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Modular robot for production of Stone Paper Innovative Products.

Background

Europack is a Bulgarian SME that has developed and patented a new type of wicket bag from paper made out of stone, called Stone paper. Stone Paper – paper made from CaCO3, is an ecological and recyclable product with characteristics like resistance to water, acids, moth and insects. The qualities of this product brought the idea to start producing grow tubes for protection of young vines and trees from this material.

Stone Paper grow tubes are sold on the Bulgarian Market, in very limited quantities, after a handmade, labour-intensive production process that decreases the competitiveness of the product and avoids quick replacement of plastic based waste in the agro field, as well as in other commonly plastic-based markets such as packaging.

Challenges

With the collaboration of the artist Isaac Monte and the technical provider Oviso Robotics, Europack Bulgaria aims at introducing automation solutions to the manufacturing process, allowing to achieve innovative stone paper solutions and expand their product portfolio.

The introduction of a collaborative robot will help the planning process and inventory management, contributing to:

  • reduce human error
  • speed up the production process
  • optimize the resources
  • safe interaction with human operator
  • improve the productivity

Expected Impact

The collaboration with automation solutions is expected to:

  • achieve maximum efficiency in a sustainable cost-saving factory
  • increase the production volume in 10 more products per unit of time
  • provide a cleaner and more ergonomic working environment

In addition, converting Europack’s packaging solutions to stone paper will allow to enter new markets by producing other types of products out of Stone Paper, for example flowerpots, stationary, etc., with real benefits for the ecology. The increase in market penetration, expanding to EU markets, together with these newly developed products will, in turn, require additional staff, so more people will be hired and employed as a consequence of the project. 

Video

Information source: betterfactory.eu

Project:

Enterprises:
Europack Bulgaria M EOOD – Manufacturing company (Bulgaria), Isaac Monte B.V. – Artist (Netherlands), and Oviso Robotics SRL – Technology Supplier (Romania)

Sector
Robotics

Keywords
Digital technologies