Cermex unveils advanced product selection and batch prep system

The France-based company said its ProSelex equipment will ensure high levels of efficiency in case packing across the food, beverage and personal care sectors. It is able to cope with all conveyable goods whatever their rigidity or thickness and can be integrated into gantry or robot packers as well as multifunction case packers, said Cermex.

The patented system “has proved its efficiency for all types of secondary packaging – ​RSC​, wrap around blanks or trays – for both side and top applications”,​ said the company in a statement to FoodProductionDaily.com.

Servo drive​

The system consists of a servo-driven comb that moves at high speed on two axes. This forms continuous product batches on the conveyor line. Products are spaced out thanks to servo-driven, adjustable lateral bands that can be altered to meet the needs of differing outputs. This eliminates accumulation to ensure “total product protection without rubbing or dividing”,​ said the company.

Cermex said its new module marks an advance over turning and spacing systems using scrolls. The ProSelex is cheaper, less cumbersome and easier to manoeuvre during format changeovers compared to such equipment, said the company. It is also fast with a capacity of 250 products per minute (ppm). This can be boosted to 300 ppm with the addition of the company’s Electronic Phaser which pre-collects several products in the same bucket.

Innovations​

ProSelex offers a range of innovations that means products are processed accurately and without jamming. The system has a smaller footprint as it eliminates the need for scrolls for orientation and spacing and offers more a compact storage rack. It also boasts a space-saving layout compared to a collating system with lanes because it does away with lane dividers and accumulation conveyors.

Ease of changeover is boosted as only the comb and counter comb – each weighing less than 3kg – need switching. Furthermore, only the spacing bands and product transfer guide need to be adjusted. An ergonomic design also aids in confining format changeovers to two minutes, said Cermex.

Cermex said it road-tested the system with nine separate customer configurations, whose positive feedback has prompted the company to launch a wide-scale roll out.