Intelligent Material Handling
Flexible Product Conveyor with Integrated Marking
A 6-zone MDR conveyor with an integrated printed label applicator, running 50 boxes per minute, delivered in 30 days.
CLIENT
INDUSTRY
SOLUTION
DURATION
The Challenge
A packaging line at a consumer products plant was running on an aging conveyor that was worn, hard to keep clean and difficult to adjust between box sizes. Every box also needed a printed label applied in line. The plant needed a replacement that fit the existing line footprint and heights, kept pace at 50 boxes per minute, and met the customer’s corporate standards for safety, hygienic design and acceptance testing, and it needed it in 30 days.
Key Requirements
- Drop-in replacement for the existing line conveyor
- Integrate a printed label applicator in line
- Handle 50 boxes per minute
- Adjust for different box sizes
- Meet the customer’s hygienic and safety design standards
- Complete in 30 days
The ICR Solution
ICR designed and built a flexible product conveyor on motor-driven rollers (MDR) with a printed label applicator integrated into the line. The 120 in conveyor is split into six independently controlled zones, with nine MDR drive rollers and linked slave rollers, run by zone controller cards from a 24 VDC panel. Zoning spaces and presents each box to the applicator at a steady 50 boxes per minute. 304 stainless side rails and adjustable guide rails set the lane for each box size, and new belt guards close off every pinch point. The design followed the customer’s mechanical, hygienic, safety and electrical standards, and ICR delivered and installed it within 30 days.
Equipment & Technology
- 120 in, 6-zone MDR roller conveyor
- Integrated printed label applicator
- 9 MDR drive rollers with linked slave rollers
- Itoh Denki MDR zone controller cards
- 304 stainless steel side rails
- Adjustable guide rails for box size changeover
- New belt and pinch-point guards, 24 VDC control panel
Scope of Work
- Up-Front Engineering
- Mechanical Design
- Fabrication
- Controls Design
- Panel Build
- Programming
- Delivery
- Installation
Results
ICR completed the project in 30 days, and the line now labels every box in motion at 50 boxes per minute. Zero-pressure MDR zones space each box for a clean label placement, guide rails adjust quickly for each box size, and stainless rails and new guards meet the plant’s hygiene and safety requirements. The drop-in design matched existing line heights, so the new conveyor went straight into production.