Helping Automate the Packaging and Palletizing Process
Cross Automation recently worked with a consumer chemical manufacturer in Western North Carolina who was struggling to find and keep labor. With a turnover rate of over 80%, they realized they needed to do something differently and reached out to us to discuss automation opportunities.
Our customer has thirteen packaging lines which form, fill and seal the product into bags. Operators then put the bags into boxes and the boxes onto pallets. They wanted to start with palletizing and have a palletizer flexible enough to run multiple box sizes.
The Innovation Team at Cross Automation designed a palletizer using a Fanuc industrial robot with a custom multi- zone vacuum gripper, enclosed in a safety fence with light curtains. In addition, each cell includes a reject station prior to the robot, in order to separate the unfinished or malformed boxes before they could be grabbed by the robot. It also has an automated break detection system to improve safety and protect the robot from harm.
See why the plant has boxes stacking up and what Mr. Thompson, the plant manager, does about it in “The Missing Worker,” A Cross Company Comic illustrated by Daysha Bullock.
What's New at Cross
Calibration Provider Not Getting Your Equipment Back Fast Enough?
Cross partner OGP recently launched their SmartScope® M-Series multi-sensor measurement equipment line. With instantaneous magnification, low image distortion and ZONE3 software, the M series delivers exceptionally accurate measurement results. This means you can maximize your machine up-time without compromise and with minimal costs.
The M series features both benchtop and floor models and can be paired with a variety of tactile, laser, and rotary sensors to create the most advanced 3D multi-sensor measurement system on the market today.
New to OGP?
Schedule a demo to see how the M Series stands out thanks to its ability to measure complex parts with ease, reliability, and speed.
Already have a SmartScope?
Ask us how patented technology in M allows you to measure more!
Did you know?
Can't find highly skilled metrology professionals? Cross can help
Accurate and precise measurements are essential to quality in the medical device industry. But how do you get measurements you can rely on when you can’t find qualified metrology professionals to take them? Cross can help!
We know how hard it is to hire people with experience in precision measurement. We run up against it all the time! With several hundred calibration technicians in our staff and a world-class HR department, we have it a bit easier than most so let us help you with your measurement challenges.
Here are a few of the ways Cross can help:
- Onsite, in lab or full time embedded calibration: Choose the most efficient calibration method for your operation
- Onsite or in lab part inspection/validation: Whether it’s FAI, independent 3rd party analysis or simply overflow from your lab, Cross has inspection labs across the country to help
- Automated measurement systems: Make the people you have more efficient with automated or semi-automated systems like the M series above
- Software updates or programming: We can upgrade your existing program or write one for your current measurement projects
Don’t see what you need here? Get in touch today. We excel at custom measurement solutions.
Cross Provides Tangible Value for You
Raise Quality
Don’t let careless errors in recording measurements impact the quality of your product or process. Cross partner Microridge provides measurement collection solutions which connect any gage to any software.
Whether you want to send data from a single micrometer to a simple Excel spreadsheet or from hundreds of gages to a cloud-based SPC system, Microridge
offers the tools needed to move data in real-time with 100% accuracy. Convenient, mobile and easily implemented, Microridge’s data collection solutions eliminate human error in data transfer.
Improve Efficiency
Sometimes it pays to have a custom actuator which precisely fits your particular application. Cross partner Rotomation recently worked with a machinery manufacturer to design a custom combination gripper-rotator to fill a uniquely shaped bottle with caustic toilet bowl cleaner.
The unique challenges posed by the bottle’s distinct shape required reorienting the bottle by 45° to align the nozzle upwards, enabling standard filling and capping without compromising efficiency. The corrosive nature of the cleaning material necessitated components which could withstand the hard environment without sacrificing performance or longevity.
Raise Quality
It’s not possible to overstate how important accurate and repeatable measurements are for the consumer products industry. Tight tolerances are a part of life so you need the best measurement equipment possible.
What if you’ve invested in high tech measurement equipment but have employees who don’t know how to properly operate it? This can be a recipe for disaster.
Let us help! We have a team of measurement experts available to come onsite and train your team to use your measurement equipment. We want you to feel confident in the quality of your measurement data!
