A family-run business that makes quality potato chips has been able to leverage automation to fulfill the ever-increasing demand for its goods with the installation of a custom Ishida full snacks packaging line.

In 2006, Fairfields Farm, which is owned and operated by the Strathern family, started producing potato chips from potatoes that were cultivated on the property. Since then, the brand has grown steadily, selling chips to a wide range of food-service and specialty retail shops throughout the UK, thanks to a meticulous dedication to quality in both potato selection and production procedures.

In addition to differentiating the brand from its supermarket-providing rivals, Fairfields Farm’s specialized focus on independent merchants has contributed to its ongoing success, as seen by its recent sales volume gain of more than 40% over the previous year.

As a result, the business approached Ishida about installing a new automated packaging line to supplement its current one, which had grown too labor-intensive and sluggish to meet the rising demands of production.

The long-standing reputation of Fairfields Farm for quality and service was the primary factor in the decision to use Ishida for the project.

“Quality is central to every stage of our production – from the potatoes we choose for our [potato] chips to the machines on our lines. I was aware of Ishida and its capabilities from my 30 years of food production experience, so when it came to selecting a supplier, they were our clear choice. The aftercare provided by Ishida was also a major contributing factor. Ishida offers a level of support that its competitors simply do not. As an example, we needed an urgent replacement belt on the line and Ishida was able to deliver the part on the same day,” Simon Heard, the company’s Operations Director explained.

Old and New Together

The production plant at Fairfields Farm had limited space, thus the line’s small footprint was an additional advantage.

The entire Ishida packaging line now operates in tandem with an older line that consists of a multihead weigher, a bagmaker, and manual case packing. The older line mostly handles bigger pack sizes where line speed is less important.

Installed in February 2022 at the Fairfields Farm manufacturing plant, the new fully automated Ishida line includes an RV series 14-head multihead weigher, INSPIRA bagmaker, sealtester, checkweigher, and the ACP-711 Automatic Casepacker.

The organization has experienced a notable boost in output, improved quality control, and more effective workforce deployment since installing the automation.

The new Ishida multihead weigher and bagmaker combo increases speed by 50% and can handle bag sizes ranging from 25g to 150g at a rate of 120 packs per minute. Since a single potato chip may weigh up to 1.3g, the precision of the weight measurement is within 4% of the ideal goal weight, greatly reducing product giveaways on the most popular 40g size.

One of the major benefits of the Ishida casepacker is its ability to keep up with the fast pace of the rest of the line. And as an automated operation, this has enabled factory personnel to be re-utilized elsewhere.

“With manual casepacking, we would typically have two or three people at the end of the line. With the installation of the Ishida ACP casepacker, these workers were freed up which made the addition of an extra shift to meet the increased demand that much easier,” Heard added.

Fast changeovers are a further advantage of the Ishida equipment. For example, easy removal of the hoppers on the CCW-RV-214 facilitates fast cleaning of the weigher during flavor changes, while the casepacker can be quickly switched between case formats at the touch of a button.

Fairfields Farm’s commitment to quality has been further enhanced by the addition of the Ishida seal tester and checkweigher, ensuring that any out-of-spec packs are rejected from the line. The seal tester can also measure and feedback air-fill data directly to the bagmaker, allowing automatic adjustment of the bagmaker operation to maintain a constant pack thickness, which ensures a smoother and more efficient case packing operation.

The ease of set-up, changeovers, and user-friendliness of the Ishida systems are further advantages, with Simon highlighting the simplicity of the INSPIRA’s operation as a particular example.

“The INSPIRA’s screen is clear and makes it easy to understand any issues that arise and how to solve them. That and the combination of different languages available on the display aids the rapid training of a diverse range of staff,” he concluded.

The complete packing line at Fairfields Farm is at the heart of the company’s five-year expansion plan and the company expects to see a return on investment within two and a half years.