Ancor Information Technology has been preparing
labels for an automotive company for the past 25
years. The labels sizes range from the well
know “window sticker” shown here to about 2
inch by 1 inch. Prior to Patti Engineering’s
involvement, all of the labels were inserted into an
envelope by hand.
Besides the labor savings, Ancor was seeking an
automated solution to satisfy a customer
requirement. They were being asked to provide 100%
verification that the label packets were correct.
Improper labels cause a delay in vehicle
assembly. This delay creates cost by moving the
vehicle off line, applying the correct labels, and moving
the vehicle back. The verification was being done
manually by an additional person.
Ancor had been looking for an automated solution for
some time. Most major vendors of this type of
equipment were not interested in the project because
of the large label size. Ancor, Patti Engineering, and
equipment supplier, Kepes, began a project to
automate the process in late 2005. Challenges to
completing the project included:
- Using a file broadcast from the end customer to
determine envelope contents
- Based on that broadcast, only feeding the required
labels
- Scanning each label to ensure that the information
matches the requirement
- Stuffing various sized labels into one envelope
- Doing all this at a rate of about 3,000 envelopes
per hour
Patti Engineering, Kepes, and Ancor worked together
for several months to define a solution. The final
machine met all the requirements and is simple for
Ancor to operate. Click
here to see the machine in action and to hear Ancor's
comments.
