Page 59 - Food & Drink Magazine April 2021

CASE STUDY
Molson Coors gets maximum flexibility
For its new production plant in British Columbia, Canada, Molson Coors needed an intelligent automation solution to package filled glass bottles into a variety of formats and packaging schemes, while maintaining high flexibility in product and format changes.
With over 30 brands – all with different package designs, formats and sizes, and distributed through widely diverse channels – Molson Coors required a solution that’s able to swiftly respond to changing market needs and preferences, while still efficiently carrying out smooth-flowing, end-of-line automation.
For the global brewer, this meant integrating three individual processes into one seamless system with consistently high output – a challenge accepted by Schubert and its Innopack TLM bottle packaging system.
“Traditionally, production lines for processing baskets, RSC boxes and wrap-around cartons are linked by conveyors,” explains Sebastian Mayer, area sales manager at Schubert.
“The Innopack TLM, however, integrates the individual modules with a significantly higher degree of flexibility, enabling a single smooth process with minimum changeover and start-up times.
“Schubert has delivered a high-performance, space-saving system that seamlessly merges a bottle packer with Schubert’s TLM packaging system,” Mayer says.
The new packaging line for Molson Coors packs six different formats: 6-packs in trays, 12-, 15- and 18-packs in cartons, 6-pack baskets in RSC boxes, baskets or wrap-arounds, as well as 24-pack RSC cases – at impressive outputs of up to 720 bottles per minute.
The Innopack TLM provides the brewer with exceptionally high flexibility in terms of formats and packaging schemes. Currently, 341ml and 355ml bottle sizes are packed, with further sizes also possible.
SEAMLESS CONNECTION WITH THE TRANSMODUL
The packaging system combines three key functionalities: erecting the various packaging formats, loading the bottles in the erected cases, and finally, closing the cases.
The seamless connection between the bottle packer and TLM system is enabled by Schubert’s Transmodul transport robot, which conveys the bottles and cartons.
The machine consists of two Transmodul tracks, with several Transmodul shuttles per track. Every shuttle has a format-specific, easy exchangeable format plate, which provides the customer with endless possibilities and flexibility.
The block formation with KHS and Schubert components makes long transfer systems and separate in-feed and out-feed sections entirely redundant, reducing wear and tear, maintenance, and energy consumption. Moreover, this compact installation only requires one operator.
The Schubert erecting section comprises of four F2 robots for RSC cases and two for basket, partition or wrap-arounds.
After this initial process, the robots place the cases on the Transmodul shuttles, with four of the shuttles (two per track) moving into the bottle
packer section of the line where the bottles are loaded into cases.
The Transmodul shuttles then move on to the closing section, which consists of two F2 closing robots for the folding boxes and wrap-around cartons, an F2 tray erecting robot, as well as two F2 tray transfer robots.
With the Innopack TLM, Molson Coors is now ideally equipped to successfully meet growing market and consumer demands worldwide with maximum flexibility and scalability.
Schubert is represented in Australia by APPMA member Selpak.
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