Produlith Increases Output and Employee Well-being with a Cobot Palletizer

Produlith places a strong emphasis on employee well-being and was determined to find a lasting solution to the physical demands of repetitive tasks. Activities such as handling heavy boxes and repetitive motions were putting unnecessary strain on workers’ backs and arms, raising health and safety concerns. These challenges not only impacted employee satisfaction but also risked long-term retention issues. Creating a safer and healthier work environment was an urgent challenge that Produlith was trying to solve.

Efficiency was another significant hurdle. Managing a 40-foot production line with one operator meant countless steps throughout the day to oversee both the infeed and outfeed. Adding an operator to the outfeed alone wasn’t practical, as the static nature of the role made it difficult to find and retain staff. Produlith needed a long-term solution to optimize workflow, reduce inefficiencies, and make better use of their team’s potential.

Produlith partnered with Vention to deploy an automated palletizer solution to directly address the need to reduce physical strain on employees. Vention’s team helped customize the Rapid Series Palletizer cobot system with conveyors to fit with the two existing production lines to take over the repetitive tasks of lifting and arranging boxes.

The actual process of deployment was made smoother with clear communication and documentation from Vention to outline critical steps in the process. Produlith’s operators also received hands-on training to reduce the learning curve and familiarize them with their new robot colleague. This ensured a smooth transition and rapid adoption of the technology.

Post-installation, Produlith and Vention continued to collaborate, optimizing the system for dynamic requirements such as the need to upgrade corrugated cases to withstand robotic palletizer handling. This ongoing support and optimization further solidified the partnership and ensured the project’s long-term success.

Automating the end-of-line process produced multiple benefits for Produlith, while helping them achieve their primary objective of reducing the strain on their employees.

Produlith saw an approximate 8% increase in the per hour output on the folder gluer, and a substantial 60% reduction in the traffic around the palletizing area, enabling them to move their employees to more strategic roles.

Working alongside the robot significantly reduced the physical strain on employees, improving job satisfaction and creating a safer work environment - which also helped them rapidly adopt the new technology, going as far as using a pet name for their robotic colleague!

As a business that relies primarily on repeat purchases, Produlith also gained a significant advantage due to easy creation of ‘recipes’ using Vention’s intuitive MachineApps software. Their operators could now easily create new recipes, ensuring standardized palletizing and minimizing human error.

Last but not least, the precision of the robot palletizer helped uncover the need to upgrade the corrugated cases, improving product quality and customer satisfaction. This collaborative success with Vention set Produlith up on a path for future automation and continuous improvements in their operations.