The FR5 pouch transfer works while its preparation keeps growing

From prepared inserts. That is the problem. Manual comparison includes opening the supply carton and arranging the pouches, so the starting conditions are different.

Can you compare both from that unopened supply carton to the same finished tray state, with preparation and interruptions included?

Yes. We will use the normal incoming mix and the packing operator. The estimate will also include my support time rather than hide it in development.

Separate initial development from help needed on every order. Both matter, but they tell you different things about future cost. What tasks are you currently stepping in to do during a normal run?

Reseating pouches, choosing the next insert and deciding how to deal with uncertain pickups. Those interventions recur. Initial programming is separate in the revised estimate.

Would a second trained person know which insert to choose? I'd like to know whether the recurring support is missing handover or a presentation problem that training won't remove.

And what result would stop the pilot? Agree that before another insert makes the original budget feel nearly within reach again.

Toby, both seem involved; the comparison includes someone else choosing the setup. Alex, we require a worthwhile reduction in attended work without making changeover harder. No extra tooling authorised meanwhile.

Give that person proper practice time before the comparison. They should not be judged against the developer after one quick explanation. The training time still belongs in the cost, but a fair trial needs both methods reasonably understood.

Agreed practice completed. Full-order comparison took more attended time than manual. Choosing the insert became easier; flattening and reseating still interrupted the work. The operator preferred the manual bench for mixed orders.

Did either method tie up the shared bench between orders? That can matter even when nobody is actively touching the pouches.

Robot setup reserved most of it. Manual packing could be cleared into a trolley. We have stopped the mixed-order proposal and are checking one stable refill type on paper only.

Keep the remaining manual work in that subset estimate. A stable product may have a useful case, but moving the awkward orders outside the boundary must not make their space and staffing disappear.

Both workflows stay in the estimate. The stable refill would need its own allocated space, which is not currently available. I have not treated that as a free corner.

Has the space question ruled out that subset, or is someone still comparing a workable layout? That seems to be the next decision rather than another transfer test.

Thank you for distinguishing the learned changeover from the persistent pouch preparation. That is useful for our own teaching trials; more instruction does not automatically fix the process.

Any space decision yet?

No approved location. Subset remains paused without new tooling or trials. Mixed orders stay manual. The comparison has answered that part even if the narrower idea remains open.

Leave the cleared bench in the result photos too. The arm moving a pouch is not the only useful outcome to show the colleague who needs that space.