Cause and effect situations are prevalent on product lines in beverage manufacturing plants. Just as a jam upstream can cause proliferation of product downstream, palletizing equipment has been affected by industry trends toward higher line speeds and lighter packages, which has influenced new advancements.

“The demands for flexibility and sustainability continue to expand,” says Ted Yeigh, sales director at Columbia Machine, Vancouver, Wash. “Gentle product handling is still a growing trend with packaging in general. Therefore, product protection is reduced because there’s less material around it, so gentle handling becomes even more important.”