Financial uncertainty, rising tariffs, and ongoing labor challenges are making it more durable than ever for meals producers to plan their subsequent transfer. However one Canadian potato chip maker discovered a method to enhance productiveness, scale back prices, and preserve flexibility—all with out hiring a single further employee.
A crunch-time resolution that paid off quick
When this 100-employee snack meals producer first reached out to us, they weren’t robotics specialists. They simply knew one thing needed to change. Their manufacturing strains wanted revamping, upkeep was changing into a headache, they usually have been feeling the stress to remain aggressive in a troublesome market.
What began as a single automated palletizer mission rapidly turned a strategic funding. Utilizing our ROI calculator and an in depth wants evaluation, the corporate projected an 18-month payback. The actual outcome? Simply 16 months. That’s after they ordered their second palletizer.
They usually’re not alone. Increasingly more meals producers are realizing that automation doesn’t need to be difficult—or dangerous—to ship actual worth.
Why the ROI beat expectations
Many producers calculate ROI primarily based solely on headcount financial savings. However this buyer rapidly found added advantages they hadn’t deliberate for:
Decrease overhead from diminished guide dealing with
Extra constant manufacturing output
Simpler upkeep, even with seasoning strains close by
Lowered coaching time due to intuitive, easy-to-use robotics
What’s extra, they didn’t need to pause different initiatives to make automation work. Regardless of additionally investing in a brand new facility, they nonetheless managed to efficiently roll out the palletizing system with out disrupting manufacturing.
Flexibility that grows with you
A key cause for his or her second buy? Flexibility.
Fairly than locking them right into a inflexible format, the palletizing system allowed them to reorganize 4 strains with out main prices. They now have two automated cells that may evolve with their wants over time—serving to them construct momentum with out dropping agility.
A phrase to fellow meals producers
As I all the time say, “Begin someplace. Even in unsure instances, investing in automation doesn’t need to be disruptive. Accomplished proper, it’s a quick path to resilience.”
Meals producers throughout Canada are dealing with actual pressures. However automation isn’t nearly surviving—it’s about constructing a basis for development. Should you’re questioning whether or not now’s the appropriate time, run the numbers your self. Or higher but, see the complete story behind how actual clients are making it work.
