Geostick | 33(AGV) from Jungheinrich to move fnished product around the There’s also the intangible effect the robot – affectionately called production foor. Rob Ot around Geostick – has had on employees. Tom says: ‘We were looking for something fexible and scalable, ‘When our employees frst saw the AGV, they looked around a and the AGV was the perfect solution. It picks up the pallet of lot and wondered what it was doing and if it was doing it well,’ Tom fnished product from the machine and brings it to the warehouse. says. ‘Now it’s just another colleague working with them to get the There it puts down the pallet, picks up an empty pallet, and fnished product off the foor as quickly as possible.’ brings it back to the machines. This way the production process Cees adds: ‘The printing industry is still a little conventional. continues.’ Although we use modern technology, the way we operate is The self-driving robot uses cameras to look for foor markings to still somewhat conventional. Implementing the robot into the avoid hitting people, presses and anything else that might be in the production area was something our staff was very proud of. Proud way. The robot has smart charging, meaning it charges as soon as to work at this kind of company.’there is a break in the workday, on the weekends, or at slow points when the production team is less likely to need it. FutureNext on Geostick’s robotics wish list, is a machine that can bring As the company looks to celebrate its centenary next year, Geostick raw materials to the press. Tom says this is challenging given the has ambitions for more growth, with automation leading the way. number of raw material SKUs on a single pallet. Contrary to many schools of thought, Geostick’s approach to ‘We need to make the operational structure to allow that frst,’ automation is not driven by a labor shortage. he says. ‘For me, automation is a way to make the process more effcient Robots are still a novelty in many label manufacturing plants, and for our staff to enjoy working here, and for them to be the but leaders at Geostick noticed the benefts immediately. There are most productive when they are working. So anything we can the tangible benefts of fewer touchpoints and fewer actions taken automate with that in mind, we will,’ Cees says. by the production team. The company is on the path to what Cees hopes is one day, ‘a ‘If an operator walks from a fnishing line to the warehouse boring life.’with the fnished rolls, he may make a stop to go to the toilet, to He says, with a smile and a laugh ‘The best situation is to have talk with friends, to take a phone call. That’s all time that he’s not a boring life. When life is boring, then you don’t face challenges, behind the press,’ Tom explains. ‘The amount of time the operator which also means the process is fully under control.’is walking, that’s the amount of time the press isn’t running. There’s a huge cost associated with that.’To read more about other winners from the Global Label ‘We planned this facility to make it the most effcient for an Awards, turn to page 86operator to do their job,’ he adds.Achieve the excep?onalNon-Contact Web Cleaners and Sta?c Control Sta?c charges and surface contamina?on on your web can prove disastrous to your product quality and increase your down?me and wastage. Meech o?ers a wide range of sta?c control and web cleaning solu?ons that can be adapted to suit any labelling applica?on.Contact our experts today to learn how to deliver excep?onal surface cleaning and a high quality ?nish.sales@meech.com +44 (0)1193 706700 www.meech.comOct - Dec 2023