Strawberry calyx removal is a process required by the frozen strawberry industry. Today, this task is achieved manually by low paid workers and involving the risks such as food contamination or injury due to blade manipulation. In this context, Orizon Vision and Acessomatic designed an industrial machine with the purpose of automatizing the calyx removal process.
The feasibility study for the above mentioned project was funded by the H2020 phase 1 of SME instruments. The action was developed between June and November 2015 with the mains purpose of providing a deep research and analysis of several aspects regarding the business case. Four independent aspects have been approached:
1. Market study – through deep analysis of data from different sources, we intended to have a better understanding about the strawberry market and in particular the frozen strawberry market. The contact with a prospective client allowed a better understanding of the requirements and customer view of the business.
2. Technical tests – preliminary tests on the artificial vision algorithms, an innovative and critical part of the proposed solution, in order to ensure technical feasibility of the solution in respect to customers’ expectation. Research on EU standards and directives regarding food machinery in order to ensure allowed commercialization across the EU countries.
3. Intellectual property – research on background, namely existing industrial and academic solutions, which could compromise the patentability and degree of innovation of our solutions. Research on existing patents in order to assess available technology and conflicts with the proposed machine.
4. Business plan – a detailed business plan evaluating the three previous points as well as reasonable financial projections further supported the return on investment and the financial viability of the project.
This feasibility study allowed achieving important conclusions regarding market size, existing competitors and technology as well as redefining reasonable financial projections. The main outcome of this project is the ability to engage into a more informed and supported decision regarding the investment in this project.
