As a business model, convenience shopping is rapidly overtaking large format stores, with nine out of ten consumers claiming to have a visited a convenience store in the last month . Yet, the rise in popularity is placing food manufacturers and packers under greater pressure to supply retailers of all sizes with a good selection […]
According to a market research report by Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies entitled Trends in Food Processing Operations, half of the companies surveyed will be increasing their level of automation over the next three to five years. Despite this, many manufacturers admit they don’t know where to start. Here, Nigel Smith, CEO of industrial […]
In September 2017, VDMA increased its growth forecast for the current year for German robotics and automation from 7% to 11%. The industry is also booming internationally. With this positive outlook and numerous innovations ready to be shown, the world’s leading companies are going to meet at Automatica in Munich from June 19 to 22, […]
Fanuc UK has launched a new robot for cleanroom and food-handling environments. The M20iB/25C has been specifically designed to ISO Class 5 standards, bringing automated picking, packing and handling to applications for which hygiene and cleanliness are paramount. As well as incorporating Fanuc’s drives and controls, including advanced servo technology – which can increase cycles […]
Highly commended at the 2017 PPMA Group Industry Awards for robotic innovation, an automated turnkey installation from end-of-line automation specialist Brillopak has provided McVities with a flexible, small footprint, multi-line palletising solution that has paid for itself within 15 months through reduced labour costs. The seven Brillopak C2 KT400 robotic palletisers, located on a mezzanine […]
Ocado Technology, a division of online supermarket Ocado, has revealed a new robotic system capable of picking a wide range of grocery products from the 50,000 different items available on Ocado.com. The new system uses a proprietary computer vision system designed by the Ocado Technology robotics research team to calculate grasping points for a given […]
The new MOTOMAN GP7 and GP8 food grade robots from Yaskawa are a good example of the drive to apply the benefits of increasingly sophisticated automated handling and robotics solutions to the widest possible range of applications, including the food industry. The GP7 and GP8 robots are designed to meet the specific requirements of food, […]
Brillopak director David Jahn has highlighted the potential crisis farmers, produce and soft fruit packers and meat packhouses face with a hard Brexit and how automated case loading can help to counteract the loss of EU seasonal labour and curb rising costs. Between May to September each year, more than 28,000 EU workers come to […]
Brillopak has chosen PPMA 2017 as the setting for the UK premiere of its new fresh produce punnet loading line, Meteor. It is the first food packing end-of-line system in the UK to integrate Omron’s new four-arm Delta robot, Quattro – said to be the fastest and most dexterous robot in the world. OEM Brillopak […]
Application phase for 10th vector award is now open
The application phase of the igus vector award 2026 has begun. Now in its tenth year, a joint initiative is honouring designers worldwide who use high-performance plastic energy chains to create cable guides that set new technological standards, with winners to receive up to 5,000 euros in prize money. The vector award has gained international […]
ChocoMatic comes to life with igus 7th axis
When customers tap a screen to choose their favourite chocolates, Roose Automation’s ‘ChocoMatic’ robot arm travels along a linear track, selects each chocolate, and delivers them without human intervention. Behind this playful, hygienic automation lies a clever piece of engineering: the 7th axis from igus. Roose Automation wanted to give its robot arm the freedom […]
Cost-effective robotic automation products
Mouser Electronics announces a distribution agreement with igus, a global leader in industrial and automation products. With over 60 years of design experience and a strong reputation for quality, igus offers a range of technically advanced “motion plastics” designed for Industry 4.0 and 5.0. The igus product portfolio includes flexible cables, robotic components, motor control […]
RARUK Automation demos cobot palletising solution
On 11-12 February 2026, Packaging Innovations and EMPACK will be returning to the NEC in Birmingham. RARUK Automation will be showcasing the PE10 Robotiq Palletising Solution designed specifically for Universal Robots collaborative robots (cobots). Palletising is a repetitive and strenuous task that poses risk of injury to workers. For manufacturers looking to increase efficiency, palletising […]
New off-the-shelf and modular palletisers
End-of-line palletising is a task commonly automated across a range of industries, due to bottlenecks and the risk of repetitive strain injury (RSI) to workers. RARUK Automation can now offer two simple approaches to palletising automation, from partner Robotiq. RARUK Automation is the exclusive UK representative for Robotiq, a Canadian manufacturer of end-of-arm tooling and […]
Comau presents advanced automation at ITSA 2025
Comau showcased its advanced automation technologies at Industrial Transformation Saudi Arabia, (ITSA) held from December 1 to 3 at the Riyadh International Convention and Exhibition Centre (RICEC) at Booth number 1-535. As the region’s leading platform for industrial innovation, the HANNOVER MESSE-backed event brought together global and local stakeholders committed to accelerating smarter, greener, and […]
Customised robotics and automation systems: Astech Projects is an award-winning provider of advanced automated solutions. We work with clients worldwide to design and build robotics and automation systems that meet
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Bridging the gap in food and beverage plants
Food and beverage plants increasingly operate with a blend of equipment generations: legacy machinery that has served reliably for years, and newer automation technologies designed to enhance efficiency, traceability and sustainability. This hybrid setup gives manufacturers flexibility to modernise gradually, but it also presents a growing challenge: how to maintain ageing assets while integrating more […]
FANUC robot pairs hygiene with high performance
To meet the growing demand for food and cleanroom applications, FANUC has unveiled the latest model in its LR Mate industrial robot range. The compact and powerful LR Mate 10-11A Food/Clean has a 10kg payload and is compliant with ISO 4 Class cleanrooms. This makes it ideal for use in highly controlled environments across sectors […]
ChocoMatic comes to life with igus 7th axis
When customers tap a screen to choose their favourite chocolates, Roose Automation’s ‘ChocoMatic’ robot arm travels along a linear track, selects each chocolate, and delivers them without human intervention. Behind this playful, hygienic automation lies a clever piece of engineering: the 7th axis from igus. Roose Automation wanted to give its robot arm the freedom […]
Brillopak and Omron highlight smarter factories
In food produce environments and packhouses, the benefits of automation when it comes to workforce health and safety are uncontended. From eliminating arduous and repetitive tasks to working uninterrupted within inhospitable chilled settings, robots are most certainly the future. Case loading specialist Brillopak and industrial automation pioneer Omron explore how smart robots, hardware and software […]