The text outlines a detailed plan for upgrading and running a packaging machine, focusing on equipment needs, labor staffing, and timing. It begins with an assessment of the current packaging machine, suggesting possible upgrades like replacing nozzles and modifying equipment for different packaging types.
Action items –
Create process costs spreadsheet – Jeff
Staffing plan
costs
Start-up machine and review what is needed for our packaging - Brian and Don
Find out what is required to become qualified to be a USDA Grader – Jeff
Equipment upgrade and costs – Brian
Replace nozzles
Stainless steel alteration to the end packaging of trays – est $300
Warm tray washing station, storage and covering of washed trays
Chlorination process
Blow dry equipment and installation
Magnet
Labor to design, install and upgrade
Action Items
Labor Staffing
1. Need to have a BerriProducts supervisor who speaks Spanish and it would be good if they could drive a forklift and USDA grade the berries. Grading is one sample per pallet.
2. Loading the machine - One person
3. Sorting and visual inspection – Four people
4. Packaging at the end of the line – Two people
5. Forklift and help on loading – One person (could be supervisor?)
6. Clean up after processing run – Two people 2 hours
7. Packaging berries once they are frozen to boxes – Four people
8. Don has had some of his hand berry pickers used on the packaging processing crew in the past and thinks he can make that work again. In this way they get more hours of work. BerriProducts needs to take responsibility for this process and have a Supervisor that can manage it.
Equipment upgrade costs
Packaging Machine
1. Don to run when Brian is out at the farm and maybe we will find more that needs to be done
2. Probably need to replace the nozzles to get a finer mist
3. Chlorination process and equipment?
4. Blow dry – need to engineer, select equipment and outfit to line
5. Packaging at the end of the line is currently for packing barrels and would need to be changed for trays. Don estimates $300 in labor and stainless steel
6. Would be good to check out the effectiveness of magnet over the sorting tray to pick up nails etc…
Other
1. Goal is to freeze the berries the same day as they are picked
2. Consider a hot water wash for the trays and something to keep them from the elements once washed.
Timing
Timing
1. Berries are generally picked in the morning
2. Late morning - Could have Supervisor and crew of 4 package frozen berries from trays to boxes
3. Start the full crew at 1:00 on the packaging machine
4. Run the berries from the cooler (Yesterday’s), then Corbett current day’s picking, then Sandy and then the coast (we need to maintain lot tracking integrity)
5. Need Supervisor and two for machine clean-up for two hours
Berry Process flow
1. Berries go from the mechanical picker to plastic trays to flats. 80 flats per pallet with average of 800 pounds of berries in a pallet. Forklift takes the full pallet to the cooler at the field from the mechanical picker
2. Berries are trucked to Corbett Farm cooler for storage from Sandy and the Coast fields
3. Berries are taken from the cooler by the pallet on forklift to packaging machine
4. Packaging and cleaning machine
a. Input berries from the trays to the machine. Typical processing is ½ hour to one hour per pallet.
b. Blower to dislodge leafs and bugs
c. Washed
d. Sorted and visually inspected
e. Magnet?
f. Blow dry
g. Packaged into clean trays for freezing
h. Trays loaded to a pallet
5. Forklift pallet of trays to blast freezer for overnight freeze
6. Forklift pallet trays of frozen berries from blast freezer for packaging into boxes
7. Package frozen berries into boxes and onto to pallet
8. Forklift pallet of boxes to regular freezer
9. Once > 6-8 pallets of boxed frozen berries we can ship to Townsend for cold storage. Sturms has a driver that takes other berries to Townsend that can take our berries.
10. Clean trays process
