A custom automation integrator you can actually check the claims on
Odecopack is a FANUC Authorized System Integrator and custom automation engineering services provider, with mechanical, electrical and robotics engineering in house. Below is what we'd check before hiring any integrator — including us — and the engineering services we offer on their own.
- Authorization
- FANUC Authorized System Integrator
- Engineering
- Mechanical, electrical, robotics — in house
- Accountability
- One contract, concept to commissioning
- Support
- US-based technicians, Hockley, TX
What an automation integrator actually does
A custom automation integrator engineers a production system around a specific customer's product and process, rather than selling a fixed catalog machine. That usually means combining mechanical design, robotics, controls and safety into one coordinated project — different from an equipment manufacturer, which builds and sells one defined product.
Odecopack does both. We manufacture standard palletizers and case packers with published pricing, and we integrate custom systems as a FANUC Authorized System Integrator, with the same in-house mechanical, electrical and robotics team handling both kinds of work.
"Custom automation companies" is a broad search — it covers equipment builders, integrators, and engineering firms that only design. The checklist below is meant to help you tell which one you're actually looking at before you sign anything.
What to check before hiring a custom automation integrator
Six questions, in roughly the order they should change your decision. Ask us these too.
Who actually does the engineering
Ask whether the mechanical, electrical and robotics design happens in house or gets subcontracted out per project. A subcontracted design team means an extra handoff, an extra markup, and nobody in the room who can answer a controls question about the mechanical drawing.
Robot authorization, not just experience
"We've worked with FANUC robots" and "we are a FANUC Authorized System Integrator" are different claims. Authorization means the integrator is vetted, trained and supported directly by the robot manufacturer — ask for the certification, not the anecdote.
One contract or several
Find out whether concept, engineering, fabrication, controls, installation and commissioning are one contract with one point of accountability, or several vendors you will have to coordinate yourself when something doesn't line up.
Whether you see it run before it ships
A factory acceptance test — running your actual product on the cell, in the integrator's facility, before it ships to yours — is the cheapest point in the project to catch a problem. Ask whether that step exists and whether you're invited.
What you get in writing
A real integrator hands over a complete electrical schematic package, not a verbal walkthrough. Ask to see a sample. If your maintenance team can't read the drawing, they can't fix the machine at 2am without a phone call to the integrator.
Support after the invoice is paid
Ask who answers the phone in year three, where they are based, and what a service response actually looks like. A cell with excellent engineering and no support behind it becomes a liability the day something breaks.
Custom automation engineering services
Full turnkey systems are one way to work with us. Each of these can also be scoped as a standalone engineering service.
Mechanical design
3D CAD concept and detailed mechanical design for a cell, fixture or retrofit — sized to your product, your floor plan and your existing equipment.
Electrical design and schematics
Controls architecture, panel layout and a complete electrical schematic package, whether the panel is built by us or by your own team.
Robot programming
Path, tooling and I/O programming for FANUC robots, including offline simulation before anything is committed to the floor.
Safety and risk assessment
Machine safety risk assessment and guarding specification for a new cell or an existing line that needs to meet current standards.
Controls integration
PLC programming and HMI development that integrates a new cell with equipment already running on your line.
Panel build
Control panel fabrication and wiring, built and tested in house against the schematic package before it ships.
For the full engineering scope on a complete build, see custom automation. For robot selection and packaging applications, see custom robotic integration.
How we hold up against our own checklist
FANUC Authorized System Integrator
Vetted and supported directly by FANUC, not a reseller claiming familiarity with the platform.
Mechanical, electrical and robotics in house
The same team scopes, designs, programs and builds — nothing crosses a subcontractor boundary mid-project.
One contract, one point of accountability
Concept through commissioning under a single agreement. When something needs to change, there is one number to call.
Factory acceptance before it ships
Every custom cell runs your product on our floor first — the cheapest place in the project to find a problem.
30+ years in packaging automation
Engineering and support built on decades in the industry, not a team assembled for this quarter's project pipeline.
US-based, fast-response support
Built in Hockley, Texas, and installed and supported across the United States by our own technicians.
Which scope fits your project
Hire a full-scope integrator when
- The project spans multiple disciplines
- Mechanical, electrical, controls and robotics all touch the same cell. Coordinating that in house usually costs more than it saves unless it's a core, recurring competency.
- You need one party accountable for the outcome
- A single contract means no finger-pointing between a mechanical vendor and a controls vendor when the cell doesn't run at rate.
- The robot platform requires authorization
- Warranty, support and safety compliance on an industrial robot generally require working with an authorized integrator for that platform.
Scope engineering services only when
- You have your own build and install capability
- Some plants have a strong in-house maintenance and fabrication team and only need the design and programming scoped correctly.
- You're validating a concept before committing capital
- A mechanical concept and cycle time estimate can de-risk a budget request before a full engineering package is commissioned.
- An existing system needs a controls or safety update
- Retrofitting controls or safety onto equipment you already own is often a design-and-integration scope, not a new-build scope.