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News Release for Columbia Machine, Inc.
Editors Contact:

Julie Lindblad
Columbia Machine, Inc.
107 Grand Blvd.
Vancouver, WA 98661
Phone: (800) 628-4065 Fax: (360) 750-9221
Email: jullin@colmac.com
Web address: www.palletizing.com

R-Factor: Robotic capability meets conventional palletizer simplicity
Columbia Machine is excited to leverage the leading technologies from Rockwell Automation,
Agile Planet and Motoman in this very powerful and simple to use palletizer.
Instead of having to harmonize two independent control technologies to manage the functions of
the robot arm and the basic machine control, all of that is done through the ControlLogix PLC. This not
only gives increased reliability and pattern forming capability, it also allows plant personnel to easily
understand and maintain the system. Customers will work with familiar PLC controls and will no longer
be required to learn and work with the robotic arm proprietary software. This hybrid palletizer technology
known as R-Factor, available only from Columbia Machine, marries this new technology - robotic
capability and simple conventional palletizer designs - into a very powerful package that has never been
available until the introduction of the FL2000-R.
R-Factor is available with any of Columbia Machine’s floor-level or high-level palletizers. A hybrid
palletizer from Columbia Machine is able to quickly adapt to your frequently changing packaging and
palletizing requirements. Packages with high center of gravity, minimal packaging (and therefore
protection), or those requiring labels out pattern forming, can now be handled with ease. Not only does
the hybrid technology allow for handling of challenging package types, but it also is able to position cases
upright just prior to layer formation. This allows difficult to convey, high CG products to be conveyed to
the palletizer infeed easily and then be simply up-ended in the palletizer.
For more than 50 years, Columbia Machine has manufactured high-level, floor-level, and robotic
palletizers and accessories in the USA. Columbia features flexible, upgradeable designs to rates of over
150 cases per minute. All Columbia palletizers are built in the USA and backed by 24-hour customer
support and parts service.