Fruit Picking Aid
The FPA3600 project began with a client expressing concern over rising input costs in the mango growing production. With increasing pressures on profitability, there was a need to find a solution that could reduce operational costs without sacrificing the quality of the fruit. The challenge was to maintain high standards in fruit production while improving efficiency, ultimately increasing profit margins.
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The Challenge
The main challenge in mango harvesting lies in the delicate nature of the fruit’s skin. Mangoes must be picked in a mature state, but their sap is highly toxic to the skin and can easily cause blemishes, known as sap burn. These blemishes make the fruit unappealing to consumers, often leading to quality rejections. Our goal was to develop a solution that would reduce this impact and protect the fruit throughout the harvesting process. We began by collaborating with leading industry chemical companies to better understand how their products prevent sap burn and ultimately found while some products on the market could reduce sap burn, no mechanical harvesting device fully eliminated the issue. Additionally, mangoes are fragile, so it was crucial that our harvesting method avoided damage from both machinery and human handling. We identified that improper handling, such as throwing the fruit, caused unnecessary damage due to the large target areas used on other mango harvest aids. To address this, we recognised a psychological shift was needed to discourage treating the mango like a tennis ball.
The Solution
By redesigning the machine, we created a more compact and targeted area for placing the fruit, which reduced the temptation to throw it and ensuring gentler handling from the start. Next, we focused on efficiently applying a mango wash solution to prevent sap burn. We streamlined the process, so the solution was applied immediately as the fruit entered the machine. A small, compact picking area with soft brushes was developed to gently handle the mangoes. These brushes increased the surface area of water contact, ensuring the solution was evenly lathered and distributed within seconds of picking. The brushes also acted as a metering and catching device, transitioning the chaos of fruit being picked into an orderly process. Once on the machine, the fruit is travelled via roller conveyors with soft brushes keeping it stable through the transition from placing pads to conveyors. The conveyors moved the mangoes smoothly through the de-sapping process, minimising the risk of damage. The way the fruit bins were carried on the machine was also carefully tailored, reducing the drop height from the conveyor to just a few hundred millimetres. This gentle transition helped protect the fruit from bruising, ensuring that the quality of the mangoes remained intact throughout the entire process.
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Results of The Project
The outcome was nothing short of remarkable. We developed a compact machine that seamlessly fit into orchard layouts not initially designed for harvest aids. The machine's performance exceeded expectations, with an 11-person team achieving the same harvest efficiency that would typically require 30 people hand-picking. Not only did we increase operational efficiency, but we also saw a significant improvement in the quality of the harvested fruit. For operations picking and packing 30,000 trays or more, the impact on the bottom line was evident from the very first season, delivering faster, more cost-effective results without compromising on quality.
Let's Get In Touch
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Email Address
info@ace-industries.com.au
Phone Number
0407 144 104
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