Wawona Case Study | Food & Beverage

Delivering a Streamlined Packing Solution to California Fruit Business

Wawona Packing Company in Cutler, CA is a family owned company that grows, packs, and sells their fruit domestically and overseas. The Wawona label, “Sweet to Eat” is considered one of the top quality labels in the California tree fruit business.

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Business Objectives

Combine 4 pack areas with multiple sizes, types and styles of cartons into one single line
Sort cartons by sizes, grade types, and labels. The goal was 3,000 cartons per hour, or 50 cartons per minute
Protect the fruit from bruising and crushing during sorting process

Key Technologies

Accusort bar code scanner
3 Double-pivot diverters
Belt conveyor system with photo eyes

Results

Speeds through the last merge went from 100 feet per minute to 180 feet per minute
The system has sustained speeds at 3-4 minute intervals of 65-70 cartons per minute with 12" long cartons weighing approximately 25 pounds each. This exceeds the design goal of 50 cartons per minute