Froneri, a global powerhouse in ice cream, and the owner of New Zealand’s beloved Tip Top brand, approached us as they implemented their worldwide ‘bigger, better, faster’ strategy. The challenge was simple: ‘speed things up and save us time and money without compromising the product’.
The customer’s existing machines in their Mount Wellington, Auckland factory could not be adapted to manage the increased workload and we worked with the Head of Operations and Plant Manager Martin Utschig to devise a brand-new conveying solution.
A vital factor was the need to ‘lock’ the tapered tubs of ice cream together into a robust stack (three high by three wide) ready for shrink wrapping and palletizing.
Because of the enormous volumes at play (currently 4,000,000 tubs and counting) we created the all-important rotation helix section as a real-life ‘proof of concept’ trial.
One in three ice cream tubs must be rotated through a gravity propelled twist chute to obtain the all-important ‘lock’ when 3 are stacked. Once we had this section running perfectly to the customer’s satisfaction we pressed ahead and produced a unique three lane conveyor which separates a single stream of tubs into three evenly distributed lanes. As always, we needed all the machinery to be gentle on the tubs, low maintenance and reliable.
Dynamic laning removes any stop/start issues with shock-loading meaning that the lids never pop off during the process.
Food hygiene is obviously paramount and the whole system is designed to be fully washable.
Once the middle lane has been rotated, the tubs are collated, and a servo-controlled stacker is used to stack the rows three high. The next module of the RML system performs the shrink-wrapping and these are then ready for the pallets.
Installed in late 2020, the wrapper and conveyor is showing no signs of wear and tear and we are looking forward to a long and fruitful business relationship.
RML have an amazing team of people. They were easy to work with and were happy to assist with any problems we encountered during the design and commissioning process.
We’ve been so impressed by the level of service and quality of machinery that RML have built for us. With such an efficient machine, we’ve had no problem keeping up with production times and demands.
Working with RML on an innovative solution was straightforward. Their in-house expertise in all aspects of the design and build added value to the project delivery process and made some tough challenges easier to overcome.
Our experience working with RML has been positive. We feel we received value for our investment.
The machine provided by RML has to date, resulted in consistent high-quality product for SNPshot Technologies and guaranteed production costs.
We saw a 30% increase in line speed and output as a result of the RML equipment
The trust and reliance that has grown from this project has us achieving numnbers we previously did not think would be possible. We will be searching for opportunities to collaborate with RML in future.
Our integrated, advanced operation ensures the best quality cream cheese is produced consistently.
It was an opportunity to increase the packing line automation, with labour savings offsetting the capital costs.
RML worked with us to understand our requirements and designed a solution to suit our needs. RML delivered an automated system to service two moulding machines producing the Gallagher Ring Top Posts.
We set RML a challenge, design and build a new butter packing machine for a challenging application. RML produced a smart and effective solution that exceeded our expectations.
Ongoing service and support is important to us. RML knew this and I am pleased to say we are not disappointed. I have and will continue to recommend RML to others in our industry based on our experience
IF YOU HAVE A PRODUCTION CHALLENGE,
WE’D LOVE TO SOLVE IT.
