When I walked into the workshop, I always saw Xiao Wang from the technical department squatting in front of the intelligent packaging machine with a tablet to debug parameters. This "big guy" that just completed the upgrade last month can now not only automatically identify the packaging size, but also synchronize order data through the Internet of Things system, and its efficiency is a full 40% higher than that of traditional models. In the words of the workshop director Lao Zhang: "This is not a machine, it is clearly a 24-hour "intelligent supervisor"!"
The packaging machinery industry is undergoing an unprecedented intelligent transformation. According to statistics from the industry association, in the past three years, the proportion of enterprises that have implemented automation upgrades nationwide in the packaging machinery field has exceeded 25%. The filling line that once required three people to collaborate can now be covered by a smart packaging machine for the entire process of weighing, sealing, and labeling. What's even more amazing is that it can also predict equipment failures through sensors and push maintenance reminders to mobile phones three days in advance - this "foreseeing" ability makes Lao Zhao from the maintenance team say "I've never seen it before".
At the ply-pack R&D center, engineers are busy implanting a "digital brain" into the new generation of intelligent packaging machines. Project leader Li Gong showed the newly completed prototype: "After being equipped with an AI visual system, it can identify packaging defects like a human, with an accuracy of 0.1 mm." This means that the links that used to require manual sampling are now all done by machines. After a trial, a food company reported that the product qualification rate jumped from 92% to 98.5%, and the annual reduction in losses was enough to purchase a whole set of new equipment.
Intelligent upgrades bring not only an efficiency revolution, but also a subversion of the business model. The five intelligent packaging machines recently ordered by an e-commerce customer are all equipped with cloud data dashboards. The warehouse manager can monitor the packaging progress of the national warehouses while sitting in the office, and even the consumables inventory warning can be pushed in real time. "It used to take three days to do the monthly inventory, but now the system automatically generates reports, and the time saved is enough to open up two new markets." The customer admitted in the follow-up visit.
Of course, intelligent transformation is not achieved overnight. In the consultations recently received by the procurement department, many companies are still struggling with the issue of "upgrade costs". In this regard, the financial director made a detailed account: although the initial investment of the intelligent packaging machine is high, the manpower, energy consumption and maintenance costs saved in the three-year cycle are enough to cover the price difference of the equipment. More importantly, during the peak order period, when traditional equipment needs to recruit temporary workers, the intelligent packaging machine can maintain zero error and continuous operation.
Standing in the center of the workshop, watching the rows of silver-gray intelligent packaging machines working in an orderly manner, I suddenly understood what Lao Zhang often said: "Machines will not complain of tiredness, but they will create value for people." When the industry is still debating whether "machines replacing people" is worthwhile, ply-pack has given the answer with data-this "iron partner" that handles tens of thousands of packages every day is using code and algorithms to write the future history of the packaging machinery industry.
