Client: Scandinavian Tobacco Group / Distributor: Hassing Gruppen

Robot makes packing more efficient

Scandinavian Tobacco Group continually optimises its production of pipe tobacco in order to ensure a good working environment and competitive production. The tobacco giant recently selected a robot from Universal Robots for a task which no other robots on the market are able to perform.

The world’s largest factory for pipe tobacco production uses technology from Universal Robots to spare its employees from having to make back-breaking repeated movements. A robot has taken over the handling of lids for tobacco tins in a setup where tobacco is packed.

“The setup has freed 1 or 2 people that previously performed the tasks by hand. They now carry out other tasks at the factory, which means we don’t have to spend as much on temporary employees,” explains Henning Kristensen, a line manager at Scandinavian Tobacco Group.

There was no room to screen off the robot in the setup at the factory.

“We ended up choosing Universal Robots because their robots are the only ones approved for operation without screening. This has simplified the setup and costs significantly,” says Henning Kristensen.

The factory is located in Assens in Denmark.

“We must ensure that our owners still believe it’s worthwhile to produce pipe tobacco here. That’s why we are constantly optimising our processes,” says Henning Kristensen.

Good to be self-reliant 

As far as Scandinavian Tobacco Group is concerned, it’s crucial for the factory to have the resources in place to manage its own machinery.

“Most people surely know the situation where things break down just when the programmer has left for the day. This is why we want to keep know-how within the building so that we can ensure high uptime and avoid having to pay for expensive external consultants. One of our own technicians has programmed the robot from Universal Robots himself and the gripping tools have been designed by our own technicians as well,” says Henning Kristensen.