Eqraft® is known for their state-of-the-art machines and software solutions for smart factories that process onions, potatoes and bulk products.
Their automatic grading and packing machines are popular, but future-forward factory owners are now asking for fully automated bin handling as well. That's why Eqraft introduces a series of machines to improve internal logistics.
Owners of agri factories worldwide are struggling with rising costs of manual labour and increasingly strict food safety and health regulations. That's why Eqraft focuses on developing machines and software that enable their clients to get the job done with fewer workers and less stress. The more manual labour is eliminated from a production line and replaced by sturdy machines and smart technology, the more accurate, safe and reliable the process becomes.
This goes for the sorting process – the human eye can never grade onions as accurately and consistently as Eqraft's electronic grader, that can even detect rot on the inside – but also for the internal logistics of a factory.
A lot can go wrong when boxes and crates are moved between one process and another with forklifts. Furthermore, high forklift traffic results in a dirtier, dustier factory floor. That's why future-forward entrepreneurs are now moving towards fully automated factories in which forklift movements are replaced by automatic bin handling solutions.
"We noticed there was a demand for sturdy bin handling solutions that seamlessly fit in with our other machines," says Leon Vaandrager, Teamlead Mechanical Engineering and R&D at Eqraft. Together with his colleagues, he develops projects for clients all over the world. The first time he noticed the need for an integrated bin handling solution was when working on MSP Onions, a fully-automated onion processing plant in the Netherlands that has become an international example for the factory of the future. "I saw what a big difference automated internal logistics could make: it enables a continuous production process with fewer errors and damage."
When working on a project for Onions Etc, a California-based grower-shipper of several agricultural products, the client wanted a bin handling solution with his new packing line. "We designed different machines to bring bins and boxes from A to B: from bin roller tracks to transport them in a straight line to a bin turn table that turns them ninety degrees. Thanks to this solution, forklifts between one stage of the process and the other are no longer needed," explains Leon. 
After Onions Etcetera, US-based clients such as Blue Sky Management (WA) and Bybee Produce (WA) have also opted for automated internal logistics. "So far, these clients chose to automate the logistics at the grading stage in their factories, but bin handling can be applied at any point in a production line, from reception and grading to packing," says Leon.
For more information:
Eqraft
Tel.: +31 527 256 130
[email protected]
www.eqraft.nl