{"id":104,"date":"2019-06-19T10:21:14","date_gmt":"2019-06-19T04:51:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nichrome.com\/blog\/?p=104"},"modified":"2025-09-05T17:14:42","modified_gmt":"2025-09-05T11:44:42","slug":"signs-your-packaging-operation-is-ready-for-automation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nichrome.com\/blog\/signs-your-packaging-operation-is-ready-for-automation\/","title":{"rendered":"Signs Your Packaging Operation is Ready for Automation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Is your food packaging<\/strong> line largely dependent on manual labour? Are you finding it difficult to keep pace with increasing production? Having issues with labour and cost of packaging? Planning to expand your product range but doubt your current setup can handle it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Automated Packaging\nSystems<\/a> can make a difference. Let’s run through some of the most\ntelling signs that your business will benefit from automating your packaging<\/strong> line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Labour <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are labour costs eating into your profits? Do you have\ndifficulty recruiting good resources? Is it a hassle to train and manage\ntemporary staff when your regulars are sick or workload increases? Do long\nshifts make your labour tired and inattentive? Dealing with human resources on\nthe shop floor is no easy task, and most of the time, in the long run, machines\ncost much less than labour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Accuracy<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

After all, we’re human. Mistakes are bound to happen. Manual\npackaging<\/strong> is a monotonous, tiring\njob and humans are likely to occasionally spill contents, make mistakes in\nfilling, sealing\nand counting<\/a>, etc. Automation ensures consistent quality and accuracy while\nreducing, and sometimes eliminating, errors. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Wastage<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Everyone’s going lean, and waste is a major no-no for all\nbusinesses. Sometimes, you could be using too much packaging material or wasting\nproduct dues to spills and poor sealing. You could even be wasting time as\nlabour struggles to maintain speed and cycle times, or extending shifts to cope\nwith extra capacities. Automating your packaging operation can significantly\nincrease packaging line efficiency while reducing costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Capacity<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Planning to add more products to your basket? Want to cash\nin on increasing demand from growing markets? If you’re planning on enhancing\nyour production\ncapacity<\/a>, an automated machine should be your first choice. Faster speeds\nmean more packs per minute – so you save time and operating costs while you\nkeep up with the increased manufacturing output.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Customer demand<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today’s customers are demanding. They want their favourite foods packed in a variety of pack sizes and with modern conveniences like zipper bags or bags with easy-pour spouts. They want small packs that are easy to afford and carry. To tackle all these variations, automation makes good business sense. Packaging machines nowadays are versatile with easy cleaning & changeover, so you can offer your consumers a variety of products and pouch formats. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consumers also want neat, attractive packaging. So the primary packaging is crucial but the wrapping & cartoning<\/a> <\/strong>needs to be accurate and tidy too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How automation helps<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Automation uses technology to improve the speed, performance\nand optimization of equipment and systems at the unit, line, plant and\nenterprise levels. In recent years, there have been developments that have\ndramatically improved packaging line operations. These include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n