Vygon chooses ULMA Packaging to improve the traceability of the packaging process

Vygon: high-tech medical devices

Established in 1962, Vygon has become synonymous with quality and reliability in the field of single-use medical and surgical devices. Vygon designs, manufactures and sells high-tech medical devices for healthcare professionals. It is a global leader in this industry and it provides a wide range of products, organised into five business units for different medical specialties: critical care, obstetrics, neonatal and enteral care, intravascular therapy, cardiovascular surgery and anaesthesia and emergency care.

Product traceability through computer vision

Vygon already had a packaging line, but due to an increase in demand it needed to invest in a new one. The aim of installing this new line was to improve product traceability during the packaging process and to automate the product control and unloading process, thus achieving greater control and quality in the final packaging. To do this, it was necessary to improve product identification and enable automatic product recipe changing.

ULMA Packaging had to comply with the customer's extremely stringent specifications to meet its requirements. The main technological innovation featured in the project is the use of computer vision for product traceability control, with an unloading collaborative robot included at the end of the line for any packaging that does not meet the quality requirements.

Another key feature that was successfully delivered was synchronisation between the thermoforming machine and all of the peripherals on the packaging line.

The healthcare industry: a sector with stringent requirements

The healthcare industry requires special specifications in order to meet its stringent requirements, such as specific configurations to allow machines to operate in an ISO 8 class cleanroom, moulds designed to enable even temperature control on hot plates, a packaging design that ensures optimal quality (film thickness, transparency, ease of handling, sealing, cut quality) and identification. They also wanted this machine to have an ergonomic design, with the critical components being calibrated and certified, as well as an OEE of 98.5% and product management and traceability (label printing, coding, etc.).

In this case, ULMA Packaging was able to tailor the equipment to meet Vygon's needs, promptly delivering the solutions that it needed and being proactive with any additional requirements that arose during the pre-sales process.

The completed installation was a complete success, giving us the satisfaction of delivering a state-of-the-art line to a customer to whom ULMA Packaging has supplied various machines in recent years.

One step further in our ongoing development of packaging lines, meeting the needs of an ever-evolving market.