Coding specialist Interactive Coding Equipment is helping fresh vegetable producer Tattersett Farms Partnership to maximise its production capabilities after the installation of two Zodiac thermal transfer printers.
Tattersett is a family run business that has been growing, harvesting, processing and packaging high quality vegetable produce, including parsnips and carrots, for more than 50 years. The company has continued to invest in technology over the years to support production and was one of the first vegetable suppliers to provide its crop in plastic bags for Marks & Spencer, and one of the first in the industry to use an electronic automatic weighing machine.
With the installation of an additional Ulma bagger to meet increased demand, the company used the opportunity to review its existing coding equipment. The Zodiac was selected for its simple-to-use operation, including changes to the labels, and its speed and reliability, which have led to improvements and savings in the efficiency of Tattersett’s processing operation.
In particular, with the company’s previous coders, changing the price on a label when it went over £1 had become a problem. As Scott Hammond, farm manager at Tattersett, explained: “We were having issues every time we needed to change the price and it had started to become a fretful process.”
By comparison, the Zodiac’s user-friendly functions allowed fast and easy changes: “Originally, we were concerned that it would be complicated to use the Zodiac,” said Hammond. “However, we were immediately proven wrong.”
Key to the Zodiac’s simple operation is its large, colour touchscreen and its function to set predefined fields and defaults: “It was clear that changing the prices when we needed to would no longer be an issue,” said Hammond. Equally important, the ICE printers are able to keep up with the busy production line with minimum downtime, enabling the company to meet tight deadlines – vital for a seasonal business with high periods of demand such as Christmas and Easter. The Zodiac also provides the clear and accurate codes that are essential for the food industry.
The success of the Zodiac is illustrated by the fact that within days of the installation of the first machine, Tattersett was impressed that the company decided to replace its other TTO coder with a second Zodiac.
“ICE is responsive, the printer is reliable and the software is user friendly,” said Hammond. “We can make instant changes without the technical support that we required with our previous coders, which was becoming a burden to do each time. We wouldn’t have anything other than ICE coders now. The company has been fantastic and the focus on customer support is excellent. The burden of ‘when is this going to go wrong?’ has gone, along with the stress levels this caused, allowing us to focus on delivering great-quality produce for our customers.”
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