCESSING.COM | JUN 2021 49
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Dairy Processing - June 2021

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