MU_2018_JulyAugust-HR

www.machineryupdate.co.uk JULY/AUGUST 2018 MACHINERY UPDATE 57
Feature: Automation, robotics and vision
Making adaptive
manufacturing a
food sector reality
Along with a shift towards
personalised products
and packaging, trends
in food marketing
are driving demand
for fresh, additive-free foods
that maintain their nutritional
properties all the way from
preparation and conservation
to packaging, storage and
consumption, says Stephen
Ratcliffe, marketing manager
for the UK & Ireland at B&R
Automation.
One of the biggest challenges
facing machine builders for
today’s food, beverage and
pharmaceutical industries is
finding ways to make equipment
located near or in direct contact
with the products easier to clean
and sanitise. This means avoiding
powder and dust traps as well
as mechanical elements such as
chains, which require long planned
stops for maintenance and cleaning.
Aside from the obvious impact on
product quality and health and
safety, components that can’t be
cleaned well will eventually slow
down the machine’s performance.
NEW FLEXIBLE TRANSPORT
Responding to these trends
requires highly adaptive
manufacturing systems, while
at the same time maintaining an
hygienic processing environment
to prevent microbial, chemical
and physical contamination.
“Moving products dynamically
through environmentally
controlled areas and machines
calls for a new generation of
flexible transport systems,”
he says. Such a system must offer
a strictly food-grade design along
with independent shuttles that
allow for maximum customisation
of product, packaging and labelling.
B&R’s new flexible transport
system is called ACOPOStrak, and
it is designed to meet the stringent
hygienic requirements for the
processing and primary packaging
of foods and pharmaceuticals.
Adapting to
food needs
Moving products
dynamically
through
environmentally
controlled areas
calls for a new
generation of
flexible transport
systems
Its smooth stainless steel housing
with rounded corners eliminates
undercuts and protruding screws
to prevent the collection of
contaminants and make cleaning
simple, safe and efficient.
And with its laser-engraved type
plate, ACOPOStrak is designed for
efficient daily cleaning.
Consumers demand an
increasing variety of highly
customised, convenience-driven
products – and they expect them
to be available on demand.
The highly scalable, decentralised
ACOPOStrak architecture is
composed of service-friendly
stainless steel track segments
that can be arranged into any
combination of open and closed
circuits to a length of more than
Independent shuttles allow
for maximum customisation
of products and packaging
100 metres to help fmcg companies
to meet these demands.
The high-speed ACOPOStrak
diverters pass shuttles from one
track circuit to another at full
production speeds, making it easy
to divide and merge product flows.
This means manufacturing systems
can be more agile and responsive,
while its fully electronic actuation
means they are 100% free of wear
and maintenance.
With its hot-swappable shuttles,
high-speed diverters and flexible
track design, B&R’s ACOPOStrak
transport system can extend the
economy of mass production down
to batches of one. Paired with an
effective e-commerce front-end, the
ACOPOStrak is the perfect way to
achieve intelligent, personalised
production with direct-toconsumer
shipping, says Ratcliffe.
B&R also says that the system
offers excellent equipment
effectiveness as well as helping to
maximise return on investment.
T 01733 371320
W www.br-automation.com