Fleetguard Case Study

Project Overview:

An industrial oil filter manufacturer requiring packaging for over 100 SKU's turns to Pro Mach for end of line automation.

About The Customer:

Fleetguard, Inc. is the leading worldwide designer and manufacturer of filtration products and exhaust systems for heavy-duty diesel powered equipment covering a wide variety of applications and markets, including: heavy, medium and light-duty trucks, industrial equipment for construction, mining, agriculture, marine applications and power generation.

The Customer Challenge:

Fleetguard manufactures a wide range of industrial filters for hundreds of global OEMs and other end users which have specific requirements. The industrial filters being packaged range in height from 6 to 12 inches, in diameter from 3.8 to 4.7 inches, and in weight from an average of 2 to 5.3 pounds per filter. Once the filters come off the production line, they are either case or bulk packed and require a nesting pattern of packaging so that the filter seams will stack uniformly without damaging the seam or filter. However, it is not cost-effective to invest in a dedicated packaging line for each product or size.

Fleetguard needed a comprehensive end-of-line packaging system that could manage more than 100 different SKUs in a timely, cost effective manner. If possible, they also wanted an integrated solution from a single provider that could be installed all at one time. Space constraints also limited the amount of square footage that could be dedicated to a new automated end-of-line packaging system.

The Pro Mach Solution:

Brenton Engineering, a division of Pro Mach's End-Of-Line packaging unit, designed an automated robotic packaging cell capable of both case and loose bulk packing out of the same automated packaging cell. The system integrates several pieces of equipment from Brenton, and other divisions of Pro Mach including Wexxar, Belcor and ID Technology. Using the space formerly occupied by just one manual case erector and one manual case sealer, the new automated packaging cell uses a robotic arm to either palletize cases or create tiers of bulk packs at speeds of 50 products per minute. Simultaneously, an additional robotic arm case packs 8.3 cases per minute.

Pro Mach Machinery Involved:

Customer Testimonial:

"Only Brenton offered us a comprehensive, integrated system, and proposed to provide all the components either through Brenton or other divisions of Pro Mach, Inc. The competitors came back with a piece here and there, but never a complete solution, and their quotations looked standard, not personalized to meet our specific requirements. It was extremely convenient to work with one trained professional who interceded on our behalf for the integration and installation of all the components of the system."

"Overall Fleetguard is very satisfied with its Pro Mach experience. From their excellent attention to detail and asking the right questions during site visits, to the well organized presentations and plans, and the willingness of the Pro Mach team to help with all the issues and problems we had to overcome to make the system work. The benefits of the system to us are, capacity, automation, safety, space maximization and return on investment. The Pro Mach system has the potential to increase line speed from 23 filters per minute to 50 filters per minute allowing us to box out at double our current capacity. We are projecting an estimated $150,000 to $250,000 in cost savings per year with an estimated payback in two years based on the ergonomic and labor savings only, the productivity increase is an additional financial benefit. For all these reasons, Fleetguard is considering another Pro Mach line in the same facility, and possibly other manufacturing plants worldwide."

- Phillip R. Bryant, Fleetguard Six Sigma Black Belt Engineer