W.E. Roberts has partnered with ePS Escada to automate its corrugator and streamline its operations by implementing Escada’s Profile and Syncro systems.

The investment has been made by the Northfleet, Kent-based packaging manufacturer with a commitment to reducing its waste and energy consumption while improving its production efficiency. The installation is planned to go live in October.

W.E. Roberts operations director Ben Wilks said: “With a choice of investing in a new corrugator or using our existing machine and enhancing its capabilities with technology, we decided to go the latter route.

“We’d had previous experience with Escada on an older corrugator and knew its benefits, so it was the clear choice to proceed with a proven, trusted method.”

Financial director Richard Puffette added: “At W.E. Roberts, we are committed to driving sustainability and efficiency efforts in our industry.

“We believe that our investment in Escada’s Profile, process control, and Syncro corrugator control solutions will help us achieve these goals while providing our customers with the highest-quality packaging solutions.

“We expect the biggest cost savings to be achieved through the reduced waste and downtime on the machine; we should see increased capacity allowing us to deliver more and faster than before.”

W.E. Roberts said it expects significant improvements in its optimisation efforts by reducing waste and energy consumption on its corrugator, ultimately contributing to a more sustainable future for the business.

Escada Syncro and Profile work harmoniously to synchronise change splicing, minimising production waste, while considering real-time order specifics, adjusting the target speed using its intelligent speed control, helping to reduce downtime and increase throughput on the corrugator.

ePS said customers typically see a 0.5% reduction in corrugator waste and an average run speed increase of up to 25%.

“The team at Escada has demonstrated a clear understanding of our business needs and engaged with us to identify the right solution to meet our needs,” said Wilks.

“In addition to Profile and Syncro, Escada will deploy a bespoke version of Optima, Escada’s roll stock management system, that will integrate with our in-house roll stock software and operate on the roll stands and clamp truck, meaning that we have enhanced visibility of paper consumption, further aiding our lean manufacturing practice.”

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