From Bottlenecks to 30% Growth: How Intelligent Sortation Built Scalable Throughput for Prima Frutta

The Client: Prima Frutta

Prima Frutta is a premium producer and global supplier of fresh cherries and apples. To maintain their standing as a top-tier provider, they operate an extensive processing facility designed to handle high-volume seasonal outputs for both domestic and international markets.

As Prima Frutta expanded its market share, the company faced the classic growth challenge of scaling a high-velocity perishable goods operation. Their facility needed to manage a complex split between domestic and export products, requiring a system that could adapt to increased throughput while maintaining the precise flow necessary for fresh fruit processing.

The Challenge

The Bottlenecks of Manual Volume

As production rates soared to meet global demand, Prima Frutta encountered severe congestion in the palletizing area. The workspace became overcrowded with pallets, containers, and personnel, creating a logistical puzzle that hampered overall efficiency.

Traffic Jams on the Floor

The reliance on ground-level movement for multiple production lanes created a significant conflict between product flow and facility traffic. Forklifts, maintenance vehicles, and floor personnel were constantly competing for space with the very products they were trying to move, leading to delays and safety concerns.

Scaling for Increased Output

With product split between different destinations, coordinating the flow of fresh cherries from the processing lines to the final palletizing stage became increasingly difficult. They needed a way to manage the pace and gapping of the product to prevent total system gridlock during peak harvest surges.

The Solution

Recognizing that their operational throughput needed to match the premium quality of their fruit, Prima Frutta sought a fundamental shift in their material handling. They partnered with FloStor Engineering to design an integrated system that brought order and high-speed intelligence to their expanding processing facility.

Engineering the Flow

FloStor designed a solution that maximized the existing facility footprint by moving the transport of multiple production lanes overhead. This “airborne” strategy cleared the production floor, allowing for the free flow of forklift and pedestrian traffic underneath while providing a controlled, continuous stream of product to the back end of the house.

Precision Merging and Sortation

To solve the bottlenecks occurring prior to palletizing, FloStor implemented sophisticated induction technology. The system utilized specialized 2-to-1 and 3-to-1 merges, along with a custom Hytrol “Curve-Merge” that blended lines from opposite sides into a single output. This ensured that product reached the sorter at a steady rate with optimum gapping.

Intelligent Sortation

The core of the new system was a Hytrol ProSort Narrow Belt Sortation System. This automated the distribution of fruit, replacing manual guesswork with a high-speed, mechanical solution capable of directing domestic and export products to their specific destinations with surgical precision. To further optimize the facility, FloStor integrated a vertical spiral conveyor, freeing up valuable floor space that was previously consumed by traditional declines.

The Power of Integration in Action

The partnership between Prima Frutta and FloStor transformed a congested packing house into a predictable, high-efficiency powerhouse. By weaving together overhead transport, intelligent merging, and high-speed sortation, they created a unified workflow engine capable of handling the rigors of the cherry and apple seasons.

The flexibility offered by the new automated layout eliminated the overcrowding and bottlenecks of the past. Prima Frutta can now process premium fruit at significantly higher rates while maintaining a clear and safe environment for their personnel. As a result, the implementation of the Hytrol ProSort system helped increase their overall production by 30%, ensuring their operational flow is as high-performing as the premium product they ship around the world.