Global Depalletizer Market Growing; Ska Fabricating To Showcase Depalletizers At Pack Expo International
Ska Fabricating offers one of the world’s largest selections of depalletizer and repalletizer products— aided by the acquisition of GR-X Manufacturing earlier this year— that can be customized to support automation across industries.
CHICAGO, IL— Ska Fabricating will showcase the International Microbus and the Full Height Automatic (FHA) 3000 Depalletizer with Industrial S-Grip lowerator at Pack Expo International, one of the largest gatherings in the packaging community offering packaging and processing solutions for every industry, in October 2022.
Market researchers predict the global depalletizer market is anticipated to rise at a considerable rate between now and 2028. Ska Fabricating offers one of the world’s largest selections of depalletizer and repalletizer products— aided by the acquisition of GR-X Manufacturing earlier this year— that can be customized to support automation across industries.
Ska Fabricating released the original version of the Microbus depalletizer earlier this year in the United States and Canada, and will now offer an international configuration capable of handling six of the world’s common pallet sizes. The International Microbus (left photo above) uses a hand crank or hand-held drill to raise the Pallet Lift Carriage until a layer of containers is level with the Deadplate. Then a belt-driven actuator (sweep) pushes the layer onto the 44” OD (Orbital Discharge) Rotary Table, which accumulates the containers, aligns them and feeds them into a Rinse Cage. Both the rotary infeed table and the automated sweep can be folded away, further reducing this already small machine's footprint on the production floor. Get more information about this innovative multi-pallet depalletizer here.
Also on display at this trade show will be the Full Height Automatic (FHA 3000) Depalletizer (right photo above). This machine is designed to support flexible configurations using its multiple discharge, decline, and pallet loading conveyor options, allowing it to be tailored to customer-specific requirements. The FHA 3000 was engineered with the flexibility to unload a wide range of container types including plastic containers, aluminum cans, or fiberboard tubes, among others, with a lift capacity up to 1,000 lbs. The FHA 3000 will be showcased alongside the Industrial S-Style Side-Grip Lowerator which offers customers tool-less adjustability during product changeovers and a small footprint, saving valuable floor space. Find more details about this versatile depalletizer here.
Press assets for both machines are available here.
Find Ska Fabricating in booth location LU-7657 at Pack Expo International at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois from October 23-26, 2022.
Contact Elise Wright, Manager of Marketing and Events for Ska Fabricating, if you would like to connect with Ska Fabricating during the show: ewright@skafabricating.com. Media inquiring about Ska Fabricating can contact Emily Hutto at hutto@radcraftbeer.com.
ABOUT SKA FABRICATING
Ska Fabricating builds heavy-duty, automated packaging line equipment that is hand-crafted to make life easier for businesses that rely on their packaging lines. Ska Fab specializes in depalletizers, palletizers, custom conveyance systems, rinsing, drying, automated fill level detection and rejection, and date coding products. A team of skilled engineers handles every project with care, creating customized layouts and ensuring customers receive the absolute best outcomes for their production goals, space, and budget.
With the acquisition of GR-X Manufacturing, Ska Fab has expanded their capabilities for nearly all facets and verticals of the packaging market, including an even wider range of industries, container types, and line speeds.
Ska Fab’s customers receive on-time deliveries of the highest quality, most reliable products on the market. With 10+ years of experience and thousands of happy customers across the globe, Ska Fab is dedicated to helping businesses of all sizes meet their high standards of quality and get their products packaged and onto the shelves. Find Ska Fab online at skafabricating.com.
Ska Fabricating Launches International Microbus
The world's smallest footprint semi-automated depalletizer from Ska Fabricating is here.
DURANGO, CO— Next week at drinktec, the “world’s leading trade fair for the beverage and liquid food industry,” Ska Fabricating will launch the International Microbus, the world's smallest footprint semi-automated depalletizer, at their booth in Hall C3, Stand 233.
The Microbus, which was released earlier this year in the United States and Canada, will now be offered in an international version capable of handling six of the world’s common pallet sizes. The Microbus uses a hand crank or handheld drill to lift the Pallet Lift Carriage, which is raised until a layer of containers is level with the Deadplate, then a belt-driven actuator (sweep) pushes the layer onto the 44” OD (Orbital Discharge) Rotary Table, which accumulates the containers, aligns them and feeds them into a Rinse Cage. Both the rotary infeed table and the automated sweep can be folded away, further reducing this already small machine's footprint on the production floor.
The International Microbus was engineered and priced with smaller production volumes, budgets and spaces in mind. This is now available for purchase. Get more information about this innovative multi-pallet depalletizer here, or reach out to the Ska Fab team at sales@skafabricating.com.
Contact Emily Hutto with press inquiries about Ska Fabricating, and download press assets here.
ABOUT SKA FABRICATING
Ska Fabricating builds heavy-duty, automated packaging line equipment that is hand-crafted to make life easier for businesses that rely on their packaging lines. We specialize in depalletizers, palletizers, custom conveyance systems, rinsing, drying, automated fill level detection and rejection, and date coding products. A team of skilled engineers handles every project with care, creating customized layouts and ensuring our customers receive the absolute best outcomes for their production goals, space, and budget
With the acquisition of GR-X Manufacturing, we have expanded our capabilities for nearly all facets and verticals of the packaging market, including an even wider range of industries, container types, and line speeds.
Our customers receive on-time deliveries of the highest quality, most reliable products on the market. With 10+ years of experience and thousands of happy customers across the globe, we are dedicated to helping businesses of all sizes meet their high standards of quality and get their products packaged and onto the shelves. Find Ska Fab online at skafabricating.com.
Connect with Ska Fabricating During the 2022 Craft Brewers Conference
Meet the Ska Fabricating team and products The Microbus, the Can-I-Bus, and the Nimbus— three machines proven to help craft breweries automate and grow.
MINNEAPOLIS, MN— You’re invited to mingle with Ska Fabricating at the 2022 Craft Brewers Conference® (CBC) and BrewExpo America, where you can connect with the team and meet some of their most popular products The Microbus, the Can-I-Bus, and the Nimbus— three machines proven to help craft breweries automate and grow. Also on display will be some exciting additions to the conveyance worlds: the Z-Grip Lowerator, the S-Grip Lowerator, and the customizable operator platform.
It’s all going down at booth 2219.
WHAT
Ska Fabricating has provided more than 1,000 businesses with depalletizers and other specialized packaging line equipment in all 50 states, 7 provinces, and 23 countries. Created by craft brewers for craft brewers, Ska Fab's machinery is engineered to make life on a brewery's production line easier - increasing output, maximizing efficiency, and saving time and money.
WHEN & WHERE
May 2-5, 2022
Minneapolis Convention Center
1301 2nd Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55404
Booth 2219
CanSource presents Craft After Dark
May 3, 2022
Doors open at 7pm
701 N 1st Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55403
Ska Fab’s after hours event CanSource presents Craft After Dark on May 3, 2022 at the iconic First Avenue in downtown Minneapolis is an official nightly sponsored CBC event through the Brewers Association and is FREE to convention-goers with proof of convention pass! A portion of the proceeds for this evening of live music and charitable drinking will go to the Dodge Nature Center.
Doors open at 7pm.
This is a PRIVATE, 21+ event.
Beverages are sponsored by Ska Brewing and Peach Street Distillers. Cash bar.
Event Sponsors include: CanSource, Ska Fabricating, DMM Packaging, WM Wunderlich-Malec, A&E Conveyor Systems, Festo, Chart Inc., FIltec, Crafted ERP, RadCraft, CraftSeams, Antego Zeon and Markem-Imaje.
Contact Emily Hutto at hutto@radcraftbeer.com if you would like to connect with Ska Fab during CBC, or in general, for interviews or other media requests. Press assets are available here.
ABOUT SKA FABRICATING
Ska Fabricating automates packaging lines for craft businesses, specializing in depalletizers, palletizers, conveyance systems, rinsing, drying, filling and date coding products. With more than 2000 customers worldwide in more than 30 countries, Ska Fab has the products and experience to help you increase your production while saving expenses. Learn more at skafabricating.com.
Ska Fabricating Presents The World’s Smallest Footprint Depalletizer: The Microbus
Look for the machine at the Craft Brewers Conference in Minneapolis this May 2-5 at Ska Fab’s booth #2219.
DURANGO, CO– After nearly a decade of troubleshooting craft beverage canning operations and months beta testing the smallest footprint depalletizer on the planet, Ska Fabricating is pleased to present a new machine designed to meet the needs of the marketplace. Meet The Microbus.
Capable of speeds up to 30 CPM, the Microbus portable depalletizer is optimized for lower-speed applications in the smallest of spaces. The Microbus uses a manual crank, operated by hand or drill, to lift the Pallet Carriage. The Carriage is raised until a layer of containers is level with the Deadplate, then a belt-driven actuator (sweep) pushes the layer onto the 44” OD (Orbital Discharge) Rotary Table. The patented Rotary Table accumulates the containers, aligns them for discharge, and feeds them into a Rinse Cage and onto a filler. Both the rotary infeed table and the automated sweep can be folded away, further reducing this already small machine’s footprint on the production floor.
The first of The Microbus machines is installed at Mancos, Colorado’s Fenceline Cider. Ska Fabricating collaborated with Fenceline’s production team on a beta test, to which the cidery responded by purchasing The Microbus to expand their distribution capacity without taking up too much space in their small facility. View a video of The Microbus in action at Fenceline here.
The Microbus is now available for purchase. Contact sales@skafabricating.com to learn more.
Look for the machine at the Craft Brewers Conference in Minneapolis this May 2-5 at Ska Fab’s booth #2219.
Media inquiring about Ska Fabricating can email Emily Hutto at hutto@radcraftbeer.com.
ABOUT SKA FABRICATING
Ska Fabricating automates packaging lines for craft businesses, specializing in depalletizers, palletizers, conveyance systems, rinsing, drying, filling and date coding products. With more than 2000 customers worldwide in more than 30 countries, Ska Fab has the products and experience to help you increase your production while saving expenses. Learn more at skafabricating.com.
Ska Fabricating Acquires GR-X Manufacturing
Ska Fabricating is excited to announce its purchase of GR-X Manufacturing in a strategic move to leverage the two companies' complementary strengths and technology.
DURANGO, CO— Ska Fabricating is excited to announce its purchase of GR-X Manufacturing in a strategic move to leverage the two companies' complementary strengths and technology.
GR-X Manufacturing, founded in 2015 and based in Grand Rapids Michigan, specializes in providing depalletizing and palletizing equipment systems for consumer products and food and beverage industries.
The two rapidly expanding suppliers of packaging solutions will benefit from each other’s capabilities to offer the best value and technology in packaging line solutions for small to midsize operations. Both companies provide depalletizing and packaging solutions for various consumer packaged goods, though there is very little overlap in their specific market segments.
In announcing the acquisition, Ska Fabricating CEO Jim Mackay says, “Ska Fabricating’s roots lie in the craft beer market, and we’ve quickly grown from that foundation into other rigid packaging and can decorating lines. We see this as a natural progression in our growth as an industry leader in container handling.”
Both companies have found success in the packaging equipment market by focusing on meeting unique needs overlooked by other suppliers and offering excellent value.
Discussing the purchase, GR-X founder Jerry Pollard says “GR-X and Ska Fab share similar values: a strong customer focus, and always looking for new ways to grow and innovate. The two companies will benefit from each other’s strengths and our customers will be the beneficiaries.”
GR-X will retain its brand for the foreseeable future, and all existing customers will be fully supported. Ska Fabricating plans to retain all of the 100+ employees from both companies, and will gain some much-needed production space and capacity at the Grand Rapids facility.
For more information about this acquisition, or to learn more about Ska Fabricating, contact Emily Hutto at hutto@radcraftbeer.com.
ABOUT SKA FABRICATING
Ska Fabricating automates packaging lines for craft businesses, specializing in depalletizers, palletizers, conveyance systems, rinsing, drying, filling and date coding products. With more than 2000 customers worldwide in more than 30 countries, Ska Fab has the products and experience to help you increase your production while saving expenses. Learn more at skafabricating.com.
ABOUT GR-X MANUFACTURING
GR-X Manufacturing specializes in providing container handling equipment for the food/beverage, consumer products, and brewing industries. Our popular line of palletizing and depalletizing equipment ranges from manual to fully automatic solutions. Container flame treatment systems and semi-automatic baggers round out our equipment offerings. Our company philosophy is “Equipment built well – Sales made simple.” All of the equipment built by GR-X is designed to exceed industry standards in component quality, ease of use, fabrication standards, and reliability. Watch a short video about us and our equipment at https://vimeo.com/595309549 or visit our website at grxmfg.com!
Ska Fabricating Presents The Nimbus, Their Most Portable Machine For Breweries Yet
This new machine is designed to support breweries of all sizes and distribution models with the most portable, most customizable options Ska Fabricating offers.
DURANGO, CO— Meet The Nimbus by Ska Fabricating. This new machine is designed to support breweries of all sizes and distribution models with the most portable, most customizable options Ska Fabricating offers.
The Nimbus Half Height Depalletizer combines the best features from Ska Fabricating’s best-selling machines to create a new, low-cost depalletizer that's optimized for small spaces and lower speed applications. It expands the cutting- edge features of Ska Fab’s patented turntable design, providing additional accumulation and the ability to fold down and stow the rotary table—further reducing the machine's footprint when not in use. This innovation, combined with the Can-i-Bus’ pallet lift and layer sweep design, creates a compact, efficient can depalletizer with a discharge height that allows for excellent can drop and many discharge angle options. This machine is essentially silent with no vibrator, and requires minimal real estate on a production floor.
Craft brewery professionals can see The Nimbus in action at the Craft Brewers Conference in Denver in September on the expo floor, where the machine will also be joined by its (much bigger) sister, The Magic Bus.
The Nimbus is already finding new homes at craft breweries across the country, spanning sizes and business models. Contact sales@skafabricating.com with sales inquiries, and please direct press questions to Emily Hutto at hutto@radcraftbeer.com.
ABOUT SKA FABRICATING
Founded by Ska Brewing Co-Owner Matt Vincent, Ska Fabricating automates packaging lines for craft businesses, specializing in depalletizers, palletizers, conveyance systems, rinsing, drying, filling and date coding products. With more than 800 customers worldwide, Ska Fab has the products and experience to help you increase your production while saving expenses. Learn more at skafabricating.com.
Ska Fabricating Debuts Magic Bus Fully Automated Can Depalletizer
The Magic Bus is all about two things: speed and true automation.
The Magic Bus at Allagash Brewing Co.
DURANGO, CO— The latest product from Ska Fabricating, the Magic Bus, joins the fabrication company’s portfolio of canning options today. The Magic Bus is a fully automated can depalletizer with pallet management capable of speeds up to 600 CPM. It is ideal for any application where speed is important, increased automation is needed, and operator involvement can be minimized, and is now available to beverage companies worldwide.
The Magic Bus is all about two things: speed and true automation. Gone are the days of pouring time and labor into the manual handling of pallets, top frames and tier sheets on canning lines— the Magic Bus allows packaging teams to “set it and forget it” by simply loading cans, debanding, and pressing start. A standard two-pallet infeed pulls pallets of cans into a depalletizer, where they are automatically emptied, stacked, and have their top frame and tier sheets removed and stored. Learn more about this radical new machine in this video.
Two craft breweries have already implemented use of the Magic Bus in their canning operations. This new product can be found in the wild at Allagash Brewing in Portland, Maine and Maui Brewing on Maui island in Hawaii.
“It’s a pallet loader that lets us queue up a full pallet of empty cans in an infeed system that will then automatically index that next pallet into the depalletizer rather than waiting for a fork lift driver to do it. It’s one more way of making sure we keep the filler running and don’t starve it of cans. We were the first to install one of these systems from Ska.” - Sean Diffley, Engineering Director at Allagash Brewing Co.
Join the Ska Fabricating team for The Magic Bus virtual release party on Friday, April 24 at 10am MST, with a live demonstration of this new product followed by a q&a segment with Ska Fab’s fabrication experts.
Ska Fabricating is now accepting orders for the Magic Bus. Contact sales@skafabricating.com for more information.
ABOUT SKA FABRICATING
Founded by Ska Brewing Co-Owner Matt Vincent, Ska Fabricating automates packaging lines for craft businesses, specializing in depalletizers, palletizers, conveyance systems, rinsing, drying, filling and date coding products. With more than 800 customers worldwide, Ska Fab has the products and experience to help you increase your production while saving expenses. Learn more at skafabricating.com.
Ska Fabricating Debuts the Half Pint OD Mobile Depalletizer
The OD (Orbital Discharge) features the same lightweight, low-footprint spirit of the original Half Pint with a new patent-pending rotary table design.
DURANGO, CO— In their never-ending drive to pioneer the industry’s leading packaging line solutions, Ska Fabricating is proud to announce the new and improved “Half Pint OD” mobile depalletizer.
The OD (Orbital Discharge) features the same lightweight, low-footprint spirit of the original Half Pint with a new patent-pending rotary table design. This machine’s 30” wheel is the first of its kind, allowing for more accumulation, higher line speeds, a smaller footprint, and a better drop angle for the rinse cage. The wheel can run clockwise or counter-clockwise, making it possible to install two discharges for different container sizes with little to no changeover.
Small, challenging spaces are no problem for the OD, with removable gates that allow for over 180 degrees of flexibility for discharge and rinse cage placement. It still comes on wheels and can be easily moved in and out of the canning line area. And the noisy vibrator is gone, so this machine is essentially silent.
"The Half Pint OD is a breakthrough design when your situation calls for a fully automated solution that fits in a small space. The higher discharge height and much smaller footprint adds a huge amount of options." says Jim Mackay, CEO of Ska Fabricating.
The product has been tested and proven under working conditions, and the innovative design was driven by customer feedback Ska Fab’s commitment to engineering solutions for packaging line automation. You can see this machine’s debut at CanLand as a part of the California Craft Beer Summit in Long Beach, CA Thu, Sep 12, 2019 – Sat, Sep 14, 2019. It is available for order and shipping as of October 29, 2019.
Contact Emily Hutto at coop@radcraftbeer.com for more information about the Half Pint OD, and with all media inquiries about Ska Fabricating.
ABOUT SKA FABRICATING
Founded by Ska Brewing Co-Owner Matt Vincent, Ska Fabricating automates packaging lines for craft businesses, specializing in depalletizers, palletizers, conveyance systems, rinsing, drying, fill detection and date coding products. With more than 700 customers worldwide, Ska Fab has the products and experience to help you increase your production while saving expense. Learn more at skafabricating.com.