Case Studies

In an effort to recover its declining herbal shampoo/conditioner business, Alberto-Culver, maker of Alberto VO5 products, decided to modernize and “naturalize” its outdated bottles.

Already a success in the United Kingdom, Smirnoff Ice from Guinness Bass Import and United Distillers & Vintners, Stamford, CT, began rolling out in February in the United States and Canada. Called an “alco-pop,” the five-percent-proof citrus-flavored malt beverage comes in a 12-oz glass bottle with decorating reminiscent of bottles for Smirnoff’s vodka. The product is being offered exclusively for on-premise consumption in bars, restaurants, pubs and clubs.

Seagate serves two customer ‘streams’

A robot at Schroeder Milk palletizes cases from three lines in up to three different configurations at a time using specialized tooling to handle cases, pallets or slipsheets. System replaces manual palletization.

Tokyo-based cosmetics giant Kosé installs two modular, quick-change bottling lines versatile enough to handle nearly 100 different bottle shapes and sizes.

Custom look makes the difference

Filling, capping and labeling jars of honey by hand was too slow at this Arizona honey maker, especially with new markets on the horizon. Automated machinery was the answer