Palletizing beauty

Automated palletization and stretchwrapping of cosmetic jars and lids for Noxzema and Olay skin creams saves time and labor.

By Sara Pearson Specter, Editor at Large -- Modern Materials Handling, 12/1/2004

Wheaton Pharmaceuticals in Cayey, Puerto Rico, used to rely on a labor-intensive manual palletizing process for loads of empty jars and lids that it molds for Noxzema and Olay skin care products packed at another company location.

"There was an accumulation conveyor at the end of each molding machine, and a clamp system that pushed the jars forward over a pallet. As each layer was built, the pallet would be lowered to accept the next level of product," recalls Noé González, Wheaton's technical support manager. "This required an operator at all times. Slip sheets had to be manually placed on every layer, and a significant number of jars fell due to excessive movement of the system."

So the company turned to a new palletizing system (Schneider Packaging Equipment Co., Inc., 315-676-3035). The automated system has both trimmed the time needed to build pallet loads and eliminated all of the labor once required.

Now, the empty jars and bundled trays of lids are automatically palletized, using an integrated four-axis robot and conveyor system that feeds the stretchwrapper. "The two huge machines we used to have handling one production line at a time took up the same space as the new robotic system that now works with four lines at a time," says González.

The system, which automates all handling from the end of the manufacturing lines to the stretchwrapper, runs seven different jar sizes and styles and two different lid sizes. Empty jars exit the molding machines onto their own vertical conveyors that deliver them to a conveyor line 84 inches above the floor. Four of these overhead conveyance systems transport the empty jars while a fifth conveys the bundled trays of jar lids. The fully enclosed palletizing system is programmed to switch back and forth between various size jars and bundled lids.

At the palletizer, suction cups mounted on a vertical linear rail automatically pick slip sheets and deliver them to the robot, which positions them on the pallet. The robot then picks the empty jars, one row at a time, from one of the four infeed conveyors, and places the jars onto their designated pallet. After a full pallet layer has been stacked, a slip sheet is placed on top by the robot to form the next layer. This sequence is repeated until a full pallet load is built.

Once the unit load has been completed, it exits the loading zone via a drag chain pallet conveyor. A shuttle car transports the unit load to the stretchwrapper. After the load is fully wrapped, it is discharged onto an accumulation section of conveyor where it is picked up by the forklift operator for loading onto the trailer.

Not only does the automated system reduce product damage caused by operator and equipment errors, it also paid for itself in less than 18 months, says González.

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(Modern Materials Handling Caseboook - Mid-October 2004)