ADVERTORIAL THE MARKETSHOTS CALLS THE
When you think of packaging lines, enormous structures spring to mind. Of course, these do exist. But just as prevalent are compact line layouts that testify to an industrial rethink in the face of high costs and a wide variety of products.
This TLM cartoner at a French biscuit manufacturer processes up to 80 cartons per minute thanks to two A3 erectors.
O
nce you take away the equipment, furniture and staff, production halls are essentially just properties. And like ordinary flats
or houses, they come at a price: According to industry consultants, the general price index for commercial property in the UK increased by around 25 to 30 per cent since the base year 2010, reflecting steady growth. In the UK, electricity costs have increased
significantly over the past decade as well, imposing high costs on businesses for essential operations such as cooling, heating and processing. While consumers were paying around 15 pence per kilowatt hour in 2015, the cost burden has grown by nearly 40 per cent since then.
Moving away from the big lines This is reason enough for companies to rent affordably and to produce cost-effectively. But how, if performance and flexibility need to remain high? The lines themselves offer some of the greatest leverage: instead of large, static high-throughput designs, companies are increasingly turning to space-saving, flexible and highly economical concepts. “Costly tools and time-consuming
format changes no longer meet today’s requirements,” explains Luc Jamet, Product Manager at Gerhard Schubert GmbH. “This is most evident in the biscuit and baked goods industry, where versatile packaging solutions for small batches are in high demand.”
T-arms remove the products from the grouping chain and place them into the erected boxes.
Machinery users and manufacturers like
Schubert are motivated by the combination of a reduced footprint, ease of operation and high output. At Schubert, this is reflected in machines that erect cartons in a single lane instead of multiple ones, for example – allowing between 60 and 80 cartons to be processed per minute.
Fewer tools Thanks to the single-lane design, such systems require fewer robot units. The result is a more compact, more cost-effective machine that features a manageable number of system components. Equally essential are quick changeovers, which are decisive in everyday production in view of smaller batches. For example, a new sealing tool from Schubert has significantly fewer screws and components than before. As a result, it weighs 50 per cent less than its predecessor and only requires one operator for replacement. Since floor space is also a factor for lines with a compact layout
many users,
are increasingly sought after. At Schubert, this is ensured in no small part by agile, space-saving robots that support the pick & place process using the delta principle, for example. Up to six of these machines can be accommodated in the smallest of spaces. The control and drive technology also
Only one person is needed to change tool components, saving valuable time.
requires less space today, as Schubert has consistently relocated and reduced it. While large control cabinets next to the machines were the norm for decades, today electronics are located in the line housings, for example in the upper frame area. “Modern automation is all about miniaturisation. We started doing this with our TLM machines back in the mid- 1990s and have successfully continued to do so from generation to generation,” concludes Jamet.
OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2025 • KENNEDY’S BAKERY PRODUCTION • 13
All photos: Gerhard Schubert GmbH
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