A modular conveying system, developed and manufactured by Autarky Automation with modular Schuco conveyor components, is being used by Unilever at its Home and Personal Care factory in Leeds, as part of a sophisticated filling and packing system for deodorant aerosols. The new conveying system incorporates a special anti-static material, to eliminate the potential for static discharges, and offers a unique anti-pinch construction that prevents shrink-wrap outer packaging becoming trapped between sections of the conveyor chain.
Unilever produces a wide range of leading UK and continental brands of deodorants at its factory in Leeds. These are filled and sealed in a controlled environment, before being batched into sets of six aerosols on transit packing trays, and are then transferred to the new Autarky Automation conveying system for transport through shrink wrapping machines to high speed pack handling, stacking and palletising systems.
Previously, Unilever had used a conventional design of anti-static, open fingered conveyor chain that created a number of issues. In particular, the open fingered design would snag on the shrink wrap thus damaging product packs, while the carbon-impregnated anti-static chain was brittle and as a result led to numerous chain breaks; this created considerable downtime and increased maintenance costs.
By comparison, the Schuco conveyor chain has been developed using a specially formulated polyurethane material. Unlike competing carbon-impregnated anti-static chains, the Schuco material retains its anti-static and mechanical properties throughout its operating life; it has also been thoroughly tested by Unilever and outperforms the company’s static test with a rating of 10-8Ω.
In addition, the Schuco conveyor is designed to eliminate the problems caused by pinch-points, especially where the chain has to turn horizontally or vertically, as it features interlocking belt fingers that do not protrude or create open joints. This prevents the shrink wrapping around each product pack from becoming snagged or torn as the packs are transported from the wrapper to the downstream palletising systems.
The Autarky conveyor system comprises a series of interconnected sections, up to 90m in length, and running at speeds of up to 300m/minute; the system has been designed to cater for future demand at Unilever and has the capability of running at maximum speeds of 900m/minute. The system is monitored and controlled from a central operator station, which is combined with that for the pallet handling systems.
Philip Jagger at Unilever, explains that the Autarky Automation system, “Is an integral part of our production facility, providing us with a reliable, low maintenance system, that is capable of running at high speeds and which gives us considerable flexibility and functionality. The company worked closely with us to develop a solution that integrates extremely efficiently with other sections of our production facility, giving us a high degree of automation and productivity in what is an increasingly competitive marketplace”.
