Before Frito Lay snacks reach stores, they first undergo a packaging process at the factory in Grodzisk Mazowiecki, where many types of products are prepared for various markets. Therefore, an efficient packaging and control system is crucial at this stage of production. Previously, the packaging stations used PC-controlled printers that were not networked. The system was inflexible and offered no room for development. Frito Lay was looking for a solution that would improve the comfort of the packaging process and enable the use of a central database to which new products and new label formats could be easily added. The choice fell on a solution from SKK Systemy Kodów Kreskowych SA. As part of the cooperation, the Krakow-based company proposed that Frito Lay use industrial Intermec PX4 label printers with a server application and a wireless WLAN network. The Intermec PX4 is a high-performance industrial label printer designed for continuous operation (24/7). It is a programmable device (in its own Fingerprint language) that can operate without a computer connection, as the software is stored in the printer’s memory. More than 30 such printers were supplied for the packaging stations. New formats and new contents for existing labels can be easily added by the administrator and placed on the server, making them available to all stations connected to the network. The application running on the printers is written in a way that eliminates the possibility of errors, is easy to use, and does not require a long operator training process. Moreover, thanks to the activity logging module, all actions performed by the operator and events occurring in the system are recorded in an event file. An undoubted advantage of the system is the possibility of expansion with additional stations. Adding a new station will consist of introducing a printer with the application and performing the appropriate configuration of the system server and the printer. It is worth noting that the system operates in off-line mode (label printing, print archiving) during standard operator-printer work. However, the on-line system is required when printers download new data and transmit data necessary for printing reports. An additional benefit that Frito Lay gained by using Intermec PX4 printers is the ability to prepare statistical reports on what has been produced and which products will go to the warehouse. The comfort of the system administrator’s work has also improved, as they can now make changes to all packaging stations from their own computer.









