Project Overview
Rapid growth was pushing The Coconut Cult beyond the capacity of its existing production operation. The plant-based probiotic yogurt producer was expanding from an approximately 13,000-square-foot facility into a new 300,000-square-foot facility and preparing for a product launch with a major national retailer. The Coconut Cult needed to add production capacity quickly.
Scaling to that level, however, could not come at the expense of what had made The Coconut Cult successful. As the company moved from a smaller, more labor-intensive operation to a significantly larger, highly automated facility, preserving the distinctive product, identity, and culture behind its rapid growth was non-negotiable.
The project involved engineering and integrating a new automated packaging line for The Coconut Cult’s 8-ounce and 16-ounce glass jars with metal lids. Designed around a production requirement of 300 jars per minute, the new system would replace the company’s existing lower-speed packaging operation, where several packaging processes still relied on manual labor.
IPM was brought into the project early, shortly after The Coconut Cult selected the filler. That early involvement gave IPM the opportunity to understand both the production requirements and the priorities The Coconut Cult was determined to preserve as it grew. The company knew the production rate it needed to achieve, but the upstream and downstream packaging system required to support that rate had not yet been defined. IPM was selected as the integrator, and the project moved from the initial conversation to a defined packaging line project in just 60 days.
The Problem
Maintaining Product Flow at 300 Jars per Minute
A production rate of 300 jars per minute is exceptionally fast for a glass jar line, especially one using metal lids. Empty jars had to be depalletized, cleared of layer materials, rinsed, and delivered to the filler quickly enough to maintain that pace.
Downstream operations presented a similar challenge. At these high speeds, even a brief interruption at labeling, tamper banding, case packing, or another machine center could cause product to back up and eventually stop the filler. Maintaining continuous product flow across the line became critical to achieving the required production rate.
High-Speed End-of-Line Requirements
The production rate also created significant demands at the end of the line. More than 50 cases per minute had to move through palletizing, a major increase in speed and automation compared with The Coconut Cult’s previous operation, where case packing was performed manually.
At that high volume, any bottleneck in case packing or palletizing could disrupt upstream production.
Preserving Space for Future Growth
The new 300,000-square-foot greenfield facility gave IPM a blank canvas, but The Coconut Cult’s rapid growth meant that space could not be planned around a single packaging line. Future products and additional lines were already part of the company’s plans, so every decision about the initial system’s footprint would affect future expansion.
IPM’s Solution
One Partner for the Complete Packaging Line
IPM approached the project as a complete packaging system, bringing equipment, product flow, line balance, controls, robotics, and integration together around the performance requirements of the entire line.
As the single integration partner, IPM provided one point of accountability across the project, coordinating the engineering, equipment, controls, and technology partners required to bring the system together. Rather than leaving The Coconut Cult to manage multiple suppliers and individual machine centers, IPM took responsibility for how the complete packaging line would work as one system.
“IPM’s value comes from owning the outcome, not just supplying the equipment.”
— Dan Schimmel, Sales Engineer, IPM
Line Balance and Flow Control
IPM engineered the packaging system around a central objective: keep the filler running. That meant maintaining a consistent supply of empty jars upstream while ensuring downstream operations could keep product moving without backing up to the filler.
Upstream, IPM integrated high-speed glass depalletizing and rinsing to keep the filler supplied with empty jars. The depalletizing system had to clear layers from palletized unit loads, including removing dunnage and cardboard, quickly enough to support the required production rate.
“The filler shouldn’t stop because of anything downstream, and it shouldn’t be waiting for anything upstream. Ever.”
— Dan Schimmel, Sales Engineer, IPM
Downstream, IPM combined accumulation with progressively higher takeaway speeds rather than designing each machine center to simply match the 300-jar-per-minute filler rate. The accumulation provided time for operators to address brief downstream interruptions before they affected the filler, while the additional takeaway capacity allowed successive machine centers to recover and clear accumulated product once production resumed.
OEM-Neutral Equipment Selection
Working from the 300-jar-per-minute production requirement, IPM’s applications engineering team developed the initial layout, specified equipment for each machine center, and vetted the proposed system before it moved into detailed engineering.
IPM’s OEM-neutral approach gave the team the flexibility to evaluate technologies from multiple equipment manufacturers and select the ones that best fit each application. Drawing on experience with different OEMs and knowledge of which manufacturers and technologies are best suited to specific applications, the team could make equipment decisions based on each machine center’s requirements and the overall performance of the packaging line.
High-Speed Robotic Palletizing
At more than 50 cases per minute, robotic palletizing presented one of the line’s most demanding end-of-line applications. To accommodate that volume, IPM engineered a three-robot KUKA palletizing cell with two robotic arms that collate the incoming stream of cases into the required pallet pattern. A third robot then picks the completed layer and places it on the pallet. The robotic cell also reflects The Coconut Cult’s distinctive brand identity, with the equipment finished in the company’s signature pink.
“Robotics is only one piece of the solution. Product flow, line balance, controls, integration, changeover requirements, data collection, and maintenance accessibility are equally important.”
— Dan Schimmel, Sales Engineer, IPM
The Result
The Coconut Cult gained an automated packaging system engineered to support its 300-jar-per-minute production requirement from empty-jar handling through palletizing. Automation of previously manual packaging operations also allows the company to deploy its people to higher-value work as production continues to grow.
Importantly, that increased packaging capacity did not require The Coconut Cult to change the product or the manufacturing philosophy behind it. The company could preserve the process used to produce its probiotic coconut yogurt while automating how the finished product moves through packaging.
Key Project Data
300
Jars / Minute
50+
Cases / Minute
60
Days
Conversation to Agreement
The project also established packaging infrastructure within The Coconut Cult’s new 300,000-square-foot facility while preserving room for future expansion. The relationship is continuing as The Coconut Cult grows, with a new automated cup line planned as the next project with IPM.
“My biggest takeaway from the Coconut Cult project is that it demonstrates the true role of a systems integrator. IPM helped connect the customer’s growth objectives with the right automation strategy, coordinate the technology partners, and deliver a solution that supports both operational performance and company culture.”
— Dan Schimmel, Sales Engineer, IPM
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for What’s Next
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