The Solution to Unlocking the Future of Cases24

Cases24 is a manufacturer of high-volume glued cases and is the first-choice supplier of volume glued cases to the trade. Through strength of relationships and customer opinion, the low cost producer has consistently grown year on year. To match the growth demand challenge set by customers and remove obstacles to capacity limits, has required a sustained focus on improving efficiencies throughout the process. 

Noticeably, the palletisation and strapping process was causing a pinch point within the process. With the support of controlled movement experts Dücker, a solution for increased throughput, allowing the casemakers to stretch their already world record breaking outputs was found.

Phase One of the solution, was not straightforward; dubbed as Project Fox. It involved redirecting all palletised cases flowing in the opposite direction, a casemaker, strapper & stretchwrapper relocation, an extension to the building and a reorientation of strapping and loading. The significance of the site changes was not underestimated. A lean process flow and future development of the site were at the heart of the project objectives and kept the project team focused throughout.  

Reflecting on the changes, Alex Morris Managing Director – Cases24 “Suffering uptime losses due to the palletisation process does not fit with our efficient, lean approach and a solution had to be found. Numerous plans were considered and rather than considering the immediate issue we had to consider our future and what best enabled the low cost, volume converted product approach we have always sought. This involved considering what we want the Coalville site to look like in 3-, 5- and 10-years’ time.;

It has not only taken the hard work of those within the business, but over 100 contractors, comprised of 17 different contracting firms to accomplish this. Dücker, one of the market leaders in the field of conveyor technology and internal logistics for the corrugated cardboard industry have been an integral part to his project.

The largest investment in the project was the installation of hundreds of meters of new state of the art conveyor system; from the market leaders: Dücker group with a high-speed double pallet inserter and an equally swift palletising robot. Additional investments have included, a Mosca SoniXs KCR-131-32 strapper / pallet press and a Mosca U-ATRI bundle strapper to replace a 12-year-old Casemaker 1. This year, further developments will involve full automation of pallet shrouding and labelling.

Edward Scobie was the Project Manager for Project Fox and encountered many challenges along the way, “A major installation in a working factory with an international group of contractors was always going to be a challenge, coupled with the impact of the pandemic, it was multiplied. Fortunately, the Board24 team and the contractors overcame the issues better than could have been expected. The installation has already delivered the production results expected from the investment.

These efforts seek to reduce line stoppages down to zero and full automation on the material handling system. These changes will allow Board24 to further increase their service offering to their valued customers, by liberating equipment availability and releasing time to focus on maintaining their high-quality standards. 

Keen to see productivity gains across the group, Dominic Drew, Board24 MD recalls “A priority for the Coalville team was to resolve the limits caused by the palletisation layout and ensure all casemakers could run unencumbered by unnecessary downtime. It was also important to look at further phases of development for the site to meet customer demand and efficient process flow. We look forward to unlocking the potential of the site and provide our customer base with market leading service.