Page 26 - Packaging News Magazine Sep-Oct 2021

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FOOD & BEVERAGE PACKAGING | www.packagingnews.com.au | September-October 2021
HMPS delivers Almondco’s $25m
The expansion of Almondco Australia’s plant in South Australia has seen HMPS deliver an integrated turnkey processing and packaging system that has increased the almond processor’s value-add production output by 400 per cent. PKN reports.
THE plant-based product boom has boosted demand for almond-based products, with positive spin-offs for Almondco, whose brand is globally recognised and whose integrated supply chain handles more than 85 per cent of Australia’s
almond growers.
The company is one of Australia’s
most successful horticulture opera- tives. From almond harvesting through to finished product, Almondco’s supply chain is highly labour and waste efficient.
Almondco processes almost 100 per cent of the almonds from local growers through its various sorting and value adding systems, yielding a broad almond product range for key health food ingredients and tradi- tional market segments.
The surge in demand necessitated the expansion of its main regional plant in South Australia, with a $25 million investment to scale up its value-add production.
Following a competitive tender process, South-Australian packaging machinery manufacturer HMPS was
selected to supply the turnkey inter- grated processing and packaging lines to Almondco.
Glen Foreman, sales manager for HMPS, says: “Almondco needed to make provisions to meet current and future demand,” noting that HMPS was selected to help significantly scale and automate the company’s value-add production volumes to cater for the forecasted production growth over the next five years.
No stranger to solving complex packaging equations, HMPS handled the sourcing, project management and integration of the entire system.
“Almondco wanted a single, local point-of-contact for the project which included full integration of all new equipment such as carton erectors,
As a local business, working with a local SA customer on a project that supports the local economy is a major win.”
— Glen Foreman, HMPS
poly bag inserters, check weighers, in-line metal detection and robotic palletising and conveying systems,” Foreman says.
Almondco managing director Brenton Woolston says he was delighted when a South Australia- based business was awarded the major integrated equipment and pro- cess work. He says the Almondco project team and the HMPS team had worked closely to deliver the key project outcomes and he expressed appreciation for HMPS’ commitment to complete the project within budget and tight timelines, particularly due to covid disruptions.
COVID POSES CHALLENGES, FLEXIBILITY ADDS VALUE
Foreman notes there were several key learnings to be made in the areas of connection, integration, and commu- nication across dozens of individual pieces of equipment.
“This project was also subject to Covid delays, but the value of this project lies in joint flexibility, ongo- ing communication and HMPS