Get QR Ready, Get Robot Ready: OAL to tackle food manufacturing’s two big shifts at PPMA Show 2026
Compliance pressure on the packaging line is increasing. Tesco’s move to GS1 Digital Link QR codes raises the bar again: every pack must carry the correct data, print at the required grade and scan first time at the till.
At the same time, labour remains a major constraint. Palletising is one of the hardest jobs in the factory to recruit and retain for, yet much of the industry still relies on manual handling because traditional robotic cells are too large, too expensive or too inflexible to fit existing lines.
At PPMA Show 2026, visitors to OAL’s Stand E80 will learn how to solve both problems in their own operations: how QR code capability can be added to the OAL Connected compliance system already trusted on more than 2,000 food production lines, so every code is right first time, and how fenceless palletising automates end-of-line handling in tight spaces.
“Food manufacturing is being asked to change on two fronts at once. Retailers are moving to QR codes that have to work all the way from the production line to the till, and labour is getting more expensive. The barriers that kept robots out of food factories, space and speed, are exactly what our fenceless platform was engineered to remove. At PPMA we will show both answers working side by side”
Jake Norman, Managing Director, OAL
Will your QR code go beep at the till?
Tesco has set the direction, and GS1 Digital Link QR codes are coming to the shelf, bringing waste reduction, richer traceability and new consumer applications with them. For manufacturers they also bring new inline compliance requirements. A good-looking QR code is not enough: it has to be right in data, print grade and scannability on every pack, with the evidence to prove it.
On Stand E80, OAL will show how QR capability slots into the same OAL Connected compliance system manufacturers already used for label and date code verification, making the transition right first time rather than a separate project bolted onto the line. Visitors will see the full journey from production line to till and what has to change before retailers make QR a requirement. OAL Connected is the first packaging verification platform to receive GS1 UK Approved status.
Palletising for the factories robots never fitted
Automating food factories has been historically challenging, traditional robot cells demand space that does not exist, collaborative robots struggle to match food production speeds.
OAL’s fenceless palletiser is a direct answer to those barriers. Up to three times faster than collaborative robots and needing only a fraction of the footprint, it is built for the pace, hygiene requirements and operational realities of food production and will run at production speed throughout the show. A second fenceless cell will run pick and place, automating the high-frequency manual tasks that keep labour demand high elsewhere on the line.
The demonstrations sit at the heart of OAL’s five-year programme, backed by a £5 million Innovate UK Innovation Loan, to deploy more than 1,000 robotic systems into UK food manufacturing by 2030, closing an adoption gap the sector can no longer afford.
Also on Stand E80, visitors will see a live AI vision demonstration for seal inspection, showing how the technology helps suppliers meet M&S quality standards. The system checks every pack in real time, flagging potential defects and reducing reliance on manual inspection.
Visitors can find the team on Stand E80 from 22-24 September 2026.