Success Story ABB GA PRODUCTS SWEDEN
Jani Uutela to the left and Kaspar Müül to the right
The new POWER baler makes a significant difference in the ABB GA Products production facility and the project was appointed ”Improvement of the month in Operations".
ABB GRID AUTOMATION PRODUCTS (ABB GA PRODUCTS) IN VÄSTERÅS, SWEDEN, A DIVISION OF THE ABB GROUP , employs 200 people. ABB GA Products is developing and manufacturing Intelligent Electronic Devices (IEDs) and its Relion® series offers a wide range of products for the protection, control, measurement and supervision of power systems; generation, transmission and sub-transmission of electrical energy.
Kaspar Müül, Production Development Engineer, tells us about the recent investment in the ORWAK POWER baler 3420 for cardboard compaction:
“The main reason for choosing this particular machine was the low sound emission”.
Silent production facility
The production environment is very quiet and it is an important requirement for the selection of new equipment that it contributes to preserve this condition. The baler is strategically located in the production facility close to the assembly lines, where lots of components are unpacked.
Before the investment, the cardboard waste was cut into smaller pieces and removed manually from the production area.
The POWER baler has brought about a significant change. There is no more cutting and folding, which has reduced the risks for injuries when working with knives.
With the baler installed, ABB GA Products produces one or two 400 kg bales per week and the business benefits from increased productivity thanks to less time spent on waste handling. Mr Müül comments:
“Safety is an important aspect and the baler contributes to a safer working environment”.
Baler initiative
rewarded The employee Jani Uutela had worked at ABB GA Products for almost a year when he brought up the initiative to invest in a baler. He was well aware of the advantages of baling material and had positive experience with
an ORWAK baler from a prior working place. Mr Uutela presented his idea to the team and together with Mr Müül, they looked into the cardboard waste handling process. They discovered that the time spent can be significantly reduced by investing in a cardboard baler. Later the investment was recognized as ”the improvement of the month in Operations”.
Eager to get a second baler
The staff was reluctant at first, when it heard about the baler. It was concerned about the potential noise in the quiet environment, but as the POWER machine has low sound emission,the team is very satisfied. Mr Müül explains: “The baler makes work much easier, we are happy with the time saving and we expect the payoff time to be just 1-1.5 years.“
The POWER model 3420 has several great features such as the automatic shutter that opens up after each cycle and the machine has worked perfectly from day one. The sliding door was actually one of the key requirements for choosing this baler, as there is forklift traffic nearby and it is important to avoid the risk of collision between an open door and a forklift.
“The staff in our warehouse was eager to get a baler of its own for incoming goods, so a second baler has just been installed in that building!”
Kaspar Müül, Production Development Engineer at ABB GA Products
