Caramel Piece Handling

The Graybill Caramel Piece Handling Machine provided an innovative solution to a complex production challenge faced by a confectionery manufacturer. The customer aimed to launch a new chocolate product resembling a traditional peanut butter cup in appearance, but with a twist—its filling would consist of a rich caramel center embedded with whole peanuts instead of peanut butter.

While the manufacturer had developed a preliminary method for forming and cutting the sticky caramel mixture into individual “plug” shapes, they lacked a reliable, high-speed way to transfer these delicate centers into the chocolate shells without disrupting the process or compromising the product’s integrity. The viscous, tacky nature of the caramel-peanut mixture made automated handling particularly difficult.

Graybill stepped in and engineered a fully integrated caramel piece handling system that seamlessly connected the plug-forming and cutting mechanisms with a high-precision transfer system. This solution was capable of accurately and consistently placing each caramel plug into the molded chocolate cups at a rate exceeding 1,400 pieces per minute. The result was a streamlined, efficient production process that maintained product quality while meeting the demands of high-volume manufacturing.