If you would like to submit a solution, please go to the P&G Innovation Brief Response Form https://bit.ly/3p1l21U to complete their form with the requested information, AND submit here and we'll try to to help you get status on your application.
Business Background:
P&G is continuously focused on improving product quality and quality related operations. For this specific brief P&G is interested in innovation to automate quality test methods in its plants.
Business Challenge / Needs Definition:
P&G is looking for partners and solutions to automate the testing of feminine care pad products within the manufacturing and testing lab environment. The scope of automation for this brief is around the automation of the preparation process prior to tensile testing. P&G is open to considering a combination of both testing preparation and testing itself through automated solutions.
At this moment site teams are faced with a challenge of destructive quality test automation, which consists of three types of tests executed on a tensile tester: 1) Adhesives Peel Force, 2) Crimp Tear Force, and 3) Fusion Bond Force. All tests are destructive and require a relatively complex sample preparation procedure that cannot be automated by means of a vision system, as the tests are intended to study mechanical properties of material bonds within the FemCare products. The below table highlights the cadence and time effort for each of the three testing methods:
Testing Method
|
PFA Peel Force
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Crimp Force
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Fusion Bond Force
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Total
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Time to execute test per day per line
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3 min X 6 samples = 18 min
|
2 min X 6 samples = 6 min
|
2 min X 6 samples = 6 min
|
30 min
|
Specific Needs to be Met:
- Automation of Test Preparation Process
- Automation of Testing Process (or integration of Test Preparation automation with existing testing infrastructure)
- Cleaning system should be able to discard the collected debris and webbing
Initial Areas of Interest for Scoping:
- Automated testing options already available on the market
- Custom built automated solutions.
The desired outcome is a pilot or partnership with P&G to show proof of concept (POC) of the solution. If successful, the pilot solution or partnership could lead to a longer-term relationship across multiple markets.
The Ask:
P&G is looking for partners and solutions that can support the automation of quality testing and preparation process at its Feminine Care manufacturing sites. If a viable solution is found, P&G is having the objective to execute a pilot in the United States / Europe, which will be scaled if successful. An ideal solution should improve current quality testing and preparation process without adding additional complexity that requires effort/management. If you have ideas and supporting technologies that you believe can help deliver innovative solutions to the challenge above, we want to hear from you. All ideas and submissions will be fully reviewed.