Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
Have you ever seen a packaging robot packing up boxes for shipping? Videos of these robots packing products into right-sized boxes can be seen all over LinkedIn, YouTube, or even live at trade shows. Maybe you have long had the vision of automating your packaging process and controlling the process with packaging robots. Or, maybe you are constantly looking for innovative solutions to streamline your packaging processes while minimising waste. Sound familiar?
In this blog post, we will take a closer look at what it looks like to pack right-sized boxes with robots and what special features must be considered to achieve the best pick-and-place box experience. What does it mean when precision meets performance and speed in a packaging process? In this article, we will answer just that.
With advanced technology and precision, automation adapts seamlessly to different product dimensions, optimising packaging processes. From small items to large products, it can ensure that every package is perfectly tailored, eliminating waste and maximising efficiency. This synergy of made-to-fit packaging and automation is revolutionising logistics and improving speed, accuracy, and sustainability across all industries. It not only streamlines processes, but also leads companies into a future where customisation and automation go hand in hand. right-sized packaging with robots is the future. Gone are the days of one-size-fits-all solutions; today, precision and efficiency are key.
What sets Packsize apart from traditional packaging methods is the seamless integration of automation and individualisation. With Packsize, companies can move from the manual selection and adaptation of boxes to products to intelligent algorithms that analyse the dimensions of each item and calculate the optimal packaging size with the precision and speed of software and robotics. The best part? The focus is always on right-sized boxes. Packsize is the expert in right-sized Packaging On Demand®. We’ve implemented these solutions successfully for more than 20 years, and ensured they can be easily combined with other technologies.
In addition to the optimisation potential already mentioned, most businesses will also save money on freight and shipping costs. To produce the smallest possible box, software solutions analyse product dimensions with extreme accuracy and produce packaging schemes that fit the products and orders. Robots pack these boxes with grippers that are specifically designed and aligned to the products in the exact sequence and packing scheme specified - perfectly tailored packaging for each item.
The following optimisation goals can both support and challenge each other when packing cartons of different sizes.
Simply said, it takes know-how to develop the best customised packaging solution: Experts meet with experts to determine the factors influencing improvements in packaging quality, performance, and availability. Sophisticated software develops the packaging scheme based on the knowledge of software experts who have been working on the logic for years.
Ultimately, it depends on the customer's process and what happens when you play with different cubing influencing factors, for example. These could be:
The following factors influence the offset tolerance chain: The quality of the corrugated board, the box production, the positioning of the items, and the pre-packed products. These influences can only be optimised in their entirety. Packsize therefore keeps an eye on the entire process, which is also one reason why the company brings a variety of experts on board: Packsize wants to focus on the customer and the packaging processes, the cube logic is something that other companies have developed well and that can be easily integrated into the overall solution.
Now, let's talk about the practical implementation of On Demand Packaging. In March 2024, the first Packsize packaging solution with robots for multi-piece packaging, robot-filled cartons with automatic carton closure was delivered to VEGA Grieshaber in the Black Forest, Germany. VEGA is a global manufacturer of sensors for measuring fill level, level limit, and pressure, as well as devices and software for integration into process control systems. They employ over 2,100 people worldwide. The solution includes manual and automated box-in-box processes, cubing software that calculates the dimensions of the boxes to pack each product as efficiently as possible. This improves productivity, material usage and significantly reduces operating costs.
With this solution, different box sizes can be packed from min to max (mm): L 240 x W 190 x H 150 to L 1000 x W 600 x H 600. Four packed and sealed boxes per minute are possible.
VEGA had their own goals and priorities in mind when addressing the Packsize solution, one of which was an emphasis on ergonomic packaging. Packsize combines standard products and knowledge, such as cubing software, for creating packaging schemes (sequence of objects), box making machines, packaging robots, and grippers for tailor-made and needs-based boxes, as well as automated packaging processes that are always further developed together with the customer. It is a tailored approach – being successful together is always the end goal. The key lies in bringing partners and expertise together to create the best solution.
For VEGA, the following points were of crucial importance for day-to-day operations, particularly from an ergonomic and freight point of view. These points reflect a completely normal process in which the customer specifies framework conditions:
The customer’s wishes lead to proposals on how to manage the process and how to develop the needed packaging schemes. It also shows potential in how the process of right-sized packaging with robots can be developed further with increasing quality for every customer situation.
Let’s take a look at a proposal for the box split based on empty volume: If the empty volume is bigger than expected, then another package should be created. Packsize Suggestion: Make the split depending on the relative [%] and absolute [m³] empty volume at box level. Depending on the size of the outer packaging, a value is defined for the maximum permitted empty volume.
Always keep in mind that this decision impacts other variables. Expected/possible impact of additional splits:
The number of influencing factors alone shows the complexity behind the optimisation of the automated packaging process and leads to a customised strategy on how to manage all these factors. This strategy needs to be thought through, monitored, tested, and optimised in day-to-day packaging operations. Packsize's role as an expert with needs-based packaging expertise in combination with suppliers and expert knowledge is the solution. Everything comes from a single source.
With all of these possible and expected impacts, along with the increasing complexity, a deeper understanding of the factors influencing the residual volume (from the process or from the packaging scheme) needs to be developed. This also serves as a basis for the evaluation of KPIs and the impact of box splits. It’s a joint optimisation journey for VEGA, Packsize, and partners:
The VEGA packaging solution shows how much potential, but also how much time and complexity is behind the automatic packing of boxes by robots. To achieve the best customer-specific result (an airfreight safe box), optimisation targets such as offset values (distances between items or distances between items and cartons), carton geometry, and box splitting rules must be based on ergonomic approaches and freight savings. All of these influencing factors need to be monitored during the implementation process.
This futuristic approach is a win-win-win situation: for companies, for customers, and for the environment. Automated packaging with right-sized packaging robots isn't just the future - it's the present, revolutionising the way we pack and ship goods in the digital age. Packsize can promise one thing: Once set, precision, performance, and speed can come together in a right-sized automated packaging process. VEGA’s packaging solution works because it combines the expertise of different suppliers. In addition, the packaging process is viewed as a complete process, from box production to box sealing. Everything from a single source - everything from Packsize.
Our final thought: It's not just about optimising processes, it's about shaping a greener, more sustainable future for generations to come.
Would you like to learn more? Get in touch with a Packsize Solution Engineer.
We would love to learn more about your packaging processes and the experiences you have already had in this area. We would like to discuss with you what happens with box sizes when you play with different influences and what this could mean for your daily packaging operations. The example shows it is possible in reality. More information about the VEGA case story is available at https://www.packsize.com/case-study/vega-grieshaber.
Contact us today for a personalised analysis of your intralogistic process.
