Amcor Flexibles Cumbria is part of Amcor, the global packaging solutions giant.
Located close to Workington, the Amcor Flexibles Cumbria operation specialises in the production of packaging for the snacks and confectionery markets.
Reels of film weighing up to 800kg arrive at the site where they are printed and cut before being distributed to the production plants of some of the UK’s best selling snacks and confectionery brand manufacturers.
Over 50 reels of film are delivered to Amcor’s Workington facility each day and incoming trailers are unloaded using 2.5 and 1.8 tonne capacity counterbalanced forklift trucks.
The reels arrive on shrink-wrapped pallets which means that special forklift attachments – such as clamps, for example – are not required and allows the reels to be delivered directly to Amcor’s warehouse and put away within the company’s racked storage system by the forklifts quickly and efficiently.
However, a waste reduction study undertaken at the Workington plant highlighted that during the incoming trailer unloading and reel put-away process, packaging film would often be damaged as it was picked up by the forklifts. Quite simply, as the trucks’ forks entered the pallet, the outer layers of film would be forced against the back of the forks or the fork carriage causing an indentation to be made.
Knowing that any such imperfections in the film quality could result in major problems during the printing and cutting process, staff were instructed to remove and dispose of all indented film before a reel was put on to the production machinery.
“We were seeing significant film wastage every week,” explains Production Manager Gary Baker. “Not every reel would be damaged but higher than was acceptable”
To overcome the problem, Jayline Products’ heavy duty load protectors were fitted to the forks of the company’s lift truck fleet.
Made in the UK from heavy duty moulded rubber, Jayline’s Patented protectors fit to the rear face of a forklift truck’s forks and absorb the impact of an incoming load. They provide a cushioned barrier between the load and the back of the forks. As the pallet is picked up, the protector prevents the load from hitting the truck’s forks or the fork carriage with sufficient force to cause damage to the load.
The protectors have completely eliminated the damage. As a result, not only are significant bottom line savings being made but production efficiency has also increased, explained Gary Baker.
Available in a choice of sizes to fit 4” (105mm), 5” (130mm), 6” (160mm) and 8” (200mm) forks, the Jayline protectors are suitable for use with a wide rage of materials handling equipment, including counterbalanced and warehouse trucks.
The load protectors are quickly fitted using a simple yet robust strapping system and their slim profile means that a fork truck’s load handling capacity is not compromised by their use.
Peter Kimberley, Sales and Marketing Director of Jayline Products, comments: “No company that is experiencing stock damage caused by lift trucks picking up palletised loads can afford to overlook the kind of savings that our load protectors offer. In Amcor’s case, the return on investment was virtually instant and the ongoing savings are almost impossible to quantify.”
Jayline Products Ltd
Peter Kimberley
Tel: 01386 854912
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