Page 27 - Packaging News Jan-Feb 2020
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MEMBER NEWS
FOODMACH SAVES WITH SOLAR
Foodmach’s Echuca factory has yielded one gigawatt of energy since fitting its Norlec Solar system in 2013, saving more than 700 tonnes of carbon emissions.
There are 400 solar panels on Foodmach’s 5400-square-metre roof, saving around 44 per cent of the total electricity drawn by the company’s manufacturing operations.
Foodmach also installed LED lighting throughout the facility in 2013, which has saved around 30 per cent of previous electricity usage for lighting.
“We installed the panels and LED lighting in an effort to reduce our carbon footprint and mitigate ever-increasing power costs,” said Foodmach CEO Earle Roberts.
“Foodmach is committed to the sustainability and competitiveness of our products. We’re constantly looking for ways to reduce emissions and improve energy efficiency.”
Customisable: the VGC10 compact electric vacuum gripper.
TIGHTENING THE GRIP WITH ONROBOT
The electricity generated by the 100K/W Norlec OnRobot, distributed in Australia by partners system would be enough to power more than 5,900 including APPMA members Australis Engineering, houses in Echuca for almost a week. Diverseco, and Scott Automation and Robotics,
has launched what it bills as a highly customisable electric vacuum gripper.
The VGC10 compact gripper is based on the design of the larger VC10 gripper and offers the same payload of 15 kilograms while being smaller, lighter, and better suited for constrained spaces, says Enrico Krog Iversen, CEO of OnRobot.
“We heard from customers that they loved the features of the VC10 gripper but sometimes needed a more configurable, compact version, so we delivered.
“The VGC10 is another great example of OnRobot’s mission to be the one-stop-shop for innovative, collaborative end-of-arm tooling that lets manufacturers focus on their application rather
Foodmach’s Norlec solar system at the Echuca facility. than the complexities of the robot,” says Iversen.
HAWK FLIES HIGH WITH INDUSTRY 4.0
According to OnRobot, the VGC10’s two independently-controlled air channels let it act as a dual gripper with pick-up and release in the same action; it can also be used with a single air channel for higher gripping performance.
James Taylor, general manager for APAC at OnRobot, says the Asia-Pacific region is a prime market for the VGC10.
“The roll-out of VGC10 is timely as Asia- Pacific countries are embracing robotic automation at an impressive pace. Australia registered a density of 83 robots per 10,000 employees in 2018, above the Asian average of 63 units.
“The VGC10 continues our commitment to help local manufacturers embrace automation easily and enjoy quicker returns through its flexible and compact nature, speedy deployment process and increased power,” Taylor said.
SMC has installed a new Industry 4.0 solution for a New Zealand-based packaging manufacturer.
Hawk Packaging, based in Hawkes Bay, is one of the country’s leading moulded fibre packaging suppliers, and manufactures all its products from 100 per cent recycled paper.
Following recent mechanical difficulties in one of its robots, Hawk reached out to SMC and East Coast Automation. According to Dirk Siekmann, area sales manager for SMC in New Zealand, a fault in a stacker robot designed to stack finished bundles on pallets was causing downtime.
“An intermittent fault in the control of this particular robot was instigated by a communication cable failure. The robot had seen its fair amount of wear and tear after years of rotation and bending,” Siekmann said.
To fix the problem, SMC, together with East
Coast Automation, installed its EX600-W wireless fieldbus system. A decentralised solution, the EX-600W is Ethernet/IP and Profinet compatible, can withstand electrical noise, and is suitable for industrial environments, according to Siekmann.
“This wireless fieldbus system can manage both digital and analogue signals, as well as pneumatic products – making it a flexible solution for all applications. The EX600-W uses the 2.4 GHz ISM frequency band and every 5 msec frequency hopping. The noise resistance design makes it even suitable in welding environments,” he said.
According to Chris Robertson, director of East Coast Automation, the EX-600W was delivered and installed on time, on spec, and on budget.
“The installation was simple, and the solution was the perfect match for this particular application,” said Robertson.
Hawk’s robot was upgraded with a new wireless fieldbus system.
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