Demand innovation to help you succeed

The way we manufacture goods has changed beyond recognition over the last 100 years.

For the food industry, developments in farming have helped food manufacturers increase the amount they produce each year, while advances in processing technology have increased the speed at which products reach the marketplace.

However, over time there has been increasing pressure placed on manufacturers to do things quicker. Today, factories are required to operate like well-oiled machines throughout the year, meaning that business owners have had to look for new ways of running their operations.

As we entered the 21st century, there seemed to be a sole focus on speed – it was the word of the moment. Retailers required products quickly to meet demand and manufacturers simply had to respond or risk losing business.

Unfortunately, increasing the pace of operations often had a negative effect on quality and standards, with some items damaged during the production stages and others packaged incorrectly.

Priority change

Recently, there has been a step change and quality has become the number one consumer prerequisite.

However, the need for speed has not gone away completely; manufacturers have simply had to adapt to the situation and improve their operations to produce a product quickly and to higher standards.

Multihead weighers were first developed in the 1970s and they have played a huge role in helping manufacturers increase the speed of their operations. Over the years, changing industry requirements have led to improvements in technology and today their unrivalled speed and accuracy means they are used in almost every industry.

The way it works is straightforward, but the technology behind it is remarkable. Multihead weighers work on a combination weighing principle, whereby a built-in computer calculates the weight of product in each individual weigh hopper and identifies which combination contains the amount closest to the target weight.

The machine opens all the weigh buckets of this combination and the product falls, via a discharge chute, into a bag or, alternatively, into a distribution system which places the product into trays. Dispersion is normally by gravity, vibration or centrifugal force.

I don’t think any factory manager in the world would argue with me when I say that multihead weighers have helped increase productivity and improve the supply of their goods to the market.

Challenges along the way However, there have been some challenges since their inception 40 years ago, particularly when it comes to the quality of the final products.

Take the potato industry as an example. Increasing the speed of packing and weighing has traditionally resulted in more bruising, as the products receive more forceful blows during the processes. According to the British Potato Council, excessive bruising is the single biggest cause of consumer complaint when it comes to purchasing potatoes.

Thankfully, though, due to improvements in technology, there are now solutions available that minimise the impact on products. Compact machines, for example, reduce the drop heights and discharge chute lengths to minimise product fall distance, during the processing stage.

In addition, innovations such as bottom-based handling have revolutionised the way that manufacturers pack their goods.

Traditionally, when weighing goods at high speed, the discharged product does not have a clear ‘product window’ which can cause sealing failure. By producing a distinct discharge of products, the technology helps to prevent packaging errors, minimise packaging waste during production, increase quantities and reduce costs.

A lot is now demanded from manufacturers and this will only continue as retailers and brands seek more efficiency in their supply chains.

Tailored solutions

In my opinion it is vital that businesses keep pushing their suppliers for more innovation in all areas of their production facilities.

Weighing and bagging may just be a small part of the process, but it can be one of the most time consuming and costly if not done correctly. By ensuring the best, tailored solutions are in place to improve speed, accuracy and quality, then the benefits will be there for all to see.

Views expressed on this page are those of the author and may not be shared by this publication.