Frozen novelty ice cream packaging lines are unforgiving. High line speeds, temperature sensitivity, and limited opportunities for accumulation mean that packaging interruptions quickly translate into product loss. When a premium ice cream manufacturer shifted high-volume stick novelty production from Mexico to a U.S.-based co-packer as part of a broader commitment to domestic production, packaging line performance became the deciding factor in whether the transition could be executed at scale.
Faced with that challenge, the co-packer partnered with IPM to design and integrate a stick novelty packaging line engineered to sustain uptime at a minimum of 720 bars per minute within a constrained footprint. The project required a fully integrated back-end system capable of protecting product integrity, maintaining throughput during downtime events, and delivering guaranteed performance from cartoning through palletizing.
The frozen novelty format added complexity. Once product exits the spiral freezer, production cannot simply stop. Approximately 45 minutes of product can continue moving downstream, even if upstream feeding is interrupted. Any packaging interruption risks significant product loss, rework, or compromised quality. In this environment, downtime is not just inefficient; it is costly.
Meeting the minimum throughput requirement alone was not sufficient. Because frozen product could continue moving downstream during upstream interruptions, the packaging line needed to operate with margin beyond nominal demand. The back end had to be capable of absorbing disruptions while continuing to run, rather than simply matching the required rate under ideal conditions. This shifted the focus from individual machine speeds to integrated system behavior across the packaging line.
The goal was clear: design a packaging system that could absorb disruptions without stopping product flow while maintaining strict performance targets. The solution also had to fit within a limited plant footprint and integrate with existing upstream freezing and flow-wrapping equipment.
A Systems-Level Integration Approach
IPM approached the project as a system integration challenge rather than as individual machines. The objective was not simply to meet a target rate, but to design a back-end packaging system that could continue operating predictably during disruptions. That meant engineering margin into the line, building in redundancy where it mattered most, and ensuring that downstream equipment was designed to outpace upstream demand when required. Each design decision was evaluated based on how the integrated system would behave under real operating conditions, recognizing that uptime is shaped by machine interaction and recovery behavior.
“At these speeds, uptime isn’t about how fast a single machine can run. It’s about how the system behaves when something changes. Recovery dynamics, interaction between machines, and how quickly the line stabilizes are what ultimately define performance.”
— Brad Breuker, Director of Applications & Business Development, IPM
IPM refers to this methodology as Hybrid Integration. Rather than optimizing individual machines in isolation, Hybrid Integration aligns OEM-neutral equipment selection, controls integration, and service strategy around system behavior under real operating conditions. In frozen novelty applications, where recovery dynamics, disruption tolerance, and interaction between machine centers define uptime, this systems-level focus is essential to achieving predictable performance at speed.
To achieve that behavior, IPM focused its engineering effort on the back end of the line, where disruption risk was highest. Rather than matching freezer output, downstream equipment was selected and integrated to operate above the minimum required rate. This provided a built-in margin that allowed the packaging line to continue running during downstream interruptions. Redundancy was intentional and targeted, applied where downtime would have the greatest downstream impact, with the goal of building system resilience rather than duplicating equipment unnecessarily.
OEM neutrality was critical to executing the system-level strategy. IPM did not begin with predetermined equipment selections. Instead, multiple back-end suppliers were evaluated based on how each option would perform within the integrated system. Two vendors were assessed against the same criteria, with emphasis on throughput capability beyond the minimum rate, serviceability, recovery behavior during disruptions, and overall fit within the available footprint. At production speeds, mismatched recovery dynamics between machine centers often define overall system stability, so the evaluation focused less on individual machine specifications and more on predictable, resilient line performance under real operating conditions.
One solution ultimately stood out based on how it behaved under disruption rather than how it performed under ideal conditions. The selected equipment demonstrated faster recovery following interruptions, more predictable operation during restart events, and better alignment with the overall control strategy of the line.
IPM’s OEM-neutral approach also created a competitive evaluation environment, allowing multiple suppliers to bid against the same system requirements. This ensured pricing reflected true market conditions rather than being driven by single-vendor preferences. As a result, the co-packer achieved a lower overall system cost while still meeting the line’s performance, serviceability, and integration requirements.
Controls integration was essential to translating system design into consistent line performance. IPM integrated controls across the back end to coordinate equipment behavior during rate changes, interruptions, and recovery events, ensuring the packaging line responded as a single system rather than as independent machines. This coordination aligned recovery timing and downstream response across machine centers, enabling smoother restarts and more predictable operation under disruption.
IPM Specified Packaging Line Equipment
Validating Performance Under Real Operating Conditions
From the outset, IPM aligned system design decisions with how performance would ultimately be validated. Acceptance criteria were defined around real operating conditions rather than idealized test scenarios, reflecting the realities of frozen novelty production. The packaging line was required to demonstrate sustained operation at the specified throughput while maintaining stability during planned and unplanned disruption events.
Validation extended beyond factory acceptance. As part of Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT), key machines were tested at the OEM’s facility in Germany to confirm performance prior to shipment. Because the finished product could not be shipped in frozen form for testing, IPM used a foam-based surrogate selected to replicate the handling characteristics of the frozen novelty format. In parallel, IPM conducted on-site testing of the conveyor system to verify product handling, accumulation behavior, and recovery dynamics under frozen conditions.
Rather than relying solely on individual machine acceptance, IPM validated performance at the system level, with specific validation of the custom conveyance system. This approach ensured that equipment interactions, recovery behavior, and control coordination were evaluated together, mirroring how the line would operate in production. Performance guarantees were tied to integrated system behavior, reinforcing accountability beyond installation and startup.
Startup Performance and Operational Outcomes
The packaging line was engineered with substantial throughput margin built into the back end. While the application required sustained operation at 720 bars per minute, IPM designed downstream packaging equipment with 25% engineered redundancy. This additional capacity was intentional, providing the margin required to support recovery and maintain control during the disruptions inherent to frozen novelty production.
Startup and commissioning confirmed the system behavior validated during Factory Acceptance Testing. The engineered back-end capacity allowed downstream equipment to absorb localized interruptions without forcing upstream stoppages, reducing the risk of product loss when frozen product continued flowing downstream. In frozen novelty applications, where scrap rates can often approach 30%, the system reduced scrap to below 15%, cutting expected losses by roughly half.
By validating both sustained throughput and recovery behavior under real operating conditions, the operation will transition into production with confidence that the packaging line would perform predictably at speed.
Key Performance Metrics
0
Bars/Minute
Back-end packaging designed to preserve uptime under disruption.
0%
Throughput Redundancy
Engineered margin that allows recovery without stopping product flow.
<0%
Scrap
50% of typical frozen
novelty scrap rates.
Engineering for Predictable Performance at Speed
With installation now underway, the co-packer is well-positioned to execute a critical production transition with confidence. Through IPM’s system-level integration, the packaging line was designed and validated to deliver sustained throughput, controlled recovery, and protected uptime through built-in capacity redundancy and coordinated controls.
For frozen and refrigerated food manufacturers facing higher speeds, tighter footprints, and increased operational risk, systems-level integration is essential to protect uptime, manage recovery, and sustain performance.
Ready to Engineer Uptime
Into Your Packaging Line?
Talk to IPM about how system-level integration can protect throughput,
reduce scrap, and keep your line running when it matters most.
