April 2021 – Norwegian robot developer Halodi Robotics has entered into a partnership with the Italian packaging company Altopack to co-develop Altopack Packaging Robot. The humanoid robot will be used to refill consumables such as plastic and cardboard for packaging machines.

The packing robot is to be ready for delivery in 2023. As part of the development collaboration, Altopack also becomes a minority shareholder in Halodi Robotics. The companies will not disclose the financial details of the transaction.

“Our customers have always seen Altopack as a leader in utilizing state-of-the-art technology in our solutions. By entering into a collaboration with Halodi Robotics, we are taking a giant leap forward in ensuring our competitive advantage,” says Giuseppe Vezzani, managing director of Altopack.

Altopack designs, develops and delivers automated systems for packaging foods such as pasta, rice, frozen goods, animal feed and more.

“At Halodi, we truly believe that our robots can make workplaces better by performing tasks that are dirty, dangerous and dull, so that employees can prioritize functions where they can create greater value. The collaboration with Altopack is an excellent example of this, says Bernt Bornich, CEO of Halodi Robotics.

Altopack has supplied packaging systems to 40 different countries, and an important matter for Altopack is that the robots can be remotely controlled to service machines. Some of the machines the company delivers are used in countries that can be difficult to travel to, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The parties will work closely to develop and adapt the robot’s software, and part of the work will take place at Altopack’s development center in Bologna, Italy.

Humanoid

Halodi Robotics has developed a humanoid robot that moves using a set of two wheels and has movable arms for work tasks. It performs pre-programmed tasks using artificial intelligence.

Halodi Robotics aims to renew several industries using robot technology. The company is headquartered in Moss, Norway, with branch offices in Montreal, Canada, and California, USA.

Grocery robot

Recently, Halodi Robotics also entered into an agreement with the Norwegian listed technology company Strongpoint to develop an in-store grocery retail robotics solution. The value of the partnership is approximately NOK 8 million, with half being allocated to research and development in the project, and half as a direct investment in Halodi Robotics.

The aim of the partnership is to develop a robotic solution for the grocery retail sector that will help staff with repetitive tasks, so they can focus on more complex tasks and spending time with customers and more complex tasks.

“The grocery sector is another industry where we see huge opportunities for the use of robots to support employees,” says Bernt Bornich.