Labor-intensive processes like manual palletizing pose challenges, particularly in the beverage industry, where product weight and repetitive tasks can lead to ergonomic strain for workers palletizing six-bottle boxes, each weighing 24 pounds. 

“We decided to automate this physically demanding task to enhance efficiency and prevent potential physical complaints over time,” says Jan Eijsermans, commercial director at Schrobbelèr B.V., a Dutch herbal liqueur manufacturer.  

Schrobbelèr faces challenges that are familiar across the food and beverage industry, including changing consumer preferences, increasing demand for diverse products, and heightened competition. Automating labor-intensive processes such as palletizing helps reduce productivity bottlenecks and protects workers from the physical strain of handling heavy beverages, while freeing them for more valuable tasks. 

But for companies with limited automation skills in-house, palletizing systems can be complex to program and use. And once deployed, they can’t be easily redeployed for new products or palletizing formats without ongoing integration costs.

The Dutch distiller chose the MoveComponents palletizing system because of its competitive pricing and easy approach. 

“Thanks to the OnRobot D:PLOY platform installation was seamless — it only took us a day, and we were able to implement it during active production without any disruptions,” Eijsermans says.

Schrobbelèr turned to Just Automate, a local automation integrator and OnRobot partner, and selected the MoveComponents palletizing system. The MoveComponents palletizer offers powerful performance at a fixed, affordable price, and features ease-of-use and flexible, fast, in-house redeployment for product or palletizing changes. 

The MoveComponents system is a complete Off-The-Shelf solution powered by D:PLOY, a revolutionary automation platform that powers off-the-shelf robotic systems designed for specific high-demand and high-mix applications. 

Just Automate was able to use D:PLOY to quickly and cost-effectively develop the MoveComponents system with all the key features its customers need. As an Off-The-Shelf solution, the MoveComponents palletizer was available to Schrobbelèr for immediate delivery with full price transparency, without concerns of ongoing (and unbudgeted) integration costs.

“Right from the start, everything was clear and straightforward,” Eijsermans says. “We got detailed technical specs for the entire solution, a full list of components, and a simple, no-surprises price. It made the whole process easy to understand and gave us confidence in what we were getting.”

With a maximum payload of 16 kg for product and gripper, and maximum throughput of ±eight cycles a minute, the MoveComponents Cobot Palletizer effectively meets Schrobbelèr’s production demands. Its compact design requires minimal floor space, and it offers a stacking height up to ±2.400mm (94.5 inches).

One of the benefits of the MoveComponents solution is its rapid and hassle-free installation and quick adaptation by the Schrobbelèr team. 

“Our liquor comes in various bottle sizes, and I manage the palletizing system entirely on my own,” Eijsermans explains. “I don’t have a technical background, so having an easy-to-use solution was crucial for us; the palletizing system, powered by OnRobot’s D:PLOY platform is incredibly straightforward and intuitive. It allows me to independently redeploy the system whenever we switch to new bottle sizes in production.”

By automating the palletizing operations, Schrobbelèr has significantly improved efficiency, reduced worker strain, and laid the foundation for future expansion, the company says. The flexibility of the MoveComponents palletizer allows the company to adapt quickly to evolving production needs. It can handle different types of products, such as cardboard boxes, open boxes, trays, and sealed products.

The MoveComponents system not only met Schrobbelèr’s immediate needs but also empowered the company to plan for a scalable future, ensuring that its production can grow alongside demand while staying true to its heritage, the company says. For a business like Schrobbelèr, finding this complete, ready-to-use automation solution has been transformative. It demonstrates that even traditional companies can embrace modern automation to thrive while maintaining control over their processes.

 “We’re planning to expand the application to accommodate our new production line at the back of the hall,” Eijsermans says. “The solution powered by D:PLOY has given us the confidence to scale up efficiently. As we introduce additional products for palletizing, we’ll be able to redeploy and adapt the solution seamlessly.”