A comprehensive Trac-IT MES Packhouse Solution is bringing significant benefits to a dedicated packhouse in the Richard Hochfeld fruit packing, grading and storage facility in Faversham, Kent

This GBP8.5 million project by Richard Hochfeld has been the largest single investment in the UK fruit industry for some years and establishes a platform to provide the customers of both companies with improved quality and service, whilst increasing efficiency and maximising crop usage and grower returns.

The complete packhouse system has been designed specifically for packing grapes, kiwi fruit and stone fruits for major supermarkets and retail outlets.

The Marco Manufacturing Execution System (MES) on twin production lines includes 12 twin scale LineMaster portion control workstations, space-saving one, two, and four tier conveyors, auto-indexing conveyors, product diverters, product combiners, a high speed flow wrapper, netting machines, twin head labeller with print-and-apply on-line facility and weigh price labeller.

Fundamental to the efficient running of the packhouse is the collection and use of real time factory floor data which introduces a 'measure-control-improve' ethos across the factory floor.

Packing flexibility is crucial in this fast moving sector and the system is designed so that a combination of different products can be packed on both lines to meet ever-changing customer requirements. In addition, Line One is also designed for check weighing bulk boxes of bagged grapes, whilst simultaneously feeding punnets of product to the netting equipment.

Line Two has the capability of running two different fruits simultaneously. The LineMasters for each line are located either side of the multi-tier conveyors for optimum space utilisation and efficiency. Although there is a high level of automation within the operation, the system is still heavily dependent on the dexterity of the manual packing operators.

Product is automatically fed on demand to the individual packing stations via indexed bulk trays. As soon as a tray is removed, a replacement is moved to the required place on the line. Pairs of operators working opposite each other take product from these trays and place them in the punnets on their scales.

The LineMaster simple, yet highly effective, 16 segment coloured traffic light bar graph immediately gives a clear indication of when the pack weight comes within weight tolerance. The operators soon 'tune in' to such visual systems and simply pack to the 'green light' without having to think about the actual weights.

This system is 'language transparent' making it ideal for multi-national operators. When within weight tolerance, the punnets are placed on the requisite conveyor and transported for flow wrapping or netting. Empty trays and waste product are transported away on the lower level conveyors. Every punnet weight is instantaneously captured by the Trac-IT LineMaster system, together with a record of the packer responsible.

The LineMaster system features the Marco innovative Automatic Optimisation (AO) software, specifically developed to maximise the use of real time data capture in high speed manual packing and portion control applications. Pack weight trends are continually monitored by the AO system, which automatically adjusts the target weight parameters at individual workstations on an on-going basis.

These continual subtle changes, which are transparent to the operators, maintain minimal giveaway with a sustained reduction in wastage whilst ensuring packs continue to comply with the Packers Code for 'e' weighing. The labeller system has a printer fitted for optional direct on-line printing.

The labeler heads use servo-driven label drives that are synchronised with the pack and the conveyor, with the capability of linear speeds up to 40 metres per minute. This ensures accurate label positioning on the packs within +/-0.2mm.

The labeller system has touch screen controls for easy configuration and these are also used to operate the individual stepper motors, which move the label heads up and down to rapidly accommodate changes in pack size.

After labeling, the packs accumulate at the end of line Soft Touch Conveyor (STC) which is part of the ergonomically designed packing station, incorporating built in stainless steel tables for the operators. The changes brought about by the Marco System are exceptional. Before the new facility was operational, packers were regularly used to seeing giveaways of over 4%.

This has now dropped dramatically by almost a factor of 100! Richard Hochfeld MD Alan Guindi is delighted with the installation and as he concludes: 'The Marco system exceeds our expectations and provides us with the complete packing flexibility we need to satisfy our ever-changing customer demands.

Speed, accuracy and live production data are of paramount importance, together with ensuring the product reaches the consumer in tip top condition. The multi-tier conveyor configuration makes optimum use of space, whilst providing a highly efficient transportation system. Our pack giveaway has fallen to almost zero and full traceability is an integral part of Trac-IT MES'.