Turnkey solutions

ITCM provides full ‘turnkey’ production line solutions and system integration services. Strong Project Management is an essential ingredient for success and is central to the way we work at ITCM.

Our machine solutions are often the highest ‘value-added’ process in a production line and for this reason we often assume the role of ‘lead contractor’ and will take on responsibility for the supply and installation of the complete line. Our stage-gate process is applied across the project and may be equally applicable to subcontractors’ equipment as well as our own. We develop full system specifications and sourcing strategies, select suppliers, procure equipment and integrate and test the complete solution in order to achieve a vertical ramp-up curve in production. ITCM then delivers, installs and commissions the complete line, providing training and continuous improvement support for ongoing success.

We have experience integrating a wide variety of machines and equipment.
These include, for example, vibratory bowl feeders directly upstream of our equipment and checkweighers and cartoners at the end of the line. Significant planning and cooperation between vendors ensures a successful ramp-up. Our sister company, Langenpac, who specialise in high-speed cartoners, have partnered with us on many successful start-ups. Our engineers and technicians are familiar with a wide variety of standard production line equipment, including labellers, printers, overwrappers, vertical form fill and seal machines, cappers, palletisers, conveyors and accumulators. We work closely with companies like Marden Edwards, who supply shelf ready packaging, to ensure an understanding of all equipment which we integrate.

Production and packaging line design

We are especially skilled in the design and specification of high-performance production and packaging lines. This includes determining the optimal speed of unit operations and associated buffer requirements to ensure a well-balanced line and to keep the bottleneck process running. ITCM’s powerful ScenarioBase™ toolkit allows us to gather all product variables and production rate requirements and to determine the ideal speeds for various production and packaging equipment. In-line buffer requirements are determined from material replenishment times and machine reliability estimates. These requirements are clearly communicated to vendors and become the basis of the machine specification and performance requirements for the line.

ITCM directly supports Lean Manufacturing and 6-sigma initiatives and our designs provide for optimum flow of materials and information required to keep the line at peak performance. We consider and clearly indicate how operators and materials will move within the production area. We seek to minimise movement of people and materials and to improve reaction time for any stoppages. Safety is a primary concern and our line layouts ensure uncluttered workspaces, ample lighting, and the elimination of other on-the-job hazards.

Process visibility and information flow are vital in manufacturing. Part of operational excellence involves management seeing and understanding the process first-hand. This principle is carefully considered in line design and layout. Ideally the layout will have a single point where one can stand and observe the whole operation. This philosophy drives performance, allowing operators to quickly see line status and react quickly. While our systems are capable of integrating with SCADA systems, our design principles seek to deliver information quickly through simple, visual controls.