Konica Minolta & Kinrise Snackfoods automate manufacturing

Konica Minolta Australia has partnered with Kinrise Snackfoods to automate and improve manufacturing efficiency using Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs). This collaboration signifies the growing impact of automation technology in the manufacturing sector, with Konica Minolta providing a comprehensive suite of solutions, including autonomous charging stations, fleet management software, and data-driven performance analytics.

Kinrise Snackfoods, a prominent Australian food manufacturer, has integrated four AMRs from Mobile Industrial Robots across its manufacturing facility through Konica Minolta Australia, its distributor in the region. This deployment aims to streamline and automate the pallet handling process, thus reducing manual intervention and enhancing operational efficiency and safety.

The AMRs are designed to seamlessly transport full pallets from palletising robot cells to the hood wrapper and return empty pallets from an auto de-stacker back to the palletising cells. This end-to-end process is intended to improve productivity and operational oversight.

The implementation includes MiRcharge, an autonomous charging station, and MiR Fleet, a fleet management software that orchestrates job distribution, traffic management, and automatic charging among the AMRs. Additionally, Konica Minolta’s proprietary AMR analytics software, sConnect, allows Kinrise Snackfoods to access vital data and performance metrics such as utilisation rates, charging performance, location heatmaps, and operational reports.

Operating 24 hours a day, six days a week, these AMRs handle hundreds of pallets daily and have traversed tens of thousands of kilometres within the facility. Kathy Gavrilidis, Head of Operations at Kinrise Snackfoods, noted the marked improvements, stating, "The implementation of MiR robots at Kinrise Snackfoods facility has given us greater productivity, greater operational efficiency, and improved our safety overall on our site. It has really been a valuable investment for Kinrise Snackfoods."

Manglesh Jain, Robotics Business Manager at Konica Minolta Australia, highlighted the benefits of the partnership, saying, "Konica Minolta Australia's partnership with Kinrise Snackfoods demonstrates the value of automation in achieving manufacturing efficiency. The integration of AMRs with existing systems, such as palletising robot cells and hood wrappers, gives Kinrise Snackfoods a comprehensive solution that streamlines its intralogistics operations while prioritising safety and operational efficiency."

Kathy Gavrilidis also praised the user-friendly nature of the solutions, stating, "The solution's intuitive interface and ease of use let Kinrise Snackfoods manage these AMRs with existing staff. Working with Konica Minolta Australia for this project has transformed our manufacturing processes, streamlining operations while improving our working environment."

Dev Mali, National Capital Program Manager at Kinrise, commended the pre-simulation efforts and ongoing support from Konica Minolta Australia, describing the team's professionalism and supportive approach as unparalleled.